The event will include a discussion about the graphic novel Diary Of An Activist and be followed by a screening of the LOAFERS film.

Orla Egan is a Cork queer activist, author and film director. She is the Author of Diary Of An Activist (Cork City Library, 2022) and Queer Republic of Cork (Onstream Publishers 2016) books and of the short play Leeside Lezzies (2018). She has curated a number of exhibitions, including Queer Republic of Cork (2016), Cork Queeros (2021) and Art & Activism (2023). She is the Director of the Cork LGBT short documentary – I’m Here, I’m Home, I’m Happy (2021) and the LOAFERS (2023) Documentary. She is the Founder and CEO of the Cork LGBT Archive.

Diary Of An Activist is an Irish social activist graphic memoir, written by Orla Egan and illustrated by Megan Luddy O'Leary. It is an intergenerational collaboration as a younger lesbian artist works to illustrate the story and experiences of an older lesbian activist/writer, bringing to light a history of activism that has previously been hidden and making it accessible and engaging. The intergenerational nature of the project is a strength that will help to ensure that the work is ‘readable’ by all ages and is relevant and of interest to a wide audience. "These days teenagers around the world worry about the imminent threat of climate change and the survival of the earth. When I was a teenager we worried about the imminent threat of nuclear war." Copies of the book will be available at the bookstore.

paperxclips is an independent, queer-owned and operated bookshop, barbershop, coffee shop and community space in West Belfast. We do our best to make this place a home for the queer community of Northern Ireland, and a place where all can find comfort and community.

LOAFERS Documentary (55 minutes) marks 40 years since the opening of Loafers Bar in 1983. Bar in Cork was one of Ireland’s longest running gay bars; it opened in 1983 and closed suddenly in 2015. Loafers was much more than a bar – it was a crucial community space, a home for the weird and wonderful of Cork and a refuge for the Cork LGBT community. Its rooms were filled with love, laughter, dancing, political discussions and activism.Using a combination of interviews, archival footage, photographs, illustrations and animation it gives a glimpse into the legend and legacy of Loafers. The documentary explores what Loafers meant to the people who ran it, worked in it and frequented it, and the impact of the loss of such an important safe space for the community.

CORK LGBT ARCHIVE: The Cork LGBT Archive gathers, preserves and shares the rich history of Cork’s LGBT communities. It was established in 2013 and incorporated as a Company Limited by Guarantee in 2022. Our physical collection is in Cork Public Museum and the digital collection is at www.corklgbtarchive.com

Cork LGBT Archive is committed to Animating the Archive, bringing the history to life and making it more accessible and engaging for the community. We do this in a number of ways, including publications, exhibitions, theatre, walking tours and documentaries.