Friday 4th and Saturday 5th October
Jumping Off the Page Children’s Comic Book Festival
Welcome to Jumping off the Page. We are delighted to bring you talented and award-winning comic book authors and illustrators from all over Ireland, plus a very special guest from the UK, Neill Cameron (creator of the Mega Robo Bros series).
At Halfway up the Stairs we LOVE comic books, and we are so excited to bring this new festival to Greystones. We’d like to thank our main funder, the Arts Council and also Creative Ireland Wicklow, plus all the publishers who helped us bring this festival to you, and our partner venue, The Whale Theatre, Greystones, especially Brian O’Regan. And special thanks to our designer and host with the most, Alan Nolan, and Vita Coleman from Bray Library.
We hope you enjoy all the festival events, and we can’t wait to meet you all in Halfway up the Stairs for Jumping off the Page.
– Trish Hennessy, Owner, Halfway up the Stairs, and Co-Producer of Jumping off the Page
– Sarah Webb, Events Manager, Halfway up the Stairs, and Programmer and Co-Producer of Jumping off the Page
SCHOOLS’ EVENT – PLEASE NOTE ALL THE SCHOOLS’ EVENTS ARE NOW BOOKED OUT!
Creating a Comic Book and the World of Nina Peanut with Sarah Bowie – BOOKED OUT!
Date and Time: Friday 4th October 10.00am to 11.00am + signing after the event
Venue: The Whale Theatre, Greystones
Age: 5th and 6th class
Booking: info@halfwayupthestairs.ie
Ticket Cost: €5 per child, or €11 including a copy of Sarah Bowie’s latest book, Nina Peanut: Mega Mystery Solver
2 adults free per class Only 1 class per school may be booked in
Meet the amazing Nina Peanut and her award-winning creator, Sarah Bowie. Expect lots of laughs and a draw along too. Want to find out how to create a comic book? This event is for you!
Please bring a pencil/pen and a notebook for each child.
Pop-up bookshop on site – Sarah Bowie will sign her books after the event
SCHOOLS’ EVENT
Meet Milly McCarthy and Friends with Leona Forde and Karen Harte – BOOKED OUT!
Date and Time: Friday 4th October 12.15pm to 1.15pm + signing after the event
Venue: The Whale Theatre, Greystones
Age: 3rd and 4th class
Booking: info@halfwayupthestairs.ie
Ticket Cost: €5 per child, or €10 including a copy of Leona and Karen’s new book, Milly McCarthy and the Christmas Calamity
2 adults free per class Only 1 class per school may be booked in
If you haven’t met Milly yet, you are in for a treat! Leona and Karen will talk about their brand-new Milly adventure, Milly McCarthy and the Christmas Calamity, where Milly takes part in a festive concert, which brings the house down, literally! If you like a good giggle, this event is for you! Includes a special comic book draw along with Karen.
Please bring a pencil/pen and a notebook for each child.
Pop-up bookshop on site – Leona and Karen will sign their books after their event
IRISH LANGUAGE SCHOOLS’ EVENT WITH BRAY LIBRARY
We are also delighted to support an Irish language comic book event for secondary schools in Bray Library – Ceardlann Coimicí with Sadhbh Devlin.
FAMILY EVENT
Jumping off the Page – Comic Book and Zine Fair for Young Comic Book Fans and Creators, Plus Giant Window Painting and Signing Bonanza
With special guest artists: Neill Cameron, Sarah Bowie, Alan Nolan and Karen Harte (who will be signing their books, along with author, Leona Forde)
Date and Time: Friday 4th October 4pm to 6pm
Venue: Halfway up the Stairs, Greystones
Age: 9 to 14
Booking: Two slots available: 4pm and 5pm.
Book your tickets for 4-5pm here
Book your tickets for 5-6pm here
Please book one ticket for each person attending. All children must be accompanied by a ticket holding adult.
