Become a culture vulture - it's free

There are rich pickings for culture vultures all around the country – from creative writing classes to cool film clubs, and if they're not free they're cut price, writes CAROLINE MADDEN

TIMES MAY be tough and money tight but it doesn’t mean you have to starve yourself of the best things in life such as music, art, literature and comedy. In fact there are so many free or cut-price cultural happenings around the country that the only problem is finding time to fit them all in.

In honour of James Joyce’s 130th birthday last week, why not tackle that copy of Ulysses that’s been gathering dust on your shelves for longer than you’d like to remember? Too daunting? Don’t worry – you don’t have to go it alone. Swing by Sweny’s – the quaint old pharmacy on Dublin’s Lincoln Place whose sweet lemony soap was immortalised in Ulysses – on Saturday at 11am, or Thursdays at 7pm, and join the (free) groups of Joyce enthusiasts who come together to read aloud from arguably the greatest novel ever written.

For those brave souls attempting to unravel Finnegan’s Wake, there’s a free reading group in the James Joyce Centre on North Great George’s Street. No preparation is required, but be warned – the pace is about two pages a week, so it could take over a decade to finish this fiendishly difficult work.

Once you’ve worked your way through our great classical works, pay a visit to the Irish Writers’ Centre, in a beautiful Georgian building on Parnell Square, to discover our contemporary writers. Chairman Jack Harte says one of the aims of the Centre is to get people interested in new Irish writing. He says “the vast majority” of events in the Centre are free. Its spring series of Peregrine Readings will start off later this month and then tour the country, visiting Roscommon, Longford, Carlow, Galway and Cork. The series is free of charge and will feature prose readings from writers such as Ulick O’Connor, Christine Dwyer Hickey and Ed O’Loughlin.

Meanwhile, Longfordians in search of a Valentine’s night less ordinary won’t want to miss an evening of literature and lyrics on the theme of love taking place in Ballymahon Library at 7.30pm with local author Anne Skelly.

If you’re itching to stretch your own literary muscles, a good starting place is the Ink Slingers free creative writing hour at the Irish Writers’ Centre every Saturday. Don’t worry if the only things you’ve written in recent years are shopping lists – people with all levels of experience are welcome.

Keen poetry fans in Cork should check out the free Wednesday evening workshops run by James Cummins and Rachel Warriner in the Triskel Arts Centre in Cork city. Each week a particular work of experimental writing, concentrating on poetry written in the last 50 years, will be read and discussed. The Triskel plays host to a huge array of affordable cultural events. Its visual arts exhibitions are free, and there is no cover charge for some of the live music events. It also offers cheap tickets for movies shown in its stunning Christchurch venue.

The Riverbank Arts Centre in Newbridge, Co Kildare, is also trying to make culture more affordable. “We decided at the beginning of the year that we wanted to make our theatre as accessible as possible for people,” says spokeswoman Hazel Williams. It offers discounted ticket bundles, so you can catch two comedy shows in a season for just €20; two Beckett plays for €24; or two live music shows for €26. The Centre also runs a Monday night movies event, offering tickets for just €6 and encouraging people to meet up in advance of the showing to indulge in good clean retro fun playing Monopoly and other board games.

Film buffs are spoilt for choice when it comes to cut-price culture. Top of the list has to be The Critical Take, a film club run by Temple Bar’s IFI cinema. The club’s events are free – just call the IFI box office in advance to book your seat.

If you’re the type to feel peckish at the cinema, and overpriced nachos covered in nuclear-orange liquid cheese just don’t cut it, then Pricewatch has just the thing – The Odeon movie club, every Thursday at 8pm on Dublin’s Harcourt Street. Watch classic movies while relaxing in comfy armchairs and snacking on €6 tasting plates. There’s no cover charge and not surprisingly the armchairs fill up fast, so book early.

Naas Library will be holding a film club in February and March, focusing on the history of European cinema. Filmmaker Gary Hoctor will host the club, which will run over six weeks, starting on February 16th. Free for library members, but numbers are limited so get on to Naas library quick-smart if you want to reserve a spot.

Judging by the popularity of festivals like Kilkenomics, there seems to be a huge appetite for events that are not only entertaining but educational. Fortunately for those who like to spend their free time improving their mind, there’s no shortage of such events and most won’t cost a penny.

UCC’s Italian department is running a public lecture series on the great Italian poet Dante. On Valentine’s night, Prof Cormac Ó Cuilleanáin from Trinity will give a talk entitled Rivers of Dante (On the Banks of my own Lovely Arno).

Also in Trinity, novelist and playwright Philip Davison will give a free reading in the Long Room Hub on March 7th at 7.30pm. Galway’s Babel public lecture series has returned to the Town Hall theatre, with a variety of speakers due to give free talks on the theme of tradition and transformation. The Royal Irish Academy and the RDS are also running free lectures in the coming weeks.

Lastly, as part of the Adult Learners’ Festival, Aontas is offering a chance to visit some of Dublin’s most treasured cultural attractions on the Love to Learn bus.

Some 25 lucky adult learners will be given exclusive guided tours of Dublin’s museums and top attractions on February 13th. There’s no charge but places are limited and will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.