WTF Happened publication

WTF Happened goes behind-the-scenes of the groundbreaking #WakingTheFeminists grassroots movement for gender equality in Irish theatre, 2015–16. This award-winning year-long campaign  transformed the Irish theatre landscape – and reverberated far beyond. The untold story is revealed by Sarah Durcan, one of the core organisers of the campaign, with the input of Campaign Director Lian Bell and insightful contributions by leading activists, academics, historians, and arts professionals.

This book brings together photographs, speeches, social media interactions, and memorabilia meticulously kept by the movement’s organisers and now housed in the National Library of Ireland and the National Museum of Ireland. As a comprehensive archive of the campaign, it will be relevant to anyone interested in gender studies, women’s history, arts and theatre, cultural policy and governance, social justice, and contemporary Irish history.

Part historical document, part activist manual, WTF Happened not only captures the urgency, exhilaration, and tensions of the #WakingTheFeminists campaign, but also reflects on its impact and lessons for future activists. It offers invaluable insights into the processes of collective action and the ongoing fight for gender equality in both the arts and society, while contextualising the movement within Irish activist movements that came before and after.

'In 2015 an uprising changed Irish theatre for ever. It's good to remember that change has happened and can happen again.' – Aoife Barry, Culture Magazine, Sunday Times, October 2025.

‘This book is a fascinating account of the events in 2015/16 which lit a feminist bomb under Irish theatre ... [it] is beautifully designed, with glossy photographs and neat page layouts.’ – Katy Hayes, Irish Independent, October 2025.