Passengers aboard a Translink Glider travelling across Belfast became part of a moving cultural experience as the 4 Corners Festival staged Come Glide With Me, a live journey across the city that combined music, spoken word and conversation.
Beginning with a journey from west to east, and later repeated in the opposite direction from east to west, the event invited people to step out of their own corners of the city and share the journey with others.
Starting at St John’s Church on the Falls Road and travelling together to Stormont Presbyterian Church, the Glider itself became a performance space, with singer and poet Jim Deeds providing live music on board alongside contributions from festival participants, while readings and reflections were shared between stops.
Committee members Martin Magill and Maggie Matheson, who respectively live and work in the west and east of the city, offered commentary on the places and buildings passing outside the windows, linking the physical journey across the city with the wider theme of journey that underpins the 2026 4 Corners Festival programme.
Maggie Matheson said: It was such a great opportunity to share some stories of East Belfast with our enthusiastic passengers! There is such a deep and rich history there, sometimes well known, but often hidden. It was a privilege to be a part of the Glider event.
On arrival at Stormont Presbyterian Church, participants received a warm welcome in the church hall, where refreshments and conversation helped carry forward the spirit of the shared journey.
David Robinson from Belfast City Council’s Good Relations Unit joined the west-to-east journey, outlining the council’s work to build good relations across the city. At Stormont Presbyterian Church hall he then led “Games with Aims”, an interactive session designed to help people connect across difference, before also joining the return journey from east to west back to St John’s Church.
Members of the public were joined by representatives from Translink as well as festival committee volunteers. Some participants were experiencing the Glider, or this part of the city, for the first time.
The event also highlighted the festival’s encouragement of public transport use, aligning with its commitment to environmental responsibility and accessibility.
Photographs from the day capture Jim Deeds performing between seated passengers, volunteers coordinating the journey in high visibility jackets, and festival members gathering at stops along the route, reflecting the sense of connection and shared experience that defines the festival.
Come Glide With Me formed part of a wider programme of events taking place across Belfast as the 4 Corners Festival continues its focus on encounter, understanding and bringing people together across communities.
The 4 Corners Festival is supported by The Executive Office’s Central Good Relations Fund, The Department of Foreign Affairs Reconciliation Fund and Belfast City Council Good Relations Fund, St Anne’s Cathedral Sitout and Linen Quarter BID.
All events are free to attend. To find out the full lineup of the festival and to book your tickets go to 4cornersfestival.com
Full programme can be found at:
- PDF Programme >> https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YANkkARiCrKj85qMFCyeqlURUEDk3wUB/view?usp=drive_link
- Website Listings >> https://www.4cornersfestival.com/festival-years/2026-festival/
About the 4 Corners Festival
The 4 Corners Festival seeks to inspire people from across Belfast to transform it for the peace and wellbeing of all. It features innovative events designed to entice people out of their own ‘corners’ of the city and into new places where they will encounter new perspectives, new ideas and hopefully meet new friends.
The Festival takes place annually in February. It comprises a range of events featuring discussion, music, prayer, drama, poetry and story-telling in venues across the city of Belfast.
TOGETHER: BUILDING A UNITED COMMUNITY (T:BUC)
The ‘Together: Building a United Community’ (T:BUC) Strategy, reflects the Executive’s commitment to improving community relations and continuing the journey towards a more united and shared society.
The Strategy is based on equality of opportunity, the desirability of good relations and reconciliation. It also provides the framework for government action in tackling sectarianism, racism and other forms of intolerance while seeking to address division, hate and separation.
Key priorities
The T:BUC Strategy outlines how we in Government, in the community, and as individuals, work together to build a united community and facilitate change in the key priorities of:
- Our children and young people;
- Our shared community;
- Our safe community; and
- Our cultural expression.
Further information on the T:BUC Strategy can be found HERE.
The Department of Foreign Affairs Reconciliation Fund
This publication is grant aided by Belfast City Council. The views expressed are not necessarily shared or endorsed by the Council. The Council does not accept any responsibility or liability for same.
Belfast City Council Good Relations Fund
This press release and the ideas, opinions and comments therein are entirely the responsibility of its author(s) and do not necessarily represent or reflect DFA policy.
