Spring may have sprung in Ireland but here in Sydney it’s like a wet Sunday in Belmullet as the rain keeps lashing down! Luckily we have some great suggestions for you with a new TV show featuring Andrew Scott and a great new doco on Ireland’s best loved trad act the Bothy Band. We also have an IFTA Award wrap-up up with Cillian Murphy taking home another win for Oppenheimer and in Sydney the Irish Support Agency have announced that nominations are open for their Community Appreciation Awards.

Hollywood's awards season has started and Irish co-production 'Poor Things' has been receiving lots of attention, as well as 'Oppenheimer' star Cillian Murphy. Irish actors Andrew Scott, Paul Mescal and Barry Keoghan have also shared attention. We have a collection of Irish films being released in 2024 and 2 more of our Q&As are on YouTube. Save the date: Gaelic Club Céilí Band All-Stars concert at the Gasoline Pony on Friday, March 8th.

Another successful Irish Film Festival has finished and while the team have been busy wrapping up the festival and completing reports, there's been mountains of Irish news  - so much that we couldn't possibly cover it all in this newsletter. For many of us, the tragic passing of The Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan was a major milestone. We have other cultural news and have put together an events diary for 2024 too.

The full list of films for the 2023 Irish Film Festival have officially been announced! From tales of tragedy to triumph, the 9th Irish Film Festival Australia will showcase a new Ireland in 2023 with stories from our past that deserve to be heard. A diverse mix of dramas, documentaries and comedy, we have carefully selected quality films that will move you in ways that only Irish stories can.

CINEMAS (SYDNEY ONLY) / ONLINE Director: Enda Murray & Natalie O'Neill Stars: João Almeida & band, Yaw Derkyi & band

ONLINE Director: Seamus Murphy Stars: Pat Ingoldsby, Imedla May, Brush Shiels

ONLINE Director: Vincent Kinnaird