Dauntless: Grace O’Malley, Pirate Queen at The Wardrobe Theatre

A legendary female pirate’s story comes ashore in Bristol as award-winning storyteller, Debs Newbold (as heard on The Blindboy Podcast), gleefully delivers the boisterous, remarkable and inspirational story of her hero, Grainne ni Mhaille, aka Grace O’Malley, the legendary Irish clan chief and queen of the sea

Stowing away aboard her father’s ship aged 8, Grace became a 16th century force of nature. A multilingual, seafaring weapons expert, leader of 2000 men, rebel, politician, kingmaker and slayer, prodigious lover, avenging hero and notorious pirate. Best of all, she was real.

From the west of Ireland to the court of Elizabeth I, from wild youth to even wilder old age, Dauntless is an epic celebration of uproarious storytelling, high drama and one fascinating 16th century feminist. No knights in shining armour need apply.

Debs Newbold is a multi-award winning performer, writer and director who creates fresh, playful work that gets deep under the skin. Debs is one of Europe’s most highly acclaimed performance storytellers: a passionate and skilled performer with a gift for bringing the epic out of the everyday. She has made and performed work for the Royal Opera House, the BBC, Hay Festival, the RSC and the United Nations as well as Shakespeare’s Globe where she has a long association. Debs’ work spans myth, legend and new writing. Her genre-defying collaborations with legendary mask and clown expert John Wright (Told By An Idiot) have helped redefine contemporary UK storytelling, resulting in two highly acclaimed shows; the award-winning Lost In Blue, and Under Her Skin. Her one-woman retellings of Shakespeare’s tragedies have toured internationally and helped create an entire strand of storytelling work within Shakespeare’s Globe, where Debs has trained a whole company of new tellers. Debs holds a Summerhall Edinburgh Fringe Award. In 2023 her acclaimed show Lost In Blue was a finalist for both an Off West End Award (OFFIE) and a Standing Ovation Award.