How do you unwind at the weekend?
Working in the arts, you tend to work seven days a week. And in the run-up to the festival, one day merges with another so it can be hard to unwind at the weekend. Today I was in front of the computer before 7.30am when I took the train up from Dublin. The days may get very long but it's still a great privilege to do this job. Family is very important, particularly at the weekend, and we have two grown-up boys, Conor and Kiaran. I am always the first up and put on the radio, which doesn't go off. I also get all the papers, including The Irish News on weekends when I'm in Belfast – your columnist Allison Morris is hosting a festival event for us with Woman's Hour broadcaster Dame Jenni Murray on October 25.
What do you recall most about weekends growing up?
My father's family were based in Dublin and he managed the Woolwich Building Society in Belfast, then Coleraine. When I was very young, we drove back and forth in our light blue little Austin car to see relatives in Dublin. They all lived in Raheney, on the north side. The journey took close to three hours but it was fabulous to see my cousins, aunts and grandparents. My favourite auntie was, and is, Patricia, a very dear person. I had the best of both worlds growing up, educated in the north but with family in the south and this is important in relation to my own identity and how I see myself.
Friday night or Saturday night?
That's a good question. Unfortunately, there's no difference for me as there are artists to support and shows to see so I work at weekends. For me, it's more about the event than which night it's on.
Do you have a must-listen weekend radio show?
I listen to Radio 4's Today then go over to Radio 6 Music. I am a big fan of Hughie Morgan and the wonderful Welsh presenter Cerys Matthews.
Do you have a favourite eatery or is it a takeaway?
We like the Trocadero restaurant in the middle of Dublin. It has a great menu – I usually have the fish – plus lots of photos of the great and good on the walls. With the Covid restrictions, we haven't been for a while.
Is Sunday still special?
We're not a particularly religious family. Having said that, Sunday is a slightly quieter day; it's about family.
On Sunday evening, how do you feel about Monday morning?
Sunday evening is when I sit down and cover a page or two with my to-do lists – mostly to do with the festival. This year's is being delivered differently but still full of innovation, including an online interactive version of Macbeth (Oct 14-17) and a new work, The University of Wonder and Imagination (Oct 22-25 and Oct 29-Nov 1), both by Northern Ireland theatre companies, Big Telly and Cahoots NI. There's also the world premiere of a work from Sweden about the impact of Nina Simone's life on a young theatre artist. I'm looking forward to it.
:: BIAF runs from October 12 until November 1; see belfastinternationalartsfestival.com
