University College Dublin will be hosting “G.B. Shaw: Back in Town” A Shaw conference, in Dublin, from 29th May to 1st June.

The conference will be focused on the Nobel Prize-winner and literary giant’s Irish identity and his influence on world drama.

G. Bernard Shaw was a personal friend of a long list of Irish writers including Oscar Wilde, W.B. Yeats, Augusta Gregory, George Russell ("AE"), and Sean O'Casey. Writers from around the world will gather at the conference to honor him and his work.

Opening remarks at the conference will be made by International Shaw Society President Leonard Conolly. The launch will take place at the National Gallery Dublin.

Jay R. Tunney, author of “The Prizefighter and the Playwright: Gene Tunney and Bernard Shaw”, will also participate. In 1928, Gene Tunney retired from boxing as the first undefeated world heavyweight champion in modern history, one of the most famous athletes of the “Roaring Twenties”.

Shortly after, Tunney and his new steel heiress bride traveled widely, befriending a host of writers and scholars. At the end of that year, Gene met the man who would become a close mentor, friend, and father-figure for the rest of his life, George Bernard Shaw.

Jay Tunney is the son of the heavyweight champion, and will discuss the unlikely relationship of his father and the playwright at the conference.

For more information on the conference visit their site.