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film · Wednesday 1 July 2026 · 7:30pm 
H is for Hawk - Solstice Arts Centre Navan
At Solstice Arts Centre · Railway Street, Navan, Co. Meath
At Solstice Arts Centre · Railway Street, Navan, Co. Meath
Helen Macdonald’s memoir H is for Hawk became a publishing phenomenon when it appeared in 2014 - a raw, unflinching account of grief and the peculiar discipline of falconry that somehow captured something universal. Now Philippa Lowthorpe has turned it into a film, and Solstice Arts Centre in Navan is screening it as part of the ACCESS Cinema summer programme. If you read the book, this is worth your Wednesday evening. If you didn’t, the film stands alone: a story about loss, the natural world, and the strange way obsession can be a form of survival.
The film follows Helen, an academic and trained falconer, who falls apart after the sudden death of her father. Her response is to acquire and train a young goshawk named Mabel - one of the most difficult birds in falconry, famously difficult, famously unpredictable. The 94-minute film directed by Philippa Lowthorpe (Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, The Crown) weaves together Helen’s grief and her increasingly total immersion in the hawk’s wild rhythms, set against the flat chalk landscapes of East Anglia. It is cert 12A.
Solstice Arts Centre is one of the best places in the north-east to catch a film like this. The main auditorium has a 4K Sony projector, Dolby surround sound, and a ten-metre screen - proper cinema conditions for a film that leans heavily on landscape and stillness. The ACCESS Cinema network exists specifically to bring independent and world cinema to regional audiences outside Dublin; the summer 2026 programme at Solstice runs from May through August.
Navan sits about 50 km north-west of Dublin, well connected by road on the N3. Bus Eireann runs regular services from Dublin’s Busaras to Navan, with the journey taking around 80 to 90 minutes depending on the service. Solstice Arts Centre is on Railway Street, close to the town centre bus stops, so no taxi needed once you arrive. On-street parking is available in the town centre, and there are surface car parks nearby.
Navan is the county town of Meath and a decent base for an evening out - good options for food and a drink before or after the screening within short walking distance of Solstice. There is more to see in Navan and across Co. Meath.
Heading to Solstice Arts Centre in Navan? Meath has plenty more to see. Read the Navan area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.