St Patrick’s Mental Health Services invites Culture Night visitors to step into the world of Jonathan Swift on a guided walking tour exploring the streets, stories and characters that shaped 18th-century Dublin.

Led by the Archivist at St Patrick’s Mental Health Services, the tour traces Swift’s life and legacy through the city he called home, exploring his role as Dean of St Patrick’s Cathedral, his advocacy for the poor and his enduring influence on Irish literature and society. Along the route, visitors will encounter artworks inspired by Gulliver’s Travels, created to mark the 300th anniversary of the publication of Swift’s celebrated work.

The tour concludes at St Patrick’s University Hospital, founded through Swift’s remarkable bequest of £12,000 in 1745. Opened in 1746, it was the first psychiatric hospital in Ireland and among the first in the world.

This free one-hour walking tour begins near Christ Church Cathedral and finishes at St Patrick’s University Hospital.