Julie Irigaray
Writer. Teacher. Researcher.
Welcome to my website. As an author who lived in four different countries, I aim to create a better understanding of the world and our place in it — a mission which has cast me in many different roles: writer, teacher and researcher.
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I am a creative writing tutor and literature researcher. You can find out about my publications, experience, research, awards, and more on this website.
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What's New
Autumn 2025
I'm teaching several courses with the European Writers Salon this academic year, including a year-round poetry course, 'Exploring Poetic Concepts and Forms'. All classes will take place on Sunday evenings, once a month. You can book each class individually or buy all eight classes at once.
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My academic article 'Accessibility in the Poetry World: How the Covid-19 Pandemic Transformed the Contemporary British Poetry Scene' (TIES) is now available online. I really enjoyed objectively analysing how the pandemic has changed the way we write, read, teach and promote poetry - not to mention the many opportunities that have emerged to make it accessible to as many people as possible.
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​​My poem 'Assyrtiko' has been nominated by The Madrid Review for the Best of the Net Anthology, curated by Sundress Publications.
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My poem 'The Englishman in the Attic' was shortlisted for the Bridport Poetry Prize 2025.
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My work was highly commended for Primers: volume 8, a mentoring scheme by Nine Arches Press.
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Wild Court will publish my poem 'Monbazillac' later this month.
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The next issue of The Madrid Review will include my poem 'Patates'.
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Whalers, Witches and Gauchos
My poetry pamphlet Whalers, Witches and Gauchos was published by Nine Pens Press last April.
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Whalers, Witches and Gauchos explores narratives of displacement, the way we navigate between countries and cultures, and how where we come from makes us who we are. Using my Basque ancestors as a point of reference – these same whalers, witches and gauchos who travelled to the other side of the world or were persecuted – I conjure up my memories of living in the Basque Country, France, Ireland, Italy and the UK. This pamphlet depicts what it is to migrate between places and languages seeking homes that can both sustain us and allow us to grow.
