the boy on the bridge
Written By: Julie Dutkiewicz
Directed By: Paula McFetridge
Production Premiere: 10th August 2021
Performed by: Ciarán Nolan, Gerard Jordan and James Doran
You know James Ellis, right?
Celebrated Belfast actor, synonymous with Z Cars, The Billy Plays and staging the controversial Over the Bridge. Prolific writer, poet, translator and activist. See why this Belfast son, with a bridge named in his honour, embodied everything it takes not just to survive, but to leave behind a legacy that changed how we view ourselves and the city we live in.
The Boy on The Bridge, a new script by local writer Julie Dutkiewicz, delves deeper into the life of the man, the myth, and the legend that was Jimmy Ellis. From his East Belfast roots, Jimmy rose to become one of the Belfast’s best know exports, and was proudly one his eras only local voices on national television.
This poignant, funny, and thoughtful play explores the full character of the man, based on the James Ellis collection at Linenhall Library kindly donated by his widow, Robina Ellis.
Staged in partnership with the Linen Hall Library and Belfast Film Festival, Kabosh stages the premiere reading of The Boy on the Bridge, intercut with poignant footage from an interview by Gerry Anderson and examples of James’ film writing work.
