Patrick MacGill Festival

Celebrate the life and work of one of Donegal’s most fascinating literary figures during a three-day cultural festival in Glenties. The Patrick MacGill Festival explores the life, writing and legacy of Patrick MacGill, whose work captured rural life in Donegal as well as themes of migration, poverty, working-class experience and life on the margins of early twentieth-century society. The 2026 programme brings his story into the present day through literature, history, storytelling and the arts. Across the weekend, visitors can expect literary readings, lectures, workshops, guided walks through the historic local landscape and musical entertainment. For visitors to Glenties, it offers a particularly strong connection between the town, the surrounding Donegal landscape and the people and stories that helped shape its history.