The Circus

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The Circus: Episode 3 - The Irish Dancer

Episode 3 - The Irish Dancer

BBC Radio 4 - The Circus, Episode 3 - The Irish Dancer

Saoirse is torn between her dancing teacher and her mother’s wishes for her future.

Inspired by Greta Thunberg, teenager Saoirse wants to enter the talent show and use her platform to wake her community up to the larger problems in the world.

A former working men’s club in North Belfast called ‘The Circus’ has been refurbished and relaunched with an inaugural talent show – and a massive cash prize for the winner! – inspiring the locals to brush up on some old skills. The new owner, a successful London property developer, has promised to bring a bit of the West End to North Belfast. But can the area really change? Can the people? 
Cliftonville Circus is where five roads meet in North Belfast. It is situated in the most deprived part of the city; it is also the most divided. Each road leads to a different area – a different class – a different religion. ‘The Circus’ explores where old Belfast clashes with the new around acceptance, change, class and diversity.

The Author
Born in Belfast, Paul McVeigh has written comedy, essays, flash fiction, a novel, plays and short stories. His work has been performed on radio, stage and television, and published in seven languages. Paul co-founded the London Short Story Festival and is an associate director at Word Factory. His debut novel 'The Good Son' won The Polari First Novel Prize and The McCrea Literary Award. He is also the editor of ‘The 32: Irish Working Class Voices’, ‘Queer Love: An Anthology of Irish Fiction’ and ‘Belfast Stories’.

Writer: Paul McVeigh
Reader: Leanne Devlin
Producer: Michael Shannon
Executive Editor: Andy Martin

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