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David Gilna

@irishplaywright

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Award-winning Irish Playwright 🇮🇪 Actor 🎭 Producer 🎬 24 📚The Boy Who Dared To Believe On Amazon 🇮🇪WGI Board Member🇮🇪 New Play: Did I Ever Tell Ya ✈️🌎🎭

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I hope these words find whoever needs to hear them today.

From the Eyes of a Storyteller.

#fromtheyesofastoryteller #storytelling #dublin by @irishplaywright

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3 months ago

Thanks a thousand for all your love, reviews & support @thelarkdublin for Did I Ever Tell Ya 🎭

#storytelling #irish #tourlife #actorslife taken in The Lark Concert Hall at the IIMS by @irishplaywright

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a year ago

David & Keith reflect on life in showbiz and the beauty of storytelling - how stories allow us to remember, to celebrate, and to cherish what truly matters ✨

Listen to the full episode of Keith Barry's Open Mind podcast!🧠
#keithbarry #openmind #podcast by @irishplaywright

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a year ago

Prayers before pints, my Friday tradition… I know a lot of people suffering in silence at the moment. So sending some love and Lady Luck to all my friends and family.

Tonight do something beautiful for you. Never forget at some point in your life, you have made someone feel loved or seen. That’s a beautiful gift. by @irishplaywright

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a day ago

I’ve loved taking a little break from storytelling on stage in 2026

Time to live, reflect, create and enjoy a different chapter.

But there’s nothing quite like walking out to a room full of people, ready to share a story.

Thanks a Thousand to everyone who has supported my journey, come to a show, shared a laugh, shed a tear, or simply believed in what I do. I’ve so much gratitude for the road so far.

And I can’t wait to be back doing what I love in 2027.

Onwards ❤️

#storytelling #creativity #love #thankyouuniverse by @irishplaywright

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4 days ago

One of life’s greatest blessings is friendship.
Think about it. In life, we get to choose our friends.

People who come into our lives and, somewhere along the way, become our people. The conversations, the laughter, the memories, the trust and the loyalty.

The people you can turn to when you need to talk, who stand beside you when life gets difficult, and who are just as happy to share the good times.

They’re not your blood, but the bond is every bit as special. Today, I’m feeling grateful for the friendships in my life, both old and new.

And to everyone who has chosen me as a friend, thanks a thousand. Life is precious. The people we share it with make it all the better.

Blessed with the friendships I have. Grateful for the people you are. Gerruppp Outta that…

From the Eyes of a Storyteller by @irishplaywright

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6 days ago

October 2013.

My West End debut.

I still remember the feeling of walking into that theatre knowing that, for the first time, I was about to step onto a West End stage.

On paper, it was a career milestone.

In reality, it was a mixture of excitement, nerves, disbelief and gratitude. I had spent years dreaming about moments like that. And then suddenly, there I was.

Looking back almost 13 years later, I realise the biggest thing I took from it wasn’t simply the fact that I had made my West End debut.

It was understanding that the dream is one thing. Living inside it is another. You learn very quickly that the stage doesn’t care about your CV.

You still have to walk out there, connect with the audience and tell the story. That never changes.

I’ve had many different chapters since that night acting, writing, producing, filmmaking, teaching and creating my own work.

But I’ll always be grateful for October 2013.

For the opportunity. For the people I shared it with.
And for the younger version of me who got to stand on that stage and think “I’m actually here.”

But performing in front of my parents, and my London family friends was just a dream ✨ by @irishplaywright

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9 days ago

My mum found this gem of me on my Nana’s Farm with my big cousin running through the fields. Blessed to have known Big Family Gatherings ✨ by @irishplaywright

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11 days ago

Just found my third class report from St Cronan’s, still easily distracted, I chat with everyone I meet walking down Main Street, still friends with everyone from those magical days, we did good R’kid

#childhood #report #oldschool #dreambig by @irishplaywright

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18 days ago

Elaine Murphy is back!

Following the brilliant response to our launch, Elaine returns to the Fingal Creative Arts Academy on Monday 5th October for another writing class.

This one is all about finding your writing voice with one of the best.

We’re genuinely loving the community we’re building here in Swords. People taking a chance, sharing ideas, finding their voice and having a bit of craic along the way.

We’re only getting started.

Any questions, just ask.

Onwards. by @irishplaywright

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18 days ago

What an incredible experience in Dublin last night with @u2 ✨ by @irishplaywright

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21 days ago

12 is my new collection of poetry, coming February 2027 with Orla Kelly Publishing.

12 represents twelve months of a life chapter.

A year of love, loss, grief, friendship, vulnerability, darkness, laughter, healing and hope. It’s about the things we cannot see when we’re in the darkness, and the realisation that sometimes healing simply takes time.

We are cut.
We bleed.
We heal.
We scar.

And eventually, sometimes without even noticing, we find our light again. 12 is my most personal collection yet.

A collection about the people who shaped me, the moments that changed me, the things I survived, the love I experienced, the people I lost, and the simple beauty of being alive.

12 months. A thousand moments. One journey back to the light.

I’m honoured to collaborate once again Orla Kelly Publishing and local photographer Phil Traynor, following his incredible work on 24. This photograph captures the beginning of my own journey and, for me, the beginning of this new collection.

12 is about where we have been, where we are, and finding the courage to step towards whatever light comes next.

I’m also incredibly proud that 50% of all books sold on launch night will be donated to Aware, in collaboration with Sinéad Kavanagh and Eirebus, a charity and cause very close to my heart.

February 2027.
Orla Kelly Publishing. by @irishplaywright

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23 days ago