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Lyra Celtica: Harry Josephine Giles on Wilfion

February 19 @ 6:00 pm 7:00 pm

Doors 5:30pm, event 6pm-7pm

Join us for an evening of readings exploring the work and legacy of genderweird Celtic Revival writer Fiona Macleod / William Sharp with Harry Josephine Giles and special guests.

Fiona Macleod was a well-known Scottish author in the Celtic Twilight, a correspondent to W. B. Yeats, and possibly the originator and probably the populariser of the name Fiona. After the death of William Sharp, a less popular writer in the same circles, it was revealed that Fiona was also the 12-year “second self”, “feminine self” or “dream self” of William Sharp. The combination of William and Fiona were known as Wilfion by their wife.

Wilfion is featured in our Desire Paths exhbition which explores Edinburgh’s queer history. Harry Josephine Giles will join us in the gallery space to discuss Wilfion’s life and writing.

About Harry Josephine Giles

Harry Josephine Giles is a writer and performer from Orkney, living in Leith. Her latest book is the poetry collection Them! (Picador 2024). Her verse novel Deep Wheel Orcadia (Picador 2021) won the 2022 Arthur C. Clarke Award for science fiction book of the year. Her poetry collections The Games (Out-Spoken Press, 2018) and Tonguit (Freight Books 2015) were between them shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection, the Saltire Prize and the Edwin Morgan Poetry Award. Her stage show of her poetry sequence Drone toured internationally in 2019, and the performance of Deep Wheel Orcadia will tour in 2025. She has a PhD in Creative Writing from the University of Stirling. www.harryjosephine.com

Location and accessibility

The exhibition will be in Gallery 2, on the third floor of Edinburgh Palette at St Margaret’s House. You can find directions to Edinburgh Palette on our location and access page.

Gallery 2 is on the third floor of the building, which can be accessed via the staircase or the lifts.

Desire Paths: Reading Queer Edinburgh

This event is part of our Desire Paths programme, which includes an exhibition and accompanying events:

Desire Paths: Reading Queer Edinburgh is an exhibition which explores our city’s histories through a queer lens, drawing on books from the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive collection and Edinburgh’s rich LGBT+ history. 19th-25th February 2025, 11am-4pm

Desire Paths: Opening Night – Join us for the opening night of the exhibition! There will be drinks and nibbles, and the chance to hear more about the stories featured in the exhibition. Tuesday 18th February, 6pm-8pm

Eve by Jo Clifford – A special reading from Eve by Jo Clifford followed by a Q&A with the writer and performer. Eve tells tells a story that is both gentle and passionate, intimate and political, about the journey towards our real selves. Thursday 20th February, 6.30-8pm

This project is co-curated by a team of volunteers from Lavender Menace and funded by Edinburgh 900.

Find out more on the Lavender Menace website: lavendermenace.org.uk/events