Madam, - I have just returned to Edinburgh after a wonderful three-day visit to the Wexford Festival. I first came to the festival in 1968 and have been a regular visitor since then, but the excitement engendered this year by the inauguration of the magnificent new opera house was remarkable and a real tribute to the determination and dedication of everyone involved.
I have a question, however. The recognition of the first president of the Wexford Festival, Compton Mackenzie, is absolutely appropriate, as is the naming of the second auditorium in honour of Jerome Hynes, without whom I suppose the new opera house might still be a dream. But I really missed a prominent recognition of the role of Dr Tom Walsh who had the idea, the passion, the knowledge and the commitment to get this most unlikely festival going in the first place. His was the extraordinary vision and he was the guiding spirit that made it happen and brought it international acclaim from its earliest years until his death.
I know there is a bust of Tom Walsh at the entrance to the building (with a very small plaque attached that is virtually illegible in its present position), but something more would be welcome, at least to this grateful visitor to a great festival. - Yours, etc,
SHEILA COLVIN,
Edinburgh,
Scotland.