Refreshments will be available from A Brew with a View beside the bookshop
Join us for this very special drop in afternoon of comic book fun! Browse the comics in the bookshop, including those made by young author/illustrators, and get a book signed by Sarah, Neill, Alan, Karen and Leona.
And watch Sarah, Neill, Alan and Karen create an amazing comic book window together!
How to Book a Space to Sell Your Comics or Zines:
If you are a young person aged 9 to 14 who is passionate about comic books and you’d like a space to sell your zines or comic books or hand-made merch, we’d love to have you. Spaces are limited so please book by 20th September (first come, first served): info@halfwayupthestairs.ie
RELAXED FAMILY EVENT – NEARLY BOOKED OUT!
Frankie’s World with Aoife Dooley
Date and Time: Saturday 5th October 10.30am to 11.15pm + signing after the event
Venue: The Whale Theatre, Greystones
Age: 9+
Booking: The Whale Theatre, Greystones here
Ticket Cost: €6 per child, €8 per adult, €25 for family ticket – (group of 4 including 1 adult)
All children must be accompanied by a ticket holding adult
This is a relaxed family event with smaller numbers, designed for autistic children, and children (or parents/guardians) with extra sensory needs who need a quieter event.
Aoife’s comic books, Frankie’s World and the follow up, Finding My Voice are hugely popular at Halfway up the Stairs and it’s easy to see why. They are warm and funny and tell the story of autistic schoolgirl Frankie and her adventures.
Join Aoife for this special event all about Frankie and her world, and Aoife and her world!
Pop-up bookshop on site – Aoife will sign her books after her event
Buy Aoife’s books before the event here
Event Notes
Detailed notes about the event and venue and what children can expect will be sent to all ticket holders a week before the event
FAMILY EVENT
The World of Milly McCarthy and Friends with Leona Forde and Karen Harte
Date and Time: Saturday 5th October 12.30pm to 1.15pm + signing after the event
Venue: The Whale Theatre, Greystones
Age: 8+
Booking: The Whale Theatre, Greystones here
Ticket Cost: €6 per child, €8 per adult, €25 for family ticket – 2 adults, 2 children
All children must be accompanied by a ticket holding adult
Leona and Karen will talk about their brand-new Milly adventure, Milly McCarthy and the Christmas Calamity, where Milly takes part in a festive concert, which brings the house down, literally! If you like a good giggle, this event is for you!
Pop-up bookshop on site – Leona and Karen will sign their books after their event
Buy the Milly McCarthy books before the event here
FAMILY EVENT: LUNCHTIME COMIC BOOK SIGNINGS AT HALFWAY UP THE STAIRS
Meet our comic book creators, ask them questions and get your books signed!
Free of charge, no booking necessary
12.00pm to 1.00pm
Neill Cameron, author/illustrator of Mega Robo Bros AND Sarah Bowie, author/illustrator of the Nina Peanut books
1.30pm to 2.15pm
Aoife Dooley, author/illustrator of Frankie’s World and Finding My Voice
Free of charge, no booking necessary
COMIC BOOK BONANZA! WITH SARAH BOWIE, NEILL CAMERON, AOIFE DOOLEY, KAREN HARTE AND ALAN NOLAN – NEARLY BOOKED OUT!
Date and Time: Saturday 5th October 2.30pm to 4.00pm
(Please leave extra time for the signing after the event at the Halfway up the Stairs pop-up bookshop)
Venue: The Whale Theatre, Greystones
Age: 9+
Booking: The Whale Theatre, Greystones here
Ticket Cost: €10 per child, €12 per adult or €40 for family ticket – (group of 4 including 1 adult)
All children must be accompanied by a ticket holding adult
To close our festival, we have not one but two amazing events for you, back-to-back. A must for any comic book fan!
