As part of the National Library of Ireland’s Bloomsday celebrations an interview recorded in 1979 with the Assistant Projectionist of the Volta Cinema, Lennie Collinge will be played in the seminar room throughout the day.

In an interview with Liam O’Leary, Lennie Collinge recalls his memories of his time working at the Volta cinema, his impressions of James Joyce and his work as a projectionist in Irish cinemas for sixty four years.

The Volta Cinema, 1909.

The Volta Cinema was the first regular cinema to be opened in Dublin in 1909. James Joyce who was living in Trieste persuaded some Italian entrepreneurs to establish a cinema in Dublin as a sister to their Volta Picture Palace in Bucharest. Joyce came with them and supervised the work with the help of a young apprentice electrician, Lennie Collinge. The cinema opened to the public on 20 December 1909. The films shown in the cinema were of Italian origin with Italian subtitles. Handbills carried synopses of the stories in English. The enterprise came to an end in less than a year when it was taken over by the British Provincial Cinematograph Theatres.

The interview will be played throughout Bloomsday from:

10am - 12pm

2pm - 5pm

No booking required. Admission is free. For further information, please contact 01 603 0277.