Credit: Elza Osmane, Chronicle.lu
On Tuesday 16 June 2026, Home from Home's Teapot Parlour in Strassen marked Bloomsday with a John Chalmers reading from James Joyce's novel Ulysses, accompanied by an all-day Irish breakfast inspired by the novel.
Held in the early afternoon, the event gathered only a handful of people which made the atmosphere even more personal.
Right before the readings John Calmers revealed that he had never read the entire novel, having once given up right after the opening chapter. Earlier, speaking with Chronicle.lu, he explained jokingly that he had once started reading it for his own "pleasure" but stopped because "the pleasure wasn't there".
Despite the self-deprecating introduction, his selection of excerpts, combined with clear explanations of the novel's storyline and engaging public speaking skills, made it seem as though he had carefully dissected the book.
Introducing the audience to the novel, the reader explained that Ulysses follows eighteen hours in a single day, Thursday 16 June 1904, in Dublin, Ireland the date on which James Joyce first went out with his future wife Nora Barnacle. He also described how the novel maps the everyday experiences of ordinary Dubliners onto Homer's Odyssey.
The reading followed Leopold Bloom's day in chronological order through five excerpts from the novel, interspersed with John Chalmers' explanations and audio recordings.
The first extract came from Episode Four, Calypso, depicting Leopold Bloom preparing breakfast for his wife Molly while feeding the family cat. John Chalmers explained that the scene reflects Bloom's domestic routine and set the tone for the day's events.
He then moved to Episode Six, Hades, in which Bloom joins a funeral procession through Dublin while reflecting on death, memory and the loss of his infant son. In contrast to the opening chapter, the reader described it as written in "a completely different style”.
The reading continued with two passages from Episode Eight, Lestrygonians, where Bloom searches for lunch but becomes disgusted by the sight of diners "eating like animals", and concluded with the famous final episode, Penelope, featuring Molly Bloom's famous final monologue, written almost entirely without punctuation. According to John Chalmers, the lack of punctuation may have been the writer's way of representing an ongoing stream of thoughts.
Reflecting on the ending, he questioned whether the novel was ultimately about Leopold or Molly Bloom, suggesting that the final chapter ties the entire novel together.
Before finishing, he also mentioned Finnegans Wake, another work by James Joyce widely regarded as even more challenging than Ulysses, once again demonstrating the thorough preparation behind the presentation.
Alongside the readings, John Chalmers kept the atmosphere warm and relaxed with jokes, occasional singalongs and music played through the speakers, ranging from Led Zeppelin to Irish classics and beyond.
Forming part of the venue's Bloomsday celebrations, Home from Home served a full Irish breakfast throughout the day, inspired by one of the novel's opening scenes. Guests dressed in Edwardian attire received a 10% discount.
