Ulysses In 80: The Ulysses Experience

In this episode of Ulysses in 80, Mark Sanford Gross and Cliona O’Farrelly are joined by Daniel Mulhall, former Irish Ambassador to the United States and author of Ulysses: A Reader’s Odyssey.

Mulhall comes to Ulysses first and foremost as a reader—one who has returned to Joyce’s novel throughout a diplomatic career that took him around the world. The conversation moves from his own roots in Ulysses to Irelan...

Mark Sanford Gross and Cliona O'Farrelly are joined by Daragh O'Connell, Associate Professor of Italian at University College Cork and Director of the Centre for Dante Studies in Ireland, for a lively journey between Dante and Joyce—and some of the surprising places where their worlds meet.

From Ulysses' extraordinary final voyage in Dante's Inferno to the echoes that surface in Joyce's Ulysses, the conversation wanders throug...

As readers journey into the final third of James Joyce's Ulysses, Professor Joseph Valente joins Ulysses in 80 for a thoughtful conversation exploring identity, belonging, nation, and the enduring humanity at the heart of Joyce's masterpiece.

Together, we discuss Leopold Bloom, Joyce's treatment of Jewishness, questions of gender and sexuality, the complexities of nationalism, and why Ulysses continues to challenge—and reward&...

What happens when Ulysses leaves the page and steps onto the stage?

This week, Mark Sanford Gross and Cliona O'Farrelly welcome acclaimed Irish playwright, journalist, and historian Colin Murphy for a wide-ranging conversation about James Joyce, theatre, and the remarkable legal battle that transformed Ulysses from a banned novel into one of the world's most celebrated works of literature.

Colin discusses his acclaimed play, The Unit...

This week on Ulysses in 80, we're joined by Patrick Hastings, creator of The Ulysses Guide, one of today's most trusted companions for readers making their way through James Joyce's Ulysses.

Patrick has a remarkable ability to make Joyce's masterpiece feel welcoming without diminishing its richness or complexity. Throughout this conversation, he shares practical insights, reading strategies, and the quiet confidence that readers don...

Professor Catherine Flynn of the University of California, Berkeley, joins Ulysses in 80 to explore the Nausicaa episode of James Joyce's Ulysses—the chapter that sparked one of the most famous censorship battles in literary history.

Editor of The Cambridge Centenary Ulysses and co-host of the U22 podcast, Catherine combines deep scholarship with an engaging and welcoming approach to Joyce. In this conversation, she shares ins...

Cyclops. History. The Life of Ulysses.

This week on Ulysses in 80, we welcome Professor Robert Spoo, Princeton University, for a wide-ranging conversation recorded as we discuss the Cyclops episode of James Joyce's Ulysses.

Together, we explore the remarkable life of Ulysses beyond its pages—history, the people who shaped its journey, and the enduring influence of one of the world's most extraordinary novels. Along the way, Rob...

Professor Matthew Campbell of the University of York returns to Ulysses in 80 for a warm and engaging conversation as readers arrive in the heart of the Wandering Rocks episode.

Matthew brings the same curiosity, wit, and generosity that readers have come to enjoy in his previous visits to Ulysses in 80. The conversation wanders through Wandering Rocks, poetry, music, teaching, and the pleasures of reading Joyce slowly, always retur...

In this special Readers' Pub episode of Ulysses in 80, the guest speakers are the readers themselves.

Participants from around the world gather for an open conversation that ranges from Joyce and language to Judaism, Gorgonzola sandwiches, and the unexpected connections that emerge when readers meet one another with curiosity and candor.

More than a discussion of Ulysses, this episode explores reading slowly, embracing complexity, an...

In Season 3, Episode 2 of Ulysses in 80, Mark Sanford Gross and Cliona O'Farrelly welcome Robert Nicholson—writer, curator, and one of Dublin's most respected guides to the world of James Joyce.

For nearly fifty years, Robert has been walking the streets of Dublin with readers from around the world, bringing Joyce's city to life one step at a time.

In this lively conversation, he leads us through the streets and stories of Joyc...

Recorded during the opening week of the 2026 Ulysses in 80 global reading, this conversation brings together Mark Sanford Gross, Cliona O'Farrelly, and Professor Sam Slote of Trinity College Dublin to begin an eighty-day journey through James Joyce's Ulysses.

As readers around the world gather to read the novel one day at a time, Sam reflects on a lifetime spent reading, teaching, and thinking about Joyce. The conversation explores ...

A mosaic of voices from the Ulysses in 80 community sharing spontaneous thoughts on how they read James Joyce’s Ulysses.

New readers. First-time readers. Returning readers.

No one prepared for this episode. The reflections here emerged in the moment — stream-of-consciousness responses to a simple question:

How do you read Ulysses?

This is not an academic “how to” episode. These are personal reflections shaped by...

The 2026 season opens with this podcast.

Ulysses in 80 is a global reading of James Joyce’s Ulysses, now in its fifth year, moving through the book together over eighty days.

This episode gathers twenty-four voices — all participants in the global group — who offered their own response to a simple question: why read Ulysses? This is the first podcast of the 2026 season.

These voices were not recorded in a studio, and...

Our final episode of the Ulysses in 80 Podcast (2025) weaves 32 soliloquies from readers in 12 countries. Each recorded in a place of their choosing, spontaneous and on the spot, their voices join into one collective stream of consciousness—the 2025 Soliloquy.

Spanning many languages and accents, the chorus echoes Joyce’s vision: strangers passing one another on life’s journey. And at the end, one last soliloquy&md...

Podcast Description

In our final Ulysses in 80 webinar guest series of 2025, we’re joined by Ilaria Susmel from Trieste, Italy. A local and enthusiastic Joyce reader, Ilaria’s warm and engaging delivery brings both affection for Ulysses and fresh insight into how the city of Trieste itself shapes the reading of the novel in ways we may not have known.

As an added gift, Silvia Margherita German joins us from Trieste with s...

Ulysses in 80welcomes special guest Dr. Daragh O’Connell,  Director of the Centre for Dante Studies in Ireland.  This compelling conversation explores the deep links, intersections, and influences between Dante Alighieri and James Joyce — and their landmark works, Inferno and Ulysses. Through this shared lens, we uncover new insights into the structure, symbolism, and ambition of both literary masterpieces...

In this episode of the Ulysses in 80 podcast, we sit down with the one and only Robert Nicholson—a true Joyce legend who spent four decades as the curator of the James Joyce Tower & Museum in Sandycove. Robert has led countless walking tours through the winding streets of Joyce’s Dublin, published beloved editions of Walking Joyce’s Dublin, and brought the spirit of Joyce to life through community events, talk...

 🌐 ulyssesguide.com

In this episode, we’re delighted to welcome Patrick Hastings, author of the acclaimed Guide to James Joyce’s Ulysses. Patrick has a gift for presenting Joyce’s monumental—and famously challenging—novel in a way that’s accessible, engaging, and intellectually honest. His approach preserves the novel’s complexity, context, and the rich possibilities it offers for ...

This special episode marks more than just the textual midpoint of Ulysses, where the novel turns toward Oxen of the Sun. It is a threshold moment in the novel. It is also a moment when the mirror turns, too. 

Instead of us looking into Ulysses, Ulysses—and something deeper within us—looks back.

Strangers from across ten time zones, connected through the shared journey of reading Ulysses in 80 Days, came together live...