Ulster University music professor teams up with Northern Ireland composer to create music for hit BBC drama The Woman In The Wall

A professor of music at Ulster University, Brian Irvine, is one half of a duo that has created and composed the original music score for the hit BBC One mystery drama: The Woman In The Wall.

Alongside composer Dr David Holmes, an honorary graduate of Ulster University, Professor Irvine, composed the score and featured the haunting vocals of Italian singer Anna Caragnano.

The Woman in the Wall is a six-part BBC One mystery drama created by Joe Murtagh, and stars Ruth Wilson and Daryl McCormack. Made by Motive Pictures, the unique drama is centred around the dubious, harrowing and incredulous practices that were common throughout the numerous mothers and babies homes in Ireland in recent years.

The series, which is screened on Sunday evenings, has captivated audiences around the world, receiving widespread critical acclaim.

Shortlisted for the 2022 Ivor Novello Award, Professor Irvine’s work on Woman in the Wall the score reflects Ulster University’s important associations and connections with the wider TV and film industry, further strengthening the university’s reputation as a nurturing hub for Northern Ireland’s burgeoning creative screen industry professionals and film, TV, and games composers.

Speaking to the Belfast News Letter, Professor Irvine, said: “The Woman in the Wall is a brilliant, powerful, brave and important piece of drama that drills deep into the dark heart of the mother and baby homes in Ireland in a manner that is provocative and genre defying.

"It was a very special project to work on for so many reasons. David (Holmes) is simply one of the most inspiring, original and generous creative forces in contemporary music making and Anna (Caragnano) is a truly captivating and authentic force of nature. Working with them both was like being part of a unique family, each of us brothers and sisters driven by a common and insatiable desire to make new music that made our nerve endings tingle, twist and summersault.”

Holmes and Irvine have worked on many projects together with previous film scores including: The Laundromat directed by Steven Soderberg, starring Meryl Streep, Garry Oldman, Antonio Banderas, Sharon Stone and David Schwimmer; Ordinary Love starring Liam Neeson and Lesley Mandeville, written by Owen McCafferty and Marlowe directed by Neil Jordan, starring Jessica Lange, Diane Kruger, Alan Cumming and Liam Neeson.