An event in 3 parts: screening of In Time, Q&A (with Nuala O’Connor, Brían Mac Gloinn and Frank Tate) and music (Andy Irvine, Brían Mac Gloinn, Evan Ó Cualáin and Fionn O’Hanlon).

Estimated duration 2.5 hours.

“Dónal and myself and all the team involved in the making of the film are delighted to have been invited to bring In Time – Dónal Lunny to the film strand at Sounds From a Safe Harbour at the Triskel. This beautifully curated programme of films all featuring outstanding musicians makes for a particularly resonant setting for In Time where Dónal Lunny’s work as a creative artist will receive the wider recognition it so richly deserves. He is an artist of genius and integrity of whom the country can be justifiably proud.”

Nuala O’Connor, Director, In Time – Dónal Lunny

In Time – Dónal Lunny

95 mins – Ireland 2025 – Documentary
Director: Nuala O’Connor
Featuring: Christy Moore, Andy Irvine, Paddy Glackin and Frank Tate

Dónal Lunny is one of Ireland’s outstanding artists. This will be the first film account of his life, revealing a peerless contribution to Irish culture and music. It will be an appraisal of the creative process of a uniquely exceptional artist, revealing a life lived entirely for art’s sake.

A key figure in the folk revival of the 1970s, Lunny brought Irish traditional and folk music to a global audience. His sound, his phrasing, arrangements and instrumentation make him a producer and collaborator of choice for artists. Bono refers to him as “Ireland’s answer to Quincy Jones”. His influence can be seen in a vast array of production credits and collaborations including Elvis Costello, U2, Van Morrison, Sinéad O’Connor, Paul Brady, Baaba Maal, Kate Bush and many more.

In Time reveals how Dónal Lunny has been responsible for breathing new life into Irish traditional music which was in a severe decline in the mid 20th century. He was a founding member of three of the most influential Irish contemporary traditional/folk groups of the past 60 years: Planxty, The Bothy Band and Moving Hearts.

In Time highlights how Dónal Lunny’s legacy of artistic output has now endured. It explores how a distinctively Lunny aesthetic, which expresses itself in a sound, in an approach to arrangement, instrumentation and percussion has inspired so many traditional and folk musicians who have come of age since the 1970s. That influence spread out beyond Irish traditional and folk music and embedded itself in the genre of world music. Anywhere this kind of music is played, recorded or performed Dónal Lunny’s name is known. During the making of this film, Dónal became seriously ill. Yet, in a moment of profound poignancy, he left hospital for a day to perform with lifelong friend and fellow folk legend Christy Moore. That intimate performance becomes a centrepiece of the film – an iconic moment in Irish folk music history and a powerful testament to friendship, resilience, and the spirit of the artist.

About the Panellists

Nuala O’Connor, co-founder of South Wind Blows, has worked as writer and documentary filmmaker in the areas of music and the arts since 1987. Nuala was a researcher and writer on the Bringing It All Back Home six part documentary series for BBC and RTÉ television, and in 1994 she won an Emmy Award for outstanding individual achievement in cultural programming, for her writing of a one hour version of the series. In 2013 she wrote and co-directed From Moment to Moment with Philip King, a documentary on the critically acclaimed contemporary Irish/American music group The Gloaming. Most recently she directed the feature documentary Keepers of The Flame and is the founder of Ireland’s Edge, a multidisciplinary creative event series that makes up a distinct strand of the Other Voices Festival.

Brían Mac Gloinn – see below

Frank Tate is a well-established and renowned Dublin Luthier and musician. Hailing from Belfast, he studied Musical instrument technology in Glasgow and London Guildhall University. In 2000, he then quickly established his own practice in north inner city Dublin. Now at the heart of an increasingly popular Irish music scene, Frank immersed himself in making bespoke instruments that suited the requirements of each individual performer. As his reputation grew he then received commissions from artists such as Dónal Lunny, Damian Dempsey, Lisa O’Neill, Glen Hansard, Paul Noonan, Ed Sheeran, Paul Simon, Anna Meike, Ye Vagabonds, Joshua Burnside and Lankum. Frank has begun the process of opening a secon premises where he plans to share his skills and become an educator. A frequent meditator and rower, Frank is often to be spotted in his Currach trying to lift the hem of the Liffey.

About the Musicians

Andy Irvine has enjoyed a long and successful career as a traditional Irish musician. He has travelled the world as a solo artist and as a member of legendary Irish groups such as Planxty and Patrick Street and more recently Mozaik. Andy formed Planxty with fellow musicians Christy Moore, Donal Lunny and Liam O’Flynn. Planxty went on to achieve huge success and legendary status, reigniting traditional music as a popular genre. Andy continues to tour the world with Mozaik as well as Patrick Street. He has also completed a brief series of reunion concerts with Planxty and Paul Brady in the last few years. His constant touring is testament to the fact that he is still as passionate about his music as when he began. As a musician and a living icon, Andy Irvine will remain in the Irish music scene for a long time to come.

Brían Mac Gloinn along with his brother Diarmuid form the award-winning duo Ye Vagabonds. They began playing music together on the streets of their hometown in Carlow and forged a style based on close harmonies and acoustic instrumentation inspired by various folk traditions. They then moved to Dublin and quickly became familiar faces around the city’s folk and blues session scene. Having been described as “being at the fore of a new wave of Irish folk”, they won three awards at the 2019 RTÉ Radio 1 Folk Awards: Best Track (for a recording of ‘Foggy Dew’), Best Album (their 2019 album The Hare’s Lament), and Best Folk Group.

Evan Ó Cualáin is a musician and multi-instrumentalist from Ennis, Co. Clare. Primarily a bouzouki player, he is also an accomplished fiddle and banjo player, as well as a composer and producer of contemporary electronic music. Evan was immersed in music from an early age, and his work draws from a wide range of styles. He is a member of the group Binneas, winners of the Siansa Gael-Linn competition in 2023, and also plays with the acclaimed band The Speks. A native Irish speaker, Evan frequently collaborates with his brother, Irish-language reggaeton artist Ushmush, and their tracks have featured on RTÉ and TG4.

Fionn O’Hanlon is a musician from Boherbue, Co. Cork. Encouraged by his upbringing in the Sliabh Luachra area, Fionn took up traditional music at age 7. He is a member of the exciting new group Peter Street, performing on bouzouki and vocals. Fionn continues to perform at festivals and concerts around Ireland, and is currently studying in UCC as a recipient of the Quercus and Creative and Performing Arts Scholarship.