Electric Picnic, which is back in September after a two-year absence, has announced the line-up for its MindField strand, which features spoken word, debate, talks, podcasts and science.

The RTÉ broadcaster Miriam O’Callaghan, the podcaster Blindboy Boatclub, the author Emilie Pine and the Trinity College Dublin immunologist Prof Luke O’Neill are among those confirmed for this year’s sold-out festival, which takes place in Stradbally, Co Laois, between September 2nd and 4th. It’s the first Electric Picnic since 2019, after Covid precautions forced the cancellation of the 2020 and 2021 festivals.

What’s on: Leviathan tent

Highlights of the programme in the Leviathan tent include speed debating with Salon du Chat; O’Callaghan hosting her Sunday Brunch, at which her guests cast a jaundiced eye on the newspapers; and Waterford Whispers News presenter Bill Badbody presenting his satirical landlords’ Ted talk.

• The Dublin Inquirer will present Generation Rack Rent, hosted by the writer and editor Lois Kapila
• Transgender Equality Network Ireland will stage Lost in Translation: Disinformation and Trans Rights in Ireland, hosted by Claire Beck of Today FM.
• The Department of Foreign Affairs’ EU50 programme, which marks a half-century of Ireland in the EU, presents Blindboy’s European Parliament.
• The Amnesty Hour covers the rights of sex workers.
• Paddy Cullivan will present The Murder of Michael Collins
• History Ireland Hedge School will address the subject of women and the decade of centenaries.
• Leviathan, hosted by David McWilliams, looks at Ireland’s next government.
• There’s also the return of the funniest event of Electric Picnic 2019, The World’s Worst Book Launch: Chicago Blues, by the thriller writer Saul Tillock (aka Paul Tylak), hosted by Dr Günther Grun (aka Barry Murphy).
• Prof Luke O’Neill will perform with his Metabollix all-star band.

Manifesto stage

• On the Manifesto stage, curated by the writer Sinéad Gleeson, Denise Chaila, one of the biggest rising stars of recent years, will be in conversation with her collaborator Godknows, who in turn will be interviewing the Irish rapper JYellowL.
• On Sunday, the Derry Girls star Siobhán Sweeney will be chatting to the comedian David O’Doherty about life after the hit Channel 4 series.
• Prof Emilie Pine, whose acclaimed novel Ruth & Pen has just been published, joins the behavioural and data scientist Dr Pragya Agarwal to discuss hysteria, emotions and gender bias.
• Aideen Barry and the writer and academic Emma Dabiri join forces to ask, “What if we’re the last generation of artists and thinkers?” inspired by Barry’s landmark 2021 show Oblivion.
• The musicians Sorcha Richardson and Orla Gartland will perform, explain how they write songs and talk about what it’s like to perform again postlockdown.
• Aoife Martin and William Keohane, who have both engaged in writing and activism around trans issues, will be in conversation.
• The comedian and writer Martin Warde and the singer Sharyn Ward share their stories around identity and Traveller culture with some traditional music from Sharyn.
• Jessica Traynor, Nithy Kasa and Elaine Feeney will be reading from their latest poetry work.
• Kathryn Ferguson and Mick Mahon, two of the film-makers involved in Nothing Compares, the new documentary about Sinéad O’Connor, will talk about their film.

Plus...

• Human Lab, a new part of the Mindfield line-up, presented in partnership with Science Foundation Ireland and curated by Aisling Murray, is an art and science hub presenting interactive discussions, workshops and exhibits on cutting-edge scientific topics. Among the highlights is The “Science” Show, a quiz in which Prof Luke O’Neill and Prof Aoife McLysaght will debunk bad science and conspiracy theories.
• The Ah, Hear NOW! stage will present live versions of some of Ireland’s most popular podcasts.
• An Puball Gaeilge will host talks, theatre, podcasts and music as Gaeilge.
• The Word stage will present beats, rhymes, poetry, hip hop, grime and more.

“We’re excited after such a long absence to present an inspiring range of real-life experiences this year. We’re coming together again in a new space beside Mind and Body,” says the Mindfield organiser Naoise Nunn. “We’re coming together with unity of purpose to better support and understand one another. We’re coming together to celebrate inclusion, kindness, understanding, reflection and thoughtfulness — to listen and to be heard. We’re also coming together again to laugh and sing and dance and commune together.”