Who We Are

John Banville

William John Banville was born in Wexford, Ireland. He was Literary Editor at The Irish Times from 1988 to 1999. He is the author of twenty novels, including The Book of Evidence, The Sea, winner of the 2005 Man Booker Prize. In 2011 he was awarded the Franz Kafka Prize. In 2013, John was awarded the Irish PEN Award for Outstanding Achievement in Irish Literature.

Anne Enright

Anne Enright has published novels, short stories, essays, and one non-fiction book. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, her novel The Gathering won the 2007 Man Booker Prize. She has also won the 1991 Rooney Prize for Irish Literature, the 2001 Encore Award and the 2008 Irish Novel of the Year. She was the first Irish Laureate for Fiction.

Mike McCormack

Mike McCormack is an award-winning novelist and short story writer from Mayo. He is the author of two collections of short stories and four novels. He is a former winner of the Rooney Prize for Literature, International Dublin Literary Award, Goldsmiths Prize and Bord Gais Energy Irish Novel of the Year and Book of the Year. His novel Solar Bones was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize. He is a member of Aosdána.

Marian Keyes

Marian Keyes was born in Limerick in 1963, and brought up in Cavan, Cork, Galway and Dublin. She is the multi-million copy, internationally bestselling author of some of the most widely loved, genre-defying novels of the past thirty years – such as Rachel’s Holiday, Anybody Out There and Grown Ups.

Éilís Ní Dhuibhne

Éilís Ní Dhuibhne Almqvist is a novelist, critic and folklore scholar. Her awards include The Bisto Book of the Year Award, the Readers’ Association of Ireland Award, the Stewart Parker Award for Drama, the Butler award for Prose from the Irish American Cultural Institute and several Oireachtas awards for novels in Irish. She was awarded the Irish PEN Award for an Outstanding Contribution to Irish Literature in 2015.

Joseph O’Connor

Joseph O’Connor, born in Dublin, is an award-winning novelist and short story writer. In December 2011, he received an honorary Doctorate in Literature from University College Dublin. He received the Irish PEN Award for Outstanding Contribution to Irish Literature in 2012. In 2014 he was appointed Frank McCourt Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Limerick.

Ciara Ní É

Ciara Ní É is the founder of bilingual spoken word night REIC, and a co-founder of the LGBTQ+ arts collective AerachAiteachGaelach. As a writer and broadcaster, she has performed her work in Ireland and internationally, and been chosen as one of the Irish Examiner’s ‘100 Women Changing Ireland’. She was Artist in Residence UCD School of Irish, Celtic Studies & Folklore (2023), Dublin Fringe Festival (2022), and DCU (2020).

Breda Brown

Appointed May 2021, elected Chairperson August 2021

Breda Brown, Co-founder of Unique Media, was appointed Chair in October 2021. A trusted strategic communications advisor and former journalist, she is a passionate advocate for literature. She is well known for her work with the An Post Irish Book Awards, her ‘Inside Books’ podcast and her Sunday Independent crime fiction reviews.

Anne Fleck-Byrne

Appointed April 2025, elected Vice Chairperson July 2025

Anne Fleck-Byrne is a Chartered Director with over 30 years’ senior leadership experience across healthcare, aviation and the voluntary sector. A former Managing Director and co-founder of Drakelands Nursing Home Ltd, Anne has served in multiple non-executive roles, including on the board of Nursing Homes Ireland. An active supporter of the arts, she contributes to literary and film festivals and champions emerging talent through fundraising initiatives.

Maria Dickenson

Appointed April 2025, elected Secretary July 2025

Maria Dickenson has dedicated her 30-year career to the Irish book trade. Most recently Managing Director of Dubray and previously headed up book buying at Eason, Maria brings exceptional industry knowledge and a strong network. She serves on the board of the Irish Book Awards and has held several senior voluntary positions with the Booksellers Association of UK and Ireland.

Brian McEnery

Appointed June 2025, elected Treasurer June 2025

Brian McEnery is Managing Partner at BDO Ireland, with leadership experience in corporate finance, restructuring, and healthcare. In addition, he has also held a number of key positions including Worldwide President of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), Chair of HIQA and Board Member & Chair of the Audit Committee of NAMA.

Patrick Barrett

Appointed April 2025

Patrick Barrett is a practising barrister with a strong focus on governance, regulatory compliance, and public service. A graduate of King’s Inns and University College Cork, Patrick has a broad legal practice and volunteers with FLAC. He has authored a number of legal publications and brings sharp analytical insight and legal clarity to board-level decision-making.

Helen Connealy

Appointed April 2025

Helen Connealy is a seasoned CEO who has led numerous not-for-profit organisations through transformational change. Currently completing a Masters in Creative Writing at the Seamus Heaney Centre at Queen’s University Belfast, she is also a leadership coach and accredited Strengths Profiler. Helen is passionate about literature, philanthropy and creating social impact.

Áine Denn

Appointed April 2021

Áine Denn is an experienced non-executive director and advisor with a strong background in scaling businesses. She previously co-founded Altify, a global B2B SaaS company that delivered innovative sales technology, which was acquired by Upland Software in 2019. Áine now mentors and advises a range of businesses and is known for her active support of entrepreneurship. As well as serving on the Board of the Irish Writers Centre, where she is Chair of the Governance Sub-Committee, Áine also serves on the board of Technology Ireland and is an advisor to the IMRO Technology Committee.

Rosemary Hennigan

Appointed August 2024

Rosemary Hennigan is an author and solicitor based in Dublin. Her debut novel The Truth Will Out was longlisted for the CWA John Creasy Dagger Award 2023. Her second novel The Favourite was published last year (published in North America as The Favorites). A Fulbright Scholar and graduate of Trinity College Dublin and the University of Pennsylvania, Rosemary works in the NGO sector, specialising in asylum, refugee rights, and housing policy.

Brendan McDonald

Appointed April 2025

Brendan McDonald is Vice President of Engineering & Green Economy with IDA Ireland, based in Paris. With a legal background and extensive experience in foreign direct investment and regional development, Brendan brings an international perspective and strategic vision to the Centre. He is also the author of four children’s titles and is currently writing a novel for adults.