The Seamus Heaney HomePlace is an arts and literary centre in

Bellaghy Bellaghy () is a village in County Derry, Northern Ireland. It lies north west of Lough Neagh and about 5 miles north east of Magherafelt. In the centre of the village (known locally as The Diamond) three main roads lead to Magherafelt, Port ...

County Londonderry County Londonderry ( Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry ( ga, Contae Dhoire), is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty two counties of Ireland and one of the nine counties of Ulster. B ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. It displays the life and work of

Seamus Heaney Seamus Justin Heaney (; 13 April 1939 – 30 August 2013) was an Irish poet, playwright and translator. He received the 1995 Nobel Prize in Literature.

. Designed by W&M Given Architects, construction began in 2015 by contractors Brendan Loughran & Sons Ltd. It opened in late September 2016. On the site originally stood a RUC barracks. It has won multiple awards throughout its operation, and its visitors include

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

Liam Neeson William John Neeson (born 7 June 1952) is an actor from Northern Ireland. He has received several accolades, including nominations for an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and two Tony Awards. In 2020, he was placed 7th on ''The I ...

, and various award-winning poets. It holds a permanent exhibition titled ''Seamus Heaney: Man and Boy'', and frequently hosts different events throughout the year. It attracted 40,000 people in its first year.

Site

Former police station, Bellaghy (geograph 2613518)

It stands on the former site of the abandoned Bellaghy

Royal Ulster Constabulary The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. It was founded on 1 June 1922 as a successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC)Richard Doherty, ''The Thin Green Line – The History of the Royal ...

barracks, which the

Mid Ulster District Council Mid Ulster District Council ( ga, Comhairle Ceantair Lár Uladh; Ulster-Scots: ''Mid Ulstèr Airts Cooncil'') is a local authority that was established on 1 April 2015. It replaced Cookstown District Council, Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough C ...

bought in the late 1990s during the demilitarization of Northern Ireland. The site measures in area.

Architecture

The centre was designed by W&M Given Architects. The company, quoted in a report by the

Department for Communities The Department for Communities (DfC, Irish: ''An Roinn Pobal'', Ulster Scots: ''Depairtment fur Commonities'') is a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive. The minister with overall responsibility f ...

, says the building was intended to reflect

vernacular architecture Vernacular architecture is building done outside any academic tradition, and without professional guidance. This category encompasses a wide range and variety of building types, with differing methods of construction, from around the world, bo ...

within Bellaghy:

Exterior

The building incorporates the

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...

stone that made the wall of the barracks in its facade and surrounding walls. It intends to combine both modern and historical architecture, with Rachel Cooke for ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...

'' describing it as "vaguely Scandinavian", using only stone, glass, and wood. The front landscaping is a paved circular area made "to encourage gatherings for community activity and performances." There is a car park specifically for the centre and a back yard.

Interior

It has two floors, containing the biographical and artistic exhibition titled ''Seamus Heaney: Man and Boy.'' The first floor has a lobby with photographs of Heaney on the walls, and contains items such as a handwritten copy of Heaney's poem ''The

Conway Stewart Conway Stewart & Company Ltd is a British manufacturing company of writing implements, founded in 1905 by Frank Jarvis and Thomas Garner in London. The company became notable for its fountain pens, although it also produced ballpoint pens. Con ...

,'' Heaney's leather schoolbag, and his school desk. The second floor is described as an oblique approach to Heaney's life and work, containing a collection of

mobiles Mobile may refer to: Places * Mobile, Alabama, a U.S. port city * Mobile County, Alabama * Mobile, Arizona, a small town near Phoenix, U.S. * Mobile, Newfoundland and Labrador Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Mobile ( ...

of words he used in his poems. ''The Helicon'' is a 190-seat performance space situated in the rear side of the building. There is also a café.

History

Construction

Construction began in January 2015, contracted to Brendan Loughran & Sons Ltd. It finished in September the following year and cost £4.25 million to complete.

