Faith Healer by Brian Friel - Lyric Theatre Belfast

What to Expect

As part of its 75th anniversary year, the Lyric Theatre Belfast stages a major new production of Brian Friel’s Faith Healer, running from 10 October to 14 November 2026. It marks the play’s first Belfast staging in 30 years, last performed here by Tinderbox Theatre Company in 1996 at the long-closed Old Museum Arts Centre. The play follows Frank Hardy, a self-proclaimed faith healer, as he travels through remote villages in Scotland and Wales promising cures to the sick, accompanied by his wife Grace and manager Teddy. Told through a series of overlapping monologues, the three characters recount competing, contradictory versions of the same events, building a poetic study of charisma, deception and the unreliability of memory. Since its 1979 premiere the play has been widely regarded as one of the finest works of twentieth-century theatre. This production is directed by Emma Jordan and stars Conleth Hill as Frank, alongside Lisa Dwyer Hogg and Chris McCurry.

Good to Know

Preview performances run from Saturday 10 to Tuesday 13 October, with press night on Wednesday 14 October and the regular run continuing through Saturday 14 November 2026. Show times alternate between 2:30pm matinees and 7:30pm evening performances depending on the date, so check the specific date before booking. Tickets range from £16 to £40. The production is recommended for ages 14 and up, and the Lyric offers sign language interpreted, audio described and captioned performances on selected dates, listed on the show’s booking page. Book through the Lyric Theatre website or by phone at 028 9038 1081.

Getting There

The Lyric Theatre is on Ridgeway Street, a short walk from Belfast’s Botanic Gardens and Queen’s University, served by regular Translink buses and metered on-street parking in the surrounding streets. The building sits directly on the Lagan towpath, making it an easy stroll from the city centre or from Stranmillis for anyone combining the show with a riverside walk beforehand.

Given the play’s extended six-week run through mid-November, this production forms one of the centrepieces of the Lyric’s 75th anniversary autumn/winter season, and the theatre has flagged it as a highlight alongside its accompanying archive exhibition in the foyer.