RTÉ Radio 1

RTÉ Arena Live

Short Story Competition Awards Night

A statement from Pavilion Theatre regarding Seán Rocks:

We were shocked and deeply saddened to learn about the passing of Seán Rocks. As the host of RTÉ’s Arena, Seán was a champion for culture across all genres, bringing his signature wit, warmth and empathy to every conversation. He appeared many times on our stage, annually hosting the Francis MacManus Short Story Competition, and, in 2023, a milestone live interview with Claire Keegan. We will never forget the support he showed for Pavilion Theatre across his dozens of interviews with visiting artists, and how he always took care to pronounce "Dún Laoghaire" the original Irish way. Seán was a singular broadcaster; the arts in Ireland are richer for his being here, and will be poorer for his being gone. May he rest in peace.

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Join Arena and RTÉ Short Story Competition judges Jan Carson, Neil Hegarty and Tristan Rosenstock for insights into the art of the short story, live music and performances from this year’s short story competition shortlist, and the announcement of the top prizes.

This long-running literary competition honouring Francis MacManus attracts thousands of entries every year and has launched many authors’ careers. For anyone interested in new Irish writing, this celebration of emerging Irish literary talent is a highlight of the Irish literary calendar and not to be missed.