Opening

The inaugural opening took place on the evening of September 29, 2016, attended by Heaney's surviving family, before opening to the public the following day. The opening festival was attended by singer-songwriter

Paul Brady Paul Joseph Brady (born 19 May 1947) is an Irish singer-songwriter and musician from Strabane, Northern Ireland. His work straddles folk and pop. He was interested in a wide variety of music from an early age. Initially popular for playing ...

, and poets

Michael Longley Michael Longley, (born 27 July 1939, Belfast, Northern Ireland), is an Anglo-Irish poet. Life and career One of twin boys, Michael Longley was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, to English parents, Longley was educated at the Royal Belfast A ...

and

Gerald Dawe Gerald Dawe (born 1952) is an Irish poet. Early life Gerald Dawe was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland and grew up with his mother, sister and grandmother. He attended Orangefield High School across the city in East Belfast, a leading progress ...

Operation

The centre is managed by Heaney's nephew, Brian McCormick. It takes an estimated £500k to run annually. It was visited by then

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

and wife Camilla in May 2017 during their trip to Ireland. There, he gave a speech about Seamus Heaney and the centre: In 2019, it had accumulated a debt of £1 million. The Mid Ulster Council went to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

which an ''

Irish News Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

'' report claimed was an attempt to search for funding. This was denied by a spokesperson. In 2021, the centre opened the ''Open Ground'' exhibition, which allows visitors to go to five locations related to Heaney's poetry, from the Strand in

Lough Beg Lough Beg () is a small freshwater lake north of Lough Neagh in Northern Ireland. The lake is located on the border between County Londonderry and County Antrim. The Lower Bann flows into it from Lough Neagh at the southern end and continues o ...

to an alleyway in nearby

Magherafelt Magherafelt (, �mˠaxəɾʲəˈfʲiːlt̪ˠə is a small town and civil parish in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 8,805 at the 2011 Census. It is the biggest town in the south of the county and is the social, econo ...

. These locations provide "listening posts" where his poetry is read aloud and a panel where the poem is interpreted. It cost £750k to develop. In March 2023, the HomePlace announced they would be holding an event on Seamus Heaney's 10th

death anniversary A death anniversary (or deathday) is the anniversary of the death of a person. It is the opposite of birthday. It is a custom in several Asian cultures, including Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, China, Georgia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, India, Myanma ...

. The event was held between August 25–27 and was attended by ten poets, including

Paul Muldoon Paul Muldoon (born 20 June 1951) is an Irish poet. He has published more than thirty collections and won a Pulitzer Prize for Poetry and the T. S. Eliot Prize. At Princeton University he is currently both the Howard G. B. Clark '21 University Pr ...

, Niall Campbell, Emma Must, and

Owen Sheers Owen Sheers (born 20 September 1974) is a Welsh poet, author, playwright and television presenter. He was the first writer in residence to be appointed by any national rugby union team. Early life Owen Sheers was born in Suva, Fiji in 1974, and b ...

. Musician

Colm Mac Con Iomaire Colm Mac Con Iomaire () is an Irish composer and musician from Blackrock, County Dublin, Ireland, who plays violin and sings with The Frames. He is the son of Liam Mac Con Iomaire, a writer, journalist and broadcaster. He attended school a ...

also performed at the event. The documentary ''Seamus Heaney and the Music of What Happens'' screened at the event, followed by a Q&A session with the director Adam Low and producer Martin Rosenbaum.

Reception

Christopher Heaney, Seamus's son, said his father would have been "awed" by the centre. It has won numerous awards, including the 2017 AHI Award, 2017 Excellence for Built Heritage Award, 2017 Best Local Authority Tourism Initiative, 2017 Best Visitor and Interpretation Centre, multiple Tripadvisor Travellers’ Choice Awards, and Tourism NI's 2022 Most Innovative Business (Large) award. It received around 40,000 visitors in its first year.

Notes

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official HomePlace website
Exhibition and conference centres in Northern Ireland 21st-century architecture in Northern Ireland Infrastructure completed in 2016 Buildings and structures in County Londonderry Tourist attractions in County Londonderry