"Too tightly bound to microfilm": Preserving Lelia Doolan's Practice-Based Thesis

Lelia Doolan is a respected figure in Irish media, known for her work as a producer, writer, and broadcaster on RTÉ, as well as for being the first female Artistic Director of the Abbey Theatre. Among her many achievements, she earned a PhD from Queen’s University Belfast in 1983 titled Elements of the Sacred and Dramatic in Some Belfast Urban Enclaves. In 2024, Dr Doolan contacted the library, hopeful that the original media files accompanying her thesis could be digitised. Inside the thesis is a telling note: “Too tightly bound to microfilm” a reminder from the past that a previous attempt to reformat the work had failed. This time, we were determined to succeed and hopeful we could reconnect an influential figure in Irish media with her own research. Dr Doolan’s thesis posed a significant challenge due to its complex structure (a print monograph with video, audio, and ephemera) but it also provided a valuable learning opportunity. Using its digitisation and preservation as a case study should enable us to refine our approach, inform future workflows, and equip the retrospective digitisation team to navigate the unique challenges of preserving theses that incorporate obsolete media formats. A key concern of the digital preservation of this thesis was how do we adequately represent such a hybrid submission? Can we authentically recreate the original thesis in digital form without diminishing its meaning? The collage artworks and media files also meant this work was likely to have layers of rights holders. Once digitised could it even be made public? Our lightning talk will share lessons learned from this complex preservation effort, focusing on three key areas: Navigating copyright and permissions for audio, video, and artworks Technical and conceptual challenges in recreating the original submission Insights into preserving diverse file formats and maintaining authenticity This case study highlights the intersection of cultural memory, digital preservation, and the ethics of representing practice-based research in an online environment.