Join the magic at this year’s
Lady Gregory-Yeats Autumn Gathering
25-27 Sept.
Welcome to one of the most unique literary experiences in the world.
Where you can walk in the footsteps of famous Irish authors Lady Gregory and W.B. Yeats and their artistic friends. Discover community among an intimate gathering of their fans, scholars and descendants. Learn how the “Kiltartan” region of South Co. Galway impacted their art, and still ripples through Modern Ireland today.
All in one golden autumnal weekend each year.
Don’t delay once tickets release: events do sell out.
Follow our socials to be first in line.
What is the Autumn Gathering?
Each year fans & scholars gather for a magical weekend to celebrate the creative works and collaborative spirit of Gregory & Yeats at their nature-nestled homes of Coole Park and Thoor Ballylee, a mere bicycle ride apart near Gort, Co. Galway.
When Augusta, Lady Gregory & William Butler Yeats first began collaborating in 1896, they hoped to inspire a radically new era in Irish theatre and arts.
“We were trying to create a model on which a great national theatre may be founded in the future.”
— Gregory in Our Irish Theatre
Lady Gregory opened her modest home estate, Coole Park, as a sanctuary for creativity and collaboration among Ireland’s greatest artistic innovators for decades to come.
Coole Park’s legacy for creative innovation and access still stands today. And it inspires every aspect of our annual event.
On the last weekend in September, speakers, experts, and fans arrive from around the world. Landing at the same train station, traveling the same roads used by Gregory, Yeats and their colleagues to take part in the magic of Coole Park and Thoor Ballylee.
The Autumn Gathering is also a uniquely intimate event experience, with dozens rather than hundreds of guests. It’s a bit like joining a large family of friends for the weekend, often including descendants of Gregory and Yeats.
We get to know each other over tea and meals, take a historical romp into the countryside (just like Gregory did with her guests), attend lectures and tours, enjoy live performances, and tuck into a delicious dinner by candlelight on our last night together.
Please consider yourself cordially invited.
We’d be delighted if you could join us.
Details below.
The trees are in their autumn beauty,
The woodland paths are dry,
Under the October twilight the water
Mirrors a still sky;
Upon the brimming water among the stones
Are nine-and-fifty swans.
The nineteenth autumn has come upon me
Since I first made my count;
I saw, before I had well finished,
All suddenly mount
And scatter wheeling in great broken rings
Upon their clamorous wings.
— from “The Wild Swans at Coole”
by W.B. Yeats
2026 Autumn Gathering Programme
Friday
25 Sept.
Galway Bay
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A local seaweed expert will be guiding us on the history, cultural impacts and modern sustainability of indigenous seaweed harvesting right on the Flaggy Shore, where seaweed has been harvest for thousands of years.
Lady Gregory interviewed seaweed gatherers here several times while gathering regional folklore for her books and plays.
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More details coming soon!
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More details coming soon!
Saturday
26 Sept.
Coole Park
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More details coming soon!
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Join us for lunch in the Coole Park’s Cobblestone Cafe. (Guests can pay at the cafe, or in advance with their registration.)
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More details coming soon!
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More details coming soon!
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More details coming soon!
Sunday
27 Sept.
Thoor Ballylee
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More details coming soon!
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Tea and sandwiches will be provided to guests as part of their registration for Sunday’s events at Thoor Ballylee.
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More details coming soon!
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AG 2026 Chair and directors will offer closing remarks. Then we will all share our goodbyes until next year!
Once the Gathering closes, complimentary bus service will be available to those needing to get back to Gort via the Lady Gregory Hotel.
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Step into the magic of Coole Park
There’s nothing like an autumnal walk through Coole Park, Lady Gregory’s South Co. Galway estate. Just like she would after a tough day of theatre business.
To be fair, Gregory would also throw on her grubbies (an old black gown), swipe her fave pike-like gardening tool and go savage on the ivy creeping up her beloved trees. Definitely no longer recommended (sorry ivy!). But still very fun to envision after a rough day behind the desk.
“The Heart of the Wood”
Irish poem translated into English by Lady Gregory
Recitation by Irish national treasure Doireann Ní Ghríofa
as part of the outstanding Coole Park Poetry Series
produced by The Adrian Brinkerhoff Foundation
in partnership with Druid Theatre, Galway
Contact us to learn more!
Everyone is welcome at the Autumn Gathering. Please reach out if you are interested in participating in AG 2026, have any questions or ideas, or would be interested in joining vital crew of helper bees. We can’t wait to hear from you!