Bloomsday in Vienna
The Embassy of Ireland in Austria celebrated Bloomsday 2024 by hosting a 'Bloomsday Breakfast' at The Long Hall in Vienna with songs from Irish tenor, Richard Shaffrey.
Bloomsday Breakfast @ The Long Hall
The first ever Bloomsday in Ireland was held in 1954 on the 50th anniversary of the date immortalised in James Joyce's 'Ulysses', 16th June 1904, when writers Patrick Kavanagh and Flann O’Brien visited the Martello Tower at Sandycove in Dublin, the location of the book's opening scene in which we are introduced to Leopold Bloom beginning his day eating his breakfast.
Seventy years later, the Embassy of Ireland in Austria celebrated Bloomsday in Vienna with a traditional Irish breakfast in the garden of The Long Hall, accompanied by songs from Irish tenor singer, Richard Shaffrey.
Members of the Irish community in Austria, along with colleagues from the diplomatic corps, joined the Embassy team in embracing the occasion and the Joycean spirit by donning their straw boater hats & Edwardian style to pay homage to Joyce and 'Ulysses', whilst being treated to a short extract from the book delivered by Ambassador O'Leary.
Coverage of the event, including more photographs, can be found on Society Magazine's website. Huge thanks to the staff at The Long Hall for their hospitality, to Richard for his wonderful performance and to all who attended on the day.