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theatre · Wednesday 28 October 2026 · 7:30 PM 
Burke and Hare: Body Snatchers, Serial Killers, Ulstermen
At Strule Arts Centre · Townhall Square, Omagh, Co. Tyrone, BT78 1BL
At Strule Arts Centre · Townhall Square, Omagh, Co. Tyrone, BT78 1BL
Andrew Johnston brings his Burke and Hare show to Strule Arts Centre in Omagh on Wednesday 28 October 2026 at 7.30pm, three days before Halloween. Johnston, who runs Alternative Ulstours, works as a dark historian and presenter, and his case here is that William Burke and William Hare were “arguably the first modern serial killers, predating Jack the Ripper by decades”.
The show follows the pair from their Ulster origins to Edinburgh at the height of the body snatching trade, when anatomists paid cash for fresh cadavers and Burke and Hare stopped waiting for graves to fill. It covers the victims, the role of Dr Robert Knox who bought the bodies, the part played by both men’s wives, and what happened to Burke and Hare themselves once the killings came to light. Strule bills it as informative and entertaining in equal measure and puts the running time at 1 hour 55 minutes. It is recommended for ages 12 and up.
Strule Arts Centre is on Townhall Square in Omagh town centre, beside the river Strule and a couple of minutes from High Street and Market Street. Omagh sits where the A5 Derry to Aughnacloy road meets the A32 from Enniskillen, about 70 miles from Belfast, 34 from Derry and 27 from Enniskillen. Council car parks at Kevlin Road and Church Street are both a short walk from the door and are quiet enough midweek. Omagh bus centre on Mountjoy Road is five minutes away on foot with Ulsterbus and Goldline services, but the 7.30pm start and the running time mean a car is the safer bet for getting home.
Heading to Strule Arts Centre in Omagh? Tyrone has plenty more to see. Read the Omagh area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.