The poet Dennis O’Driscoll, who died on Christmas Eve 2012, is still a much missed force on the Irish and international poetry scene. In this talk, poet Enda Wyley, who knew Dennis and admired his poetry, will discuss the compassionate, knowing, quietly charismatic and often funny attributes of O’Driscoll’s work, most poignantly present in his final collection of poetry, Dear Life, which includes the poem ‘Memoir,’ from which the title of this talk is taken. ‘Now my/ whole life/ lies ahead/ of you. / No thanks/ at all are/ called for, / I assure you./ The pleasure/ is all mine.’

Enda Wyley has published six collections of poetry with Dedalus Press, from her debut Eating Baby Jesus through to Borrowed Space, New and Selected Poems. Her most recent collection is The Painter on his Bike, 2019. She is a member of Aosdána.