A free literary event in Alloway will bring together the history of the Agnews of Galloway, poetry and the shared cultural links between Ireland and Scotland.
Novelist Angeline King will appear at the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum on Wednesday 21 October 2026 for a Highlight Talk titled The Agnews: Poets & Sheriffs Across the Irish Sea. The talk will begin at 2.30pm, with doors opening at 2.15pm.
A mystery shaped by history and fiction
The discussion will focus on King’s novel The Secret Diary of Stephanie Agnew, which is based on her historical research and explores the mystery of the Agnews of Galloway. The event listing says King will combine history, poetry and dialectal novel writing as she explains the background to the book.
The novel’s fictional protagonist, Stephanie Agnew, writes a diary in 1995 after discovering that Ballygally was once poetic land. She then sets out on a journey to Scotland to trace the Agnews.
That journey includes a detour to Ayr and Alloway. The two South Ayrshire locations are described as essential stops on the annual holiday to Butlins that King took in the 1980s, providing a personal link between the author’s memories and the novel’s fictional investigation.
King is also due to discuss how she uses both Scots and Ulster Scots in the novel. The talk therefore looks beyond the family mystery itself, examining the language and dialect choices used to connect the story’s Scottish and Northern Irish settings.
Author’s work across Scotland and Northern Ireland
King is a novelist from Larne in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. She served as Writer in Residence at Ulster University from 2020 to 2023, and completed a PhD in English, specialising in Creative Writing, during that period.
She has recently completed her sixth novel, Snow in Leiden. That book is set in the Netherlands in the 1680s among an exiled Scottish Covenanting community, and was part of an Arts Council of Northern Ireland project in 2024.
King’s previous novels have combined coming-of-age drama with genealogical adventure. Her work has been described by The Irish Times as delightfully funny, while Billy Kay described The Secret Diary of Stephanie Agnew as An engaging read for anyone fascinated by the shared cultures of Ireland and Scotland.
Alongside her novels, King writes Ulster Scots poems. Last year, she took part in the Robert Burns-inspired Poetry Jukebox Linen Hall Library and Scottish Poetry Library tour, which travelled between Belfast and Edinburgh.
Booking and venue information
The Highlight Talk is free, but booking is recommended to guarantee entry. The Robertson Room has limited capacity. Any seats remaining for people who have not booked will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, meaning entry cannot be guaranteed without booking.
The event will be held in the Robertson Room at the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, Murdoch’s Lone, Alloway, Ayr, KA7 4PQ. It is listed as an 18-plus event.
Venue information lists accessible rooms, disabled access, Blue Badge parking and general parking. Walkers are also welcome. Further enquiries can be made by telephone on 01292 443 700.
The listing does not provide a direct booking link or explain the booking procedure. It also gives no separate publication or update date beyond the advertised 2026 event date, so readers should check arrangements with the venue before attending.