Corncrake’s Welcome

The Corncrake’s Welcome continues the story of William Hanna’s Northern Irish family, begun in ´Voyages with my Grandfather’. Spanning a hundred years, these memoirs give a fascinating insight into the turbulent birth of Northern Ireland, wartime Belfast, and the 1960s, when Hanna grew up in Windsor Manse, next to the Presbyterian Church where his father was the Minister.Share Hanna’s excitement as a young boy enthralled by both 12th July Orange parades in Belfast and Irish international rugby matches in Dublin. See the teenager confronted with the Troubles, starting to question his religious and national inheritance, and becoming aware of competing political identities and the importance of bridging cultural divides. Follow Hanna on his coming-of-age journey, at times light-hearted and at times deeply moving, from Ireland to Scotland, Switzerland, and France. Watch him set out on a diplomatic career in Dublin and in Brussels. Join him when he returns to Ireland, after serving as EU Ambassador around the world, and makes poignant new discoveries about events a century ago. Praise for Voyages with my Grandfather:  ‘Beautifully written. Very moving’ Alexander McCall Smith‘Extraordinary insight into life of Northern Ireland Presbyterians’ Gail Walker, Belfast Telegraph ‘Wonderful book. A remarkable family story very well told’ Sir Jonathan Faull

William D. Hanna was born in Belfast and studied in Edinburgh, Limoges and Bruges. He was an Irish and European diplomat and served as EU Ambassador in Tanzania, Uruguay, Bangladesh and Ghana. His Italian wife was born in Tanzania. The Corncrake’s Welcome is the sequel to Hanna’s first memoir Voyages with my Grandfather published by Troubador in 2020.