How to Create a Brilliant Comic Book Characters with Neill Cameron and Sarah Bowie, in conversation with Alan Nolan
We are delighted to have UK comic book sensation, Neill Cameron, creator of the Mega Robo Bros with us for a very special comic book event! He will join Nina Peanut’s creator, Sarah Bowie and host with the most, Alan Nolan for a lively, illustrated chat about comic book characters they love and how they came up with their very own characters.
Our SPECTACULAR Closing Event:
Ready, Steady, Draw – a Crazy Comic Book Event Where Anything Could Happen! with Aoife Dooley, Sarah Bowie, Neill Cameron and Karen Harte Hosted by Alan Nolan
Join our comic book artists as they battle it out to be the best comic drawing team in the world (well, in Wicklow!) with help from the audience (yes, parents too!).
Mega signing with all our speakers – Sarah Bowie, Neill Cameron, Aoife Dooley, Alan Nolan and Karen Harte – after the event at the Halfway up the Stairs pop-up bookshop on site
Buy Sarah Bowie’s books before the event here
Buy Neill Cameron’s books before the event here
Buy Aoife Dooley’s books before the event here
Buy Alan Nolan’s books before the event here
Buy Leona Forde and Karen Harte’s books before the event here
Jumping off the Page Speaker Biographies
Sarah Bowie
Sarah Bowie is an author and illustrator based in Waterford. Her first comic book for children, Nina Peanut is Amazing was published to great acclaim and her second, Nina Peanut: Mega Mystery Solver has just been published.
She is co-founder of The Comics Lab and of Ireland’s first Graphic Short Story Prize in partnership with The Irish Times.
Neill Cameron
Neill Cameron is a cartoonist and writer, creator of the graphic novel series Mega Robo Bros, the Freddy VS School illustrated novels, and frequent contributor to weekly children’s comic, The Phoenix. In 2018 Mega Robo Bros was chosen as one of the best children’s comics of the year by both the New York Public Library and the Schools Library Journal.
Neill holds degrees in Philosophy and Information Technology, although what they have to do with drawing comics about robot brothers and pirate dinosaurs is frankly anyone’s guess.
Aoife Dooley
Aoife Dooley is an award-winning illustrator, writer and comedian. She is best known for her graphic novels for children, Frankie’s World and Finding My Voice. The stories are loosely based on her young self and feeling different from others. Aoife shares her own experiences around autism after getting a diagnosis in her late 20’s. She credits this discovery to helping her to finally understand herself for the first time.
Leona Forde
Leona Forde is a teacher from Bandon, County Cork. As part of the new Junior Cycle Course, teachers were offered workshops in a variety of arts disciplines and Leona used the opportunity to do a creative writing course. The Milly books are the result! Much loved by readers, with four books and more to come in 2025, Milly is here to stay!
Karen Harte
Karen Harte is an illustrator, comic creator and visual designer from Dublin. She has worked with a variety of clients such as Positive Period Ireland, Girls Rock Dublin, Fighting Words, the Dublin Feminist Film Festival and more. Her illustrations focus on playful visual storytelling and are informed by finding joy in the everyday. She is the illustrator of the Milly McCarthy books.
Alan Nolan
Alan Nolan is a comic creator and is the author and illustrator of children’s books such as Fintan’s Fifteen, Conor’s Caveman and the Sam Hannigan series. He is the illustrator of the popular Gordon’s Game books written by Gordon D’Arcy and Paul Howard, as well as Animal Crackers by Sarah Webb. His new book, Molly Malone & Bram Stoker in the Riddle of the Disappearing Dickens, the latest in his Molly & Bram series is out in September.
What a fantastic lineup for young comic fans—great to see creators like Aoife Dooley and Neill Cameron engaging directly with kids. Will there be digital resources or activity packs available for schools that couldn’t secure tickets to the booked-out events?
Hi, thanks for your message. In 2026 we hope to have a live online event and workshop during the festival so schools that can’t secure tickets can join in. Stay tuned for more on that soon.
Best, Sarah (Events Manager)