DONAL MACINTYRE
BA Politics and Economics 1988
DONAL MACINTYRE
Investigative journalist Donal MacIntyre specialises in undercover operations and exposés and has worked as a prese...
Music, Screen, Stage and Page
JIM SHERIDAN
BA English and History 1972
JIM SHERIDAN
In June 2021, a five-part documentary series .Murder at the Cottage: The Search for Justice for Sophie aired on Sky,...
MARTHA FITZGERALD
MA Theatre Practice 2019
MARTHA FITZGERALD
In 2021, writer and director Martha Fitzgerald directed “Never Mind the Weather”, an outdoor performance for chi...
JOHN SCOTT
BA English and Classics 1980 In November 2020,
JOHN SCOTT
In November 2020, choreographer John Scott was elected to Aosdána for his outstanding contribution to creative arts...
JAMES HUDSON
BA English and Film 2018, MA Creative Writing 2019
JAMES HUDSON
James Hudson was listed in the Irish Times 50 people to watch in 2021: The best young talent in Ireland. He is the c...
DONIE O’SULLIVAN
BA History and Politics 20
DONIE O’SULLIVAN
In April 2021, CNN reporter and Kerry native Donie O’Sullivan was promoted to Correspondent at the US news network....
NANA NUBI
BCL 2015
NANA NUBI
In September 2020, Nana Nubi developed Nigerian Heritage, a 50-page colouring book featuring engaging commentary on each...
CHANDRIKA NARAYANAN-MOHAN
MA Cultural Policy and Arts Management 2013
CHANDRIKA NARAYANAN-MOHAN
In May 2021, Chandrika Narayanan-Mohan was appointed to the Irish Writers Centre board. In 2017, she became the Marketin...
ZÉLIE ASAVA
BA English and Philosophy 2000, PhD Film Studies 2010
ZÉLIE ASAVA
In May 2020, Dr Zélie Asava, independent scholar and classifier at the Irish Film Classification cation Office, was app...
ADIBA JAIGIRDAR
BA English and History 2014
ADIBA JAIGIRDAR
Adiba Jaigirdar’s young adult novel The Henna Wars, a story about identity, coming out, embracing who you are and faci...
DAVID FARRELL
BA Politics 1981, MA 1983
DAVID FARRELL
In September 2021, Professor David Farrell’s latest book The Oxford Handbook of Irish Politics (co-edited with Niamh H...
SIÂN CUNNINGHAM
BA Music and German 1998, BMus 1999, HDip Arts Administration 2000
SIÂN CUNNINGHAM
In April 2021, Siân Cunningham became CEO of Crash Ensemble, Ireland’s leading new music ensemble, a group of world-c...
JEAN-LUC UDDOH
BA Politics and International Relations 2019
JEAN-LUC UDDOH
An album by rapper Jean Luc Uddoh, aka JyellowL, was nominated for the 2020 Irish Album of the Year Award at the RTÉ Ch...
ANNMARIE CULLEN
BA Economics 1992
ANNMARIE CULLEN
Singer-songwriter Annmarie Cullen released a heartbreak-inspired single “Circus” in June 2021 collaborating remotely...
DONAL MACINTYRE
BA Politics and Economics 1988
Investigative journalist Donal MacIntyre specialises in undercover operations and exposés and has worked as a presenter of news and documentaries on various UK channels, including a series on unsolved abductions and murders. His production company, Dare Films, collaborated with Jim Sheridan on Murder at the Cottage: the Search for Justice for Sophie. MacIntyre is working on a documentary to examine the tragic death of Belfast teenager Noah Donohoe.
JIM SHERIDAN
BA English and History 1972
In June 2021, a five-part documentary series .Murder at the Cottage: The Search for Justice for Sophie aired on Sky, exploring the investigation of the unsolved 1996 murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier, and suspect Ian Bailey’s conviction for murder by the French courts. Dublin-born filmmaker Jim Sheridan directed the series. The six-time Oscar nominee has directed many iconic Irish films including My Left Foot (1989), In the Name of the Father (1993) and In America (2002).
MARTHA FITZGERALD
MA Theatre Practice 2019
In 2021, writer and director Martha Fitzgerald directed “Never Mind the Weather”, an outdoor performance for children about adaptivity and resilience. Co-produced with Riverbank Arts Centre, the show was performed through the classroom windows of primary schools. Since graduating from UCD in 2019, she co-founded Fizz & Chips Productions, and has staged the plays “DRAGON” (2019), and “An Lasairéan” (2019) and written their first short film, Faitíos, in 2020.
JOHN SCOTT
BA English and Classics 1980 In November 2020,
In November 2020, choreographer John Scott was elected to Aosdána for his outstanding contribution to creative arts in Ireland. Scott began his career as an apprentice at Dublin City Ballet, and went on to found John Scott’s Irish Modern Dance Theatre in 1991 as a platform for his own work and to develop a contemporary Irish choreographic voice with major international choreographers. He is also a freelance tenor soloist.
