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Updated at 11:02pm
TRIBUTES HAVE POURED in today for Brian Friel, one of Ireland’s best known playwrights, who died aged 86.
Friel was best known for his plays ‘Philadelphia, Here I Come!’ and ‘Dancing at Lughnasa’, both of which were performed internationally and adapted into films (the latter starring Meryl Streep).
He died this morning after a long illness.
Tributes
Theatre producer Noel Pearson, who worked with Friel on ‘Lughnasa’ said it was a “terrible day”.
He was “one of the greatest playwrights we’ve ever had,” Pearson told Today with Sean O’Rourke.
Telling a story about Dancing at Lughnasa’s success at the Tony Awards (it won three) Pearson said the playwright hadn’t attended the ceremony as he “didn’t like the fuss”.
He was a “unique” individual and a “great guy” he added.
Brian himself had joked about the fact that he was coming toward the end of his life when Pearson visited him recently, the producer said.
“I suppose you came up to see me on the white sheet did you?” the playwright asked him.
‘Greatest’
Producer Michael Colgan also paid tribute to the playwright, saying that it was a shame to have to use clichés, but that in this case they were all true.
“We will never see his like again,” Colgan said, describing him as our “greatest playwright of the 20th Century”.
1929-2015
Brian Friel was born in 1929 in Omagh, County Tyrone.
His father a schoolmaster from Derry and his mother a postmistress from Glenties, Co Donegal.
He was educated at St Columb’s College Derry, the same school that Seamus Heaney and John Hume attended, and St Patrick’s College, Maynooth, where he studied for a career in the priesthood.
He eventually decided to follow his father into the teaching profession, attending St Joseph’s teaching college in Belfast and working as a school-teacher in and around Derry from 1950-1960.
Friel’s first major stage success was ‘Philadelphia, Here I Come!’ in 1964.
Subsequent plays include ‘Lovers’ (1967), ‘The Freedom of the City’ (1973), ‘Volunteers’ (1975), ‘Living Quarters’ (1977) ‘Faith Healer’ (1979), ‘Translations’ (1980), ‘Dancing at Lughnasa’ (1990), ‘Wonderful Tennessee’ (1993), ‘Molly Sweeney’ (1994) and ‘Give Me Your Answer Do!’ (1997).
He also wrote adaptations of works by Turgenev and Chekhov.
Field Day
In 1980, he co-founded the hugely influential Field Day Theatre Company with actor Stephen Rea.
They staged Friel’s Translations as their first production in Derry’s Guildhall, and went onto stage new productions each year and publish extensively – over 20 titles in the fields of literary criticism, history, Irish art music, cultural studies and art history.
The first ‘Lughnasa International Friel Festival’ was held in August of this year. ‘Dancing at Lughnasa’ was chosen as the event’s signature production, as it celebrated its 25th anniversary year.
Arts minister Heather Humphries said this morning she had learned of the playwright’s death “with great sadness”.
“Brian was one of our truly great playwrights and was a household name not only here at home but on the international stage as well,” she said.
“He was renowned on Broadway, where many of his plays ran to great acclaim. Through his writing he brought Ireland, and particularly Donegal, to the world.”
“Irish people will be familiar with many of his works such as ‘Translations’ and ’Philadelphia, Here I Come!’.
“It is fitting that perhaps his greatest work, Dancing at Lughnasa, is this year showing at the Gaiety Theatre as part of the Dublin Theatre Festival, marking the 25th anniversary of the play’s premiere in Dublin.
“I would like to extend my deepest condolences to all of Brian’s family and friends.”
Taoiseach’s tribute
Taoiseach Enda Kenny called him one of the “giants of theatre”.
“His mythical stories from Ballybeg reached all corners of the world from Dublin to London to Broadway and onto the silver screen,” a statement said.
The Taoiseach said Friel’s plays would “forever form part of the canon of greatness in dramatic writing” and called him “the consummate Irish storyteller”.
“His work spoke to each of us with humour, emotion and authenticity. Like the great WB Yeats, he also served in Seanad Éireann.
“I would like to send my deepest condolences to his wife Anne and his children.”
“Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.”
First published at 10:30am
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Let’s blame Airbnb for a housing shortage that FG are unwilling and incapable of solving. Reduce capital gain tax and incentivise new developments through tax. Stop the building height restrictions. Half of north Dublin City is in ruin with empty houses all over it.
A few weeks ago he said he wasn’t going regulate it, I think this guy is making it up as he goes along.
Kirk he’s trying to be popular FG leadership coming up ok
A lot of people that rent out rooms etc on Airbnb, do so out of necessity. It provides an income supplement that many people needed during the height of the recession because of the austerity imposed by the government. Of course some people are going to make a fortune out of it, and more luck to them. In my opinion though, regulating Airbnb will only serve as a tax collecting tool, not something that will actually fix the housing crisis. I think their first port of call should be to reduce the tax on rental income that landlords have to pay. This would encourage more people to invest in property, as it would mean the property would pay for itself when rented out!
@pheilum. A lot of people also rent out entire properties on a full-time basis via airbnb. I agree that it won’t fix the housing crisis, but I strongly believe that those renting out full time should be regulated. They should have to apply for planning permission for change of use. After all, the premises is no longer a home. They should pay taxes and they should have to ensure that they meet health and safety standards. A person occasionally renting out a spare room entirely different.
Well if you agree that it won’t fix the housing crisis what is the problem? Btw who said they don’t pay taxes?
Coveney be better off regulating hotel prices in city’s over weekends ?
Only if he wants hotels to go out of business. Hotel prices are the sort of thing that don’t need regulation. If they’re too high, the rooms remain empty. If they’re too low, the hotel runs at a loss. Encouraging the building of more hotels – or the use of houses and apartments as short-term lets – would drive hotel prices down.
Convey, ask Europe what to do. If it suits FG, go for it , If not , ignore em. Ain’t that the FG way ?
Willy FG are a facist party
Regulate, regulate, regulate.
Keep regulating so that any competition to the status quo is abolished.
Keep regulating so that home owners can’t generate a small side income without being hammered with taxes.
Keep regulating so that there is no more innovation.
Keep regulating so that costs to employers are driver up thereby squeezing wages.
Keep regulating, Keep regulating, Keep regulating FFS.
Why isn’t there anyone standing up for property rights? Why is it the individual property owners responsibility to solve the housing crisis caused by government? The little guy paying the bills yet again
I don’t do ab&b but surely it’s a property owner’s responsibility to do what they want with he property they pay for?
Airbnb is responsible for bringing in tourists who spend a lot of €€€€€€€€, thread carefully.
Nanny state strikes again….
The more he interferes with the rental market the more flee from it ..including his beloved large professional landlord firms
The headline makes it sound like he’s looking for a brown envelope. “Satisfactory arrangement”, I wonder what that could mean?
When they say It’s not right, what they really mean is it exposes the government’s failure to adequately implement any real policy to address housing shortages. It has nothing to do with being right and everything to with making the government look incompetent and its housing policy look non-existent.
Airbnb overall increases the supply of accommodation. It has the potential to take an under-utilised resource… a house or apartment which is vacant part of the time or a place someone does not want to let long term and makes it available on the market.
Governments around the world are going to have to get used to a sharing economy and too technology easily, cheaply and efficiently connecting individuals with something to share with someone else that has need.
Why doesn’t he keep his fat nose out of our business?
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