Kathleen MacMahon: We should treasure every crowd – even the tiny ones

As live events slowly readjust to the new normal, every seat not left empty is somehing to be celebrated

‘When soprano Kelli-Ann Masterson and mezzo Sharon Carty sang, their gorgeous voices soared above the trees, above the city sounds of cars and buses and the seaside screech of seagulls’

“Being a writer is a bit like being a stripper,” my friend Ronan once said. “People feel compelled to watch.” If only this were true! I’ve appeared at literary events where the audience could be counted on the fingers of one hand. Maybe if I did actually strip, that would help to get some bums on seats, but I doubt it at my age. If only I were musical, like the mighty American writer Willy ...