Olivia O'Leary hosts the hour-long Christmas 2022 Poetry Programme.

This year's Christmas programme, presented in collaboration with Poetry Ireland, features readings and conversation with Caitríona Ní Chléirchín, Barry Devlin, Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin and Andrew Bennett, and music from DCU Lumen Chorale.

Barry Devlin chooses some favourite Christmas poems to read, including one by Seamus Heaney from the poet's 1984 Christmas card. Caitríona Ní Chléirchín reads from her collection The Talk of the Town, and we hear a joint reading of the ever-popular A Christmas Childhood by Patrick Kavanagh, with Barry reading the poem in English and Caitríona reading her new translation of the poem into Irish. Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin's choices include some of her own work, as well as poems by JM Synge and her late husband, Macdara Woods. Andrew Bennet reads a selection of poems throughout the programme (by Patrick Moran, Joan McBreen, Alvy Carragher, Moya Roddy, Kevin Cowdall and Louis Mulcahy) and talks with Olivia about the his role as the foster father in the Irish language film An Cailín Ciúin.

The programme opens and closes with musical performances by members of the DCU Lumen Chorale, conducted by Róisín Blunnie.

The programme was recorded before a live audience in Belvedere House, St Patrick's, Drumcondra, part of the campus of DCU. Poetry Ireland is temporarily based at St Patrick's while works are ongoing at their city centre headquarters.

The Poetry Programme is a Rockfinch production for RTÉ.

Photo: Presenter Olivia O'Leary and members of DCU Lumen Chorale