Neil Hegarty

‘Drinking from a fetid pond’: superbug-creating genes found in UK’s largest lake Exclusive: Lough Neagh, which supplies drinking water for 40% of NI, contains genes resistant to last-resort antibiotics

Superbugs resistant to antibiotics are rising fast. I tested water at Lough Neagh (40% of Northern Ireland’s drinking water) & found high levels of antibiotic-resistant genes from human & livestock poo. If we treat waterways like sewers, this is what we get. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

From today’s Irish Times x

Glad to be part of Words, in Other Places - a new festival coming to Dublin and Belfast in April.

I'm looking forward to my conversation with peerless @jancarsonwrites.bsky.social & @wednesdayerskin.bsky.social & Leontia Flynn.

With thanks to @eatthestorms.com @irishwriterscentre.bsky.social

Court rules no new terror trial for Kneecap's Ó hAnnaidh Kneecap rapper Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh will not face a new terror trial after judges at the High Court in London rejected a Crown Prosecution Service appeal against the decision to throw out the case.

Kneecap rapper Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh will not face a new terror trial after judges at the High Court in London rejected a Crown Prosecution Service appeal against the decision to throw out the case
www.rte.ie/news/uk/2026...

Wood anemones, and the first tulip.

The 2026 RTÉ Short Story Competition announces call for entries Recognising and rewarding the best new Irish fiction writing for radio for 40 years...

Writers over the age of 18 living in Ireland, and Irish writers around the world have until Friday 15th May 2026 to submit their short story, in English or Irish at www.rte.ie/writing. Story wordcounts must fall between 1800 and 2000 words, excluding the title @rte.ie
www.rte.ie/culture/2026...

Sunlight sliding from the mountains and lakes of Prespa, a dozen mute swans floating out into deeper water and Dalmatian pelicans rowing through the cold, dimming air towards their reed-island nests. As I turn to leave a marsh glides past, its wings as still as the surface of the lake.

The countdown begins, @jancarsonwrites.bsky.social...

#ticktock
#FewandFarBetween

@booksupstairs.bsky.social

LAUNCH | Few and Far Between by Jan Carson | Books Upstairs We are thrilled to be launching Jan Carson’s new novel, Few and Far Between. From the award-winning author of The Raptures and The Fire Starters comes a new, magically surreal novel about history, ide...

Really looking forward to the Dublin launch of #FewAndFarBetween April 9th @booksupstairs.bsky.social with the lovely @neilhegarty.bsky.social Tickets are free but please book in advance following this wee link booksupstairs.ie/all-events/l...

My copies of the gorgeous No Alibis special edition of #FewAndFarBetween just arrived with their bespoke covers, sexy endpapers and additional essay about the history behind the novel. Only 500 available, all signed, numbered, with a Rory Jeffers map of the Ark. Preorder from the No Alibis website.

Field Notes from an Extinction by Eoghan Walls: Compelling story of survival and apocalypse Both humans and birds are the victims of systems and philosophies run amok in this novel about an English scientist studying the last of a dying species

Neil Hegarty on Field Notes from an Extinction by Eoghan Walls: Compelling story of survival and apocalypse. Both humans and birds are the victims of systems and philosophies run amok in this novel about an English scientist studying the last of a dying species

www.irishtimes.com/culture/book...

Derry sunset.

Wonderful essay by @neilhegarty.bsky.social in our latest collection, 𝘈𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭! 🙂

Today's evacuation orders in Beirut displace 100,000s - including elderly people, children, people with disabilities, etc. etc., all having to leave in a hurry with no idea what will happen to their homes. This kind of mass forced displacement is illegal under international law.

Just reread Silas Marner. Anyone thinking the humanities are a waste of time should read it and review their life choices.

So delighted to be on the longlist for the @womensprize.bsky.social.

On the early train to Carrick on Shannon, tracing the canal all the way. I have Late Heaney by @dedalusdenaries.bsky.social for company.

Well, I made it into the window of No Alibis

The Belfast Telegraph has published an edited version of my @pva-books.bsky.social PVA essay 'Ghost Monument'.

The visuals show something of the, well, monumental nature of Walker’s Pillar-as-was, and its dramatic context on the city walls of Derry.

One of my most loved passages.

Send me your poems! ✨️

The scene at the @shhomeplace.bsky.social Heaney HomePlace last night, following the launch of Late Heaney by @dedalusdenaries.bsky.social Nicholas Allen, with music by Iarla Ó' Lionáird. A brilliant conversation and a great evening.

The Strand at Lough Beg.

Because nothing else is happening, let me highlight the constant glory of the library card.
I have just returned @neilhegarty.bsky.social's exceptional, remarkable THE JEWEL. And I had not planned to pick up anything else - but looky here:
(yes, it is rather a change of mood)

Beatings will continue until morale improves.

Dooneen Check out Dooneen - <p>Bartholomew Port, known to all as Mew, steps into the bushes in a London park and steps out of the bushes in a Dublin one. Not only that – there are no cars; there are moving fo...

You can pre-order my debut novel Dooneen on @bookshop.org here. It's my sixth debut novel. Pre-orders, as I'm sure you know, are essential to the healthy continuance of society. If you don't pre-order right now, you're basically destroying everything beautiful.

Golden Eagle - that wingspan was far too large for me to capture #birds

Many thanks to @pva-books.bsky.social & @booksupstairs.bsky.social & a terrific audience for a great launch of the latest Paper Visual Art tonight. Enjoyed it so much.

🎟️ Secure your tickets now at > seamusheaneyhome.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/...