Nelofer Pazira-Fisk discusses her experience completing her late husband’s book on Middle Eastern politics, his legacy as a journalist and shares her reflections on how Western mainstream media reports on the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Nelofer Pazira-Fisk is an award-winning Afghan-Canadian author, journalist and filmmaker. She was based in Beirut for fifteen years working alongside her late husband, Robert Fisk. She reported for Canadian television and radio as well as UK and Canadian newspapers from Iraq, Afghanistan, Turkey, Egypt and Syria.
In 2001, she starred in the film Kandahar, based on her real-life story and has directed and produced several films including Return to Kandahar (2003), Act of Dishonour (2010), and This is Not a Movie (2019). Nelofer’s 2006 book, A Bed of Red Flowers: In Search of My Afghanistan, won the Drainie-Taylor Biography Prize.
‘Robert left me and the world his legacy of accurate reporting and being very truthful, honest and courageous to say it and speak it in the face of power’
CQ Bazaar returns to CQAF with a feast of delights in (where else?!) the Common Market. An eclectic mix of DJs, Independent record labels, second-hand vinyl, vintage clothes, antiques and Retro furniture. The best art, design and crafts.
Common Market Bar and food vendors are open during the market hours. Come and treat your eyes, ears, mouth and pockets.
Presented by QFT, CQAF and Source Magazine. Martin Parr joins us for a Q&A following the screening.
Since the 1970s, English photographer Martin Parr has held up a sometimes tender, sometimes critical and always mischievous mirror to our times, forcing us to take a hard look at how consumer society has shaped our lives. Discover the maverick behind some of the most iconic images of the past century on an intimate and exclusive road trip across England with the uncompromising Parr, whose subjects, frames and colours have revolutionised contemporary photography.
One of the most controversial photographers of his time, Martin Parr’s images often have the power to both amuse and leave us ever so slightly uncomfortable, caught between laughter and the uneasy recognition of ourselves in his uncompromising portrait of consumer society.
Though he’s now celebrated, collected and exhibited worldwide, Parr’s early work did not find an easy public and was highly criticized for trivializing the working class. Yet, in retrospect, perhaps he was just observing what we often overlook – forcing it into the spotlight as an essential topic of discussion. I Am Martin Parr is the definitive portrait of an extraordinary photographer who revolutionized contemporary photography by inventing a political, humanist and accessible photographic language.
Join us as we bring Paul McVeigh’s BBC Radio 4 short story collection, I Hear You, to life on stage. The collection features three standalone stories alongside The Circus—a ten-part series set in Cliftonville Circus, North Belfast, where ten unique voices take centre stage.
In this one-of-a-kind fusion of literature, radio, and theatre, acclaimed actors Tony Flynn (Big Man, Blue Lights), Michael Condron (Coronation Street, Say Nothing), and Abigail McGibbon (Ballywalter, Blue Lights) will perform their radio-recorded stories live, immersing you in the world of The Circus.
And for the first time, Paul McVeigh himself will take the stage to share the inspirations behind his stories.
Paul’s short stories have been in anthologies, journals and newspapers, read onBBC Radio 3, 4 and 5, RTE Radio, as well as Sky ARTS. His ten-part short story series, The Circus, aired on BBC Radio Ulster, BBC Radio Foyle and BBC Radio 4. He co-founded London Short Story Festival and has edited three anthologies. His collection, I hear You, was published in March 2025. His debut novel, The Good Son, won The Polari First Novel Prize and The McCrae Literary Award and his writing has been translated into eight languages.
****THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED TO MONDAY 5TH MAY 2025****
All original ticketholders have been notified
Three-time Edinburgh Fringe Best Show nominee, Josie Long tries out ideas and hopes for the best in preparation for a full show next year, but please be reassured that you are in the safe hands of an accomplished professional.
‘Idealism and irrepressible fun are never far from the surface when Long stakes to the stage’ (Guardian). ****
This show is strictly for audiences aged 18 and over.
If you have access needs, feel free to email Aoife at aoife@cqaf.com for more info—we’re happy to help!
