‘Splendid Isolation’ nominated for award

The pieces featured some of Northern Ireland’s biggest names in writing and acting, including Lisa McGee (Derry Girls) and Conleth Hill (Game of Thrones).

Splendid Isolation: Lockdown Drama was developed by the Lyric Theatre as an opportunity to expand into film production, while the theatre was forced to close.

It meant that Northern Ireland’s only full time producing theatre was able to continue to bring culture into the homes of audiences during lockdown.

The short films explored the positive and negative aspects of social isolation and lockdown caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Jimmy Fay, Executive Producer at the Lyric, said: “I am delighted that ‘Splendid Isolation’ has been nominated for such a prestigious television award.

“It’s been a really difficult year for the whole industry but it’s also been great to be able to explore innovative new ways for theatre and film production to collaborate and produce high quality work with the best of Northern Irish talent.

“All of the 22 artists involved in this project had a connection to the Lyric Theatre and responded to our invitation to create for this project with truly excellent and imaginative pieces, which have now been recognised amongst the best drama coming from Northern Ireland.

“The Covid-19 pandemic continues to have a devastating impact on theatres across the country, forcing the closure of all of them for the foreseeable future.

“ For over 50 years the Lyric has never closed its doors before now, but as a production company, we have never stopped working and producing digital work for our audiences.

“We look forward to hearing more about the support package from the Department for Communities that has been announced, so we can continue to build on this new digital production as we navigate this new normal and face the ongoing challenges for our theatres.”