Having published his debut poetry collection last year, and having previously released several viral multimedia projects which have defined contemporary Irish life, Stephen James Smith is set to embark on an extensive tour next month.

The tour will take him to Seamus Heaney's HomePlace in Bellaghy, as well as venues in Belfast, Dublin, Limerick, Kinsale and Galway.

Stephen James Smith will be joined by legendary Manchester poet Tony Walsh as special guest on the full UK and Ireland Tour, with the two bards set to regale the audience for over 90 minutes with poems of sorrow and joy, no doubt new stories will arise on the journey.

Dublin's Sugar Club show on 3 October will also see Stephen joined by multi instrumentalist Aidan Murphy and the extraordinary Steve Simpson will be drawing 'live art' in response to Stephen's performance. This is not to be missed.

Stephen James Smith

Stephen James Smith has toured to over 12 countries around the world, and this upcoming UK and Ireland tour follows the success of his nationwide tour last year which culminated in his first hometown headliner at The Button Factory.

In the past, Stephen's commissioned spoken word videos (including Dublin You Are and ">My Ireland) have amassed over 3 million views online in partnership with groups such as Creative Ireland, Listowel Writers' Week, Dublin Culture Company, St. Patrick's Festival.

These have lead to him performing at high profile events in prestige venues such as London Palladium, Nuyorican Poets Café, New York, Cultural Centre Irlandais, Paris, National Concert Hall, The Abbey Theatre, Vicar Street, Glastonbury Festival and many more.

He also works with different community groups around Ireland, including the mental health charity arts organisatiom First Fortnight, and gives regular writing workshops in schools.

Last year, he sold out of his debut collection of poetry (Fear Not, September 2018) within two months of it's release.

One of Smith's most recent projects involved him performing with Northern Irish artists Ryan Vail and Elma Orkestra, for their audio/visual concept album and show, Borders.

See Stephen's full tour dates below:

IRISH TOUR DATES
1 October: Seamus Heaney HomePlace, Bellaghy, 7.30pm, £12.50
2 October: Black Box, Belfast, 8pm, £12.50
3 October: The Sugar Club, Dublin, 8pm, €16
4 October: Dolan's, Limerick, 9pm, €12.50
5 October: Kinsale Literary Festival. The Trident Hotel, 9.30pm, €12
6 October: The Róisín Dubh, Galway, 8pm, €12.50

UK TOUR DATES:
17 October: The Wardrobe Theatre, Bristol, United Kingdom
18 October: Exeter Phoenix, United Kingdom
19 October: Winchester Discovery CentreWinchester, United Kingdom
20 October: Front Room Songs Red Hill, United Kingdom
22 October: Kitchen Garden Cafe, Birmingham, United Kingdom
23 October: The Met, Bury, United Kingdom
24 October: Bakewell Town Hall, Bakewell, United Kingdom
25 October; Thorner Victory Hall, Thorner, United Kingdom
26 October: Rosehill Theatre & Green Room Restaurant, Moresby Parks, United Kingdom
27 October: Cottiers Theatre Glasgow, United Kingdom

All tickets are on sale now available from Ticketmaster and local venues. For more on Stephen James Smith, go to www.stephenjamessmith.com