We’re seriously excited about this. The Magic Numbers comprise of two pairs of siblings (Romeo and Michele Stodart, Sean and Angela Gannon) who are known for their unique harmonies, melodic hooks, songwriting craftsmanship and timeless sound.
Their Mercury Prize-nominated self-titled debut album was released in 2005 to outstanding critical acclaim, and contained top ten hit singles such as ‘Forever Lost’, ‘Love Me Like You’ and ‘Love is a Game’. It went on to sell over a million copies worldwide, making them one of the nation’s best-loved bands.
They have earned a reputation for their exciting and uplifting live performances, leading them to tour the world, building a loyal fan base, as well as supporting the likes of Neil Young, Brian Wilson, Radiohead, The Flaming Lips, The Who, U2, Elbow and Bright Eyes amongst many others. The Magic Numbers have released five successful albums to date, and are currently working on new music.
The band have also become known for their collaborations with a diverse range of artists over the years – from Romeo writing and producing songs for the late Jane Birkin, Natalie Imbruglia, Ren Harvieu to co- writing ‘Close your eyes’ with the Chemical Brothers for their Grammy-Award-winning album ‘Push The Button’, and producing Billy Bragg’s most recent album. His sister, Michele Stodart has released three critically acclaimed solo albums, and is also an award-winning artist and collaborator.
The Magic Numbers’ outstanding musicianship, blood harmonies and skilfully crafted songs, make them a truly unique, exciting and unmissable live band. They continue to tour the world building their audiences and explore new ground in the studio together producing albums.
This show is strictly for audiences aged 18 and over.
If you have access needs, feel free to email Aoife at aoife@cqaf.com for more info—we’re happy to help!
Declared “the coolest rock star in the world right now,” by UNCUT magazine, Arooj Aftab has earned her position at the vanguard of creative music for her embrace of risk and nonconformity.
In 2024, she released her fourth solo album, Night Reign (Verve), to universal acclaim, earning a Grammy nomination for Best Alternative Jazz Album, while the song “Raat Ki Rani” was tabbed for Best Global Music Performance. The album expands on the musical universe Aftab has created over the years. Night Reign features an all-star cast of musicians (Cautious Clay, Vijay Iyer, Elvis Costello, James Franceis, Moor Mother, Joel Ross), united beneath the steady, brilliant hand of the queen of the night.
As put by the Wall Street Journal, “[Night Reign’s] beauty is self-evident, and it stands on its own” which helps explain its inclusion across so many Best of 2024 album lists. Night Reign’s predecessor, Vulture Prince, ushered Aftab into the cultural zeitgeist, including a place on President Barack Obama’s Summer 2021 playlist. Recognition for the record propelled her to a Best New Artist Grammy nomination in 2022 and a win for the song “Mohabbat.”
The following year she collaborated with Vijay Iyer and Shahzad Ismaily on a “masterclass in space,” the improvisational Love in Exile (Verve 2023), also Grammy nominated and winner of a 2023 Edison Jazz award.
Aftab spent her adolescent years in Lahore, Pakistan, the birthplace of her music-loving parents. Her viral cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” at age 18 aided in her passage to study jazz at Berklee College of Music in Boston, while Brooklyn, New York would be her next and most fertile workshop for creation of her genre-defying music.
Over the last few years, she has delivered “rapturous performances” at major venues and international festivals including Primavera, Glastonbury, Coachella, Le Guess Who? (which she curated), and both Newport and Montreal Jazz.
She has appeared on NPR’s Tiny Desk, Later with Jools Holland, Brodie and Mahogany sessions. Aftab has been featured in The New York Times, The Guardian, Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, The Financial Times, The Quietus, and Time, to name a few. She is a 2023 United States Artists Fellow and recipient of the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Music.
If you have access needs, feel free to email Aoife at aoife@cqaf.com for more info—we’re happy to help!
Aisling O’Beirn’s exhibition explores the relationship between art, science, and environmental change. Using sculpture, installation, and animation, she examines the impact of artificial light on ecosystems and humanity’s disconnection from the night sky. Featuring newly commissioned and reworked pieces, the exhibition highlights the celestial as an ecologically vital force.
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The Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival and Out To Lunch are annual festivals of music, comedy, theatre, art and literature which take place in January and May in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
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