Heaney remembered: Seamus Heaney at the Poetry Now Festival

To commemorate the 10th anniversary of the death of Seamus Heaney, RTÉ presents a series of essential recordings from the archives.

The Annual Poetry Now Festival in Dún Laoghaire held during the 1990s and 2000s brought together the major international poets of the day alongside their Irish contemporaries. It attracted audiences delighted to experience them in the flesh, speaking about and reading from their work.

During the 2004 festival, at short notice Seamus Heaney stepped in when Derek Walcott, due to be on stage with Ciaran Carson was not able to attend.

This edition of Rattlebag, at the time RTÉ's daily arts show, was recorded in the Pavilion Theatre on Dun Laoghaire and includes a raptures introduction by fellow poet and friend of Heaney, Dennis O’Driscoll with whom he would later work so closely on the book Stepping Stones: Interviews with Seamus Heaney.