Imagine Festival presents Noel Doran in conversation

This March we are excited to welcome Imagine Festival as they bring to The Crescent a whole host of events.

As he prepares to retire, Noel Doran will be in conversation with Amanda Ferguson to reflect on his role as Editor of the Irish News.

Noel Doran is the longest serving editor of a daily newspaper in Ireland and the UK, having been in his post with The Irish News for the last 25 years. He will stand down in April, after which he will continue to play a consultancy role with the paper. Join us for what should be a fascinating conversation with Amanda Ferguson.

Mr Doran, who is originally from Glasdrumman in Co Down, began his career with the Antrim Guardian in 1978 and then moved to the Ballymena Observer. He next worked for the Belfast Telegraph in Derry and Belfast, and served as the paper’s local government correspondent, before a period as duty news editor with Downtown Radio/Cool FM.

Mr Doran joined the Irish News as deputy editor in 1993, becoming editor in 1999. The paper has won a range of journalistic awards during his term of office and in 2020 he was voted by readers of the Hold The Front Page website as the best UK regional editor of the 21st century. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, the Irish News is now the UK’s biggest selling regional daily.

Amanda Ferguson from north Belfast has been a freelance journalist since 2010. She works as a Northern Ireland Editor and Ireland Stringer for a wide range of clients, including Reuters news agency and the Washington Post, as well as an event host, and broadcaster with various radio, TV and digital media outlets. She is also an NUJ member, and co-founder of Women in Media Belfast. You can find her online via Amanda.ie