17/05/2026
Congratulations James Maguire (Rhetoric) who took 2nd place in this year's Beckett Joyce Award. 👏
The literary competition is run jointly with Portora Royal School (now Enniskillen Royal Grammar) and recognises past pupils of both schools - Samuel Beckett (Portora) and James Joyce (Clongowes).
Taking his inspiration from both Oscar Wilde and Psalm 130, James’ short story, De Profundis, tells the tragic story of an up-and-coming musician who is ensnared by the lure of fame and fortune.
The piece takes the reader back to the music scene of London in the heady days of the 1960s complete with rockstars, socialites and celebrities. However, it also piercingly exposes the loneliness of stardom and the sinister forces at work in an entertainment industry which seeks only to commodify talent.
The award was presented by Former President of Ireland, Dr Mary McAleese. Dr McAleese spoke of writing’s power to haunt us and to cling to us after we have finished reading; she remarked that it was this intensity which marked out James’ piece as a prize-winning entry.
In presenting each of the contributors with a decorative pen, Dr McAleese also reminded them of the shared tradition of writing between our two schools, drawing on Seamus Heaney’s commitment not merely to write, but to dig with the “squat pen between finger and thumb.”
She likened the students’ compositions to digging wells from which future generations can draw sustenance. It is hard to think of a better metaphor for a story entitled De Profundis (From the Depths).
Congratulations and well done James 🎉
