Postgraduate Research

Email: D22128344@mytudublin.ie

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Based in the East Quad, Grangegorman Campus, Barbara is working towards a PhD titled 'Narratives of Place: Reflections on the Writing of John McGahern (1934-2006).   Her research employs a multidisciplinary approach, using the life and work of the writer John McGahern as a way to increase footfall and promote tourism in Leitrim in a sustainable way. Her PhD studies, supported by a scholarship from the School of Tourism and Hospitality Management at TU Dublin, combine Barbara’s love of Irish literature, the West of Ireland, and a keen interest in Literary Tourism. 

Barbara worked for many years as Broadcast Co-ordinator in RTÉ Television and trained as Assistant Producer. During a two-year sabbatical, she qualified in CELTA, and taught English Language Speaking at the Universidad de Chile. She later worked in the hospitality industry in Greece, Connemara and Belize. She holds a BA in English and Drama from University College Dublin and was awarded an MA in Creative Writing from the University of Limerick in January 2023. 

Although raised in Dublin, Barbara was born and lived in Mayo until she was three. She feels privileged to have this opportunity, to foster connections and spend time in John McGahern’s homeplace, in the lanes, along the hedgerows and by the lakes of Leitrim so beautifully depicted in his writing.