JAMES HUDSON
BA English and Film 2018, MA Creative Writing 2019
James Hudson was listed in the Irish Times 50 people to watch in 2021: The best young talent in Ireland. He is the co-founder of the Trans Writers Union (TWU), which aims to “give trans creators a point to gather around, pool knowledge, share opportunities and keep one another safe in overtly or implicitly hostile industries” in Ireland and the UK, through connecting trans creatives with publishers and providing outlets to engage with criticisms on transphobia.
DONIE O’SULLIVAN
BA History and Politics 20
In April 2021, CNN reporter and Kerry native Donie O’Sullivan was promoted to Correspondent at the US news network. His fearless and calm coverage of the chaotic storming of Washington’s Capitol building in January 2021 went viral. In July 2021, O’Sullivan was nominated for an Emmy Award for his news story on the online disinformation phenomenon from April 2020. The investigative story detailed a conspiracy theory accusing an American woman and US military reservist of bringing COVID-19 to China, and the effects of the hearsay-based conspiracy for the accused. In 2022, O’Sullivan will participate as a guest speaker in UCD’s new world-first graduate programme, the CNN Academy UCD Clinton Institute MA in Journalism and International Affairs. The programme will combine world-leading journalism training with academic expertise in international affairs.
NANA NUBI
BCL 2015
In September 2020, Nana Nubi developed Nigerian Heritage, a 50-page colouring book featuring engaging commentary on each page, which allows audiences to connect with Nigerian heritage in a fun, creative and educative way. Nubi is a member of the newly formed Anti-Racism Committee at the Department of Justice and Equality. She is also a board member of Uplift, an organisation taking coordinated action for progressive change in Ireland. Nubi is training to become a barrister.
CHANDRIKA NARAYANAN-MOHAN
MA Cultural Policy and Arts Management 2013
In May 2021, Chandrika Narayanan-Mohan was appointed to the Irish Writers Centre board. In 2017, she became the Marketing and Development Manager of Fishamble, an Irish theatre company that develops and produces new plays. Narayanan-Mohan is the Editor of Poetry Ireland’s Trumpet issue nine and a book reviewer for Children’s Books Ireland’s Inis magazine. In 2020, she won third place in the Fingal Poetry Prize.
ZÉLIE ASAVA
BA English and Philosophy 2000, PhD Film Studies 2010
In May 2020, Dr Zélie Asava, independent scholar and classifier at the Irish Film Classification cation Office, was appointed to the board of Screen Ireland, an organisation that provides funding programmes to support film, television and animation projects. She is the author of The Black Irish Onscreen: Representing Black and Mixed-Race Identities on Irish Film and Television and Mixed-Race Cinemas: Multiracial Dynamics in America and France.
ADIBA JAIGIRDAR
BA English and History 2014
Adiba Jaigirdar’s young adult novel The Henna Wars, a story about identity, coming out, embracing who you are and facing your family’s rejection, was named Best Book of the Year 2020 by Kirkus, who deemed it “impossible to put down”, and was a semi-finalist for the Best Young Adult Fiction in the Goodreads Choice Awards. In May 2021, Jaigirdar published her latest novel, Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating.
DAVID FARRELL
BA Politics 1981, MA 1983
In September 2021, Professor David Farrell’s latest book The Oxford Handbook of Irish Politics (co-edited with Niamh Hardiman), was published by Oxford University Press. A specialist in the study of representation, elections, parties, and deliberative mini-publics, Professor Farrell covers Irish politics and society. The book also features contributions by leading scholars in the field. Professor Farrell has twice been Head of UCD School of Politics and International Relations.
SIÂN CUNNINGHAM
BA Music and German 1998, BMus 1999, HDip Arts Administration 2000
In April 2021, Siân Cunningham became CEO of Crash Ensemble, Ireland’s leading new music ensemble, a group of world-class musicians. Cunningham has over 20 years’ experience working in the arts in Ireland across a range of organisations. She started her career with the Arts Council of Ireland, then joined Dance Ireland. More recently, Cunningham worked with the Dublin International Film Festival and Body & Soul Event Creations Ltd.
JEAN-LUC UDDOH
BA Politics and International Relations 2019
An album by rapper Jean Luc Uddoh, aka JyellowL, was nominated for the 2020 Irish Album of the Year Award at the RTÉ Choice Music Prize Awards. The album, “D|Vision”, debuted at number two on the official iTunes album charts and at number one in the hip-hop category. Uddoh’s lyrics reflect issues such as racism and migration. He played a key role in Ireland’s Black Lives Matter protests in June 2020, giving a rousing speech outside the US embassy.
ANNMARIE CULLEN
BA Economics 1992
Singer-songwriter Annmarie Cullen released a heartbreak-inspired single “Circus” in June 2021 collaborating remotely from Dublin with a host of LA music friends. Prior to her return to Ireland from LA – via Barcelona where she worked for a time outside the music industry – Cullen’s career was as a songwriter with Disney and Warner Chappell, working on Nickelodeon shows like iCarly and Drake and Josh, CBS drama Blue Bloods and as a performer in her own right.