Byron Bay, NSW — Byron Writers Festival is proud to present Colum McCann in Conversation, a special evening event with the internationally acclaimed, award-winning Irish author, Colum McCann. Audiences are invited to join us at A&I Hall in Bangalow on Wednesday 7 May, for an intimate and powerful night of storytelling, conversation, and connection.

McCann will discuss his latest novel, Twist—a propulsive and emotionally rich meditation on truth, technology, and the ties that bind us. He will be joined in conversation by esteemed journalist and presenter Mick O’Regan.

About the Book: Twist
Anthony Fennell, an Irish journalist and playwright, is assigned to cover the underwater cables that carry the world’s information. The sum of human existence—words, images, transactions, memes, voices, viruses—travels through the tiny fiber-optic tubes. But sometimes the tubes break, at an unfathomable depth.

Fennell’s journey brings him to the west coast of Africa, where he uncovers a story about the raw human labor behind the dazzling veneer of the technological world. He meets a fellow Irishman, John Conway, the chief of mission on a cable repair ship. The mysterious Conway is a skilled engineer and a freediver capable of reaching extraordinary depths. He is also in love with a South African actress, Zanele, who must leave to go on her own literary adventure to London.

When the ship is sent up the coast to repair a series of major underwater breaks, both men learn that the very cables they seek to fix carry the news that may cause their lives to unravel. At sea, they are forced to confront the most elemental questions of life, love, absence, belonging, and the perils of our severed connections. Can we, in our fractured world, reweave ourselves out of the thin, broken threads of our pasts? Can the ruptured things awaken us from our despair?

An International Dublin Literary Prize and USA National Book Award winner, don’t miss this rare opportunity to hear from the New York Times best-seller at A&I Hall, Bangalow.

About Colum McCann
Colum McCann is the New York Times bestselling author of Apeirogon, TransAtlantic, Let the Great World Spin (winner of the National Book Award), and other celebrated works of fiction and nonfiction. His writing has earned the International Dublin Literary Award, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and France’s Chevalier des Arts et Lettres. McCann is also the co-founder of Narrative 4, a global non-profit fostering empathy through storytelling. He lives in New York City with his family.

“It is an honour to present the esteemed Colum McCann, whose extensive oeuvre makes him one of the greatest living storytellers of our time. I am thrilled to welcome him to share his latest brilliant novel with the readers of Byron Shire.”
– Jessica Alice, Artistic Director, Byron Writers Festival

Event Details
Event: Colum McCann in Conversation
Date: Wednesday 7 May, 2025
Time: 6:30pm (Pocket curries and bar from 5:30pm)
Venue: A&I Hall, Station Street, Bangalow
Tickets: https://events.humanitix.com/colum-mccann-2025
Doors open: 5:30pm – arrive early to enjoy a bite and beverage