James Joyce and the Pagan Soul of Publishers – Storytelling Dinner with Professor Donal McCracken

2 February 2026 will mark 144 years since the birth in Dublin of the celebrated Irish novelist, poet and critic James Joyce, whose books Ulysses and Dubliners still perplex and excite the discerning (and often American) reader. In this light-hearted talk, fellow countryman Donal McCracken will comment on Joyce and the convoluted saga of publishing Ulysses, as well as the Ireland of the Bloomsday (16 June 1904) and the timeless epic of author versus publisher.

Date: Friday, 6 February 2026

Time: 18h30 for 19h00

Menu: Two-course meal (drinks not included)

Venue: The Cape Town Club

Tickets: Members R300 | Guests R350

About Professor Donal McCracken

Donal McCracken was born and educated in Ireland and has spent his working life in South Africa. Currently, he is emeritus professor of History at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. His books include The Irish Pro-Boers, MacBride’s Brigade: Irish Commandos in the Anglo-Boer War, Teddy Luther’s War, as well as a book on 19th-century Irish threatening letters (You Will Dye at Midnight), and a biography of General John Nicholson (1822–1857).

He also writes on botanical history and has published such books as Napoleon’s Garden Island: St Helena, Gardens of Empire, The Way to Kirstenbosch, and Natal:The Garden Colony. He is currently completing a history of Irish gentlemen’s clubs and is starting a biography of the journalist and broadcaster Anthony Lejeune.