Breakfast is a simple affair. A few mouthfuls of sour black coffee stolen in a soporific state is about all On the Town can stomach first thing in the morning. So, needless to say, the invitation to down "Inner Organs" and Guinness at a delicate hour of the morning was greeted with dismay. Still, Wednesday was Bloomsday, so it was essential that one assumed the guise of a Leopold-lover and joined the literati up at the James Joyce Centre in Dublin's handsome North Great Georges Street.
Guests were decked out in their Bloomsday finest and outside number 35 a slightly surreal atmosphere filled the air as actors performed snippets from Ulysses. A day for Dubliners it may be, yet the exclusivity of the proceedings was not lost on a few locals who cried "get a life!" - the gathered crowd were, needless to say, unperturbed by such wanton criticism.
Following a traditional fry-up which was on stand-by for those who just couldn't get to grips with downing liver at such a delicate hour, everyone shuffled through the elegant Georgian room to listen to readings from the novel introduced by architect Sam Stephen- son. Among those lucky enough to get a seat was the Minister for Arts et al, Sile de Valera, who was without a Nora Barnacle shawl. She was in the company of a host of diplomats including Spanish ambassador Jose Maria Sanz-Pastor, Japanese ambassador Mrs Kazuko Yok and Russian ambassador Eegueni Mikhailov.
A hush descended as the first readings got underway with US ambassador Michael Sullivan, who had opted for an American cowboy hat instead of a boater, reading from Ulysses, and the Lord Mayor Joe Doyle, who chose to read instead from Dubliners. Helen Shaw, director of radio at RTE, paid homage to UCD's Declan Kiberd, who had given her a love and understanding of the book. She read a piece from Sirens, while the faint echoes of irreverent activity rose from outside. Also among those enjoying the literary breakfast were Edna O'Brien, fresh from the launch of her own critical study of Joyce, aspiring mayor Tony Gregory and Bernadette Greevy, artistic director of the new, Anna Livia International Opera Festival, aptly named for the day that was in it.