Sandi Toksvig’s Literary Journey Hits Belfast and Bellaghy on Channel 4

Belfast’s literary landmarks are about to get a national TV close-up. Sandi’s Ireland: A Literary Journey — the new Channel 4 series fronted by broadcaster, author and comedian Sandi Toksvig — begins airing across GB on Channel 4 and More4 from today, 3 September 2026, with Episode 2 turning the camera on Belfast and Bellaghy.

Co-produced by Tourism Ireland and Cornelia Street Productions, the series follows Toksvig — a lifelong lover of literature, theatre and music — through the landscapes, places and people that have shaped some of the island’s greatest writers, poets and storytellers. For a Belfast audience, the local hook is clear: CS Lewis Square in the east of the city, and Seamus Heaney’s home ground further north in Bellaghy, sit inside a wider literary trail that also takes in Dublin, Sligo, Edgeworthstown and Monaghan.

That Belfast stop matters. Toksvig was filmed at CS Lewis Square with Lolly Spence during production — a reminder that Narnia’s roots run through east Belfast streets as much as through bookshelves. Pair that with Heaney’s HomePlace in Bellaghy and you get two of Northern Ireland’s strongest literary pilgrimage points in one series.

Tourism Ireland backed the production through its International Programming Ireland Fund, betting that stories like this travel further than a brochure. Aidan Power, Tourism Ireland’s Director of Marketing, said the organisation was “delighted to support” the series, and that Sandi’s journey would spotlight “our rich literary heritage” and “the spectacular landscapes that have inspired generations of writers” — with the hope of inspiring viewers to come and explore Northern Ireland and the island of Ireland for themselves.

Toksvig’s own take is simpler and warmer. Visiting the island to film was “a wonderful experience,” she said. As a lifelong book lover she had always wanted to explore Ireland’s literary culture and understand why the island is home to so many phenomenal storytellers — “following in the footsteps of some of Ireland’s literary giants” and meeting the contemporary writers, poets and performers keeping that tradition alive.

Love Belfast first flagged this Channel 4 literary travel series earlier in the year — see our previous piece, Sandi Toksvig explores Northern Ireland in new Channel 4 travel series. Tonight’s transmission is the moment it leaves the trailer and hits the schedule.

Need to know

Series: Sandi’s Ireland: A Literary Journey
Host: Sandi Toksvig
Where to watch: Channel 4 and More4 (GB)
Starts: 3 September 2026
Northern Ireland stops: Belfast (including CS Lewis Square) and Bellaghy (Seamus Heaney HomePlace) — Episode 2
Also features: Dublin, Sligo, Edgeworthstown, Monaghan
Produced by: Tourism Ireland and Cornelia Street Productions

If you’re building a literary day out from the same map, start in east Belfast at CS Lewis Square, then point the car toward Bellaghy — the series is doing the same journey on screen tonight.

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