Sebastian Barry (b. 5 July 1955, Dublin) is an Irish playwright,
novelist, and poet. He is the son of the late Irish actress
Joan O'Hara.
Educated at Trinity College, Dublin, his academic posts have included
Honorary Fellow in Writing at the University of Iowa (1984) and Writer Fellow at
Trinity College, Dublin (1995-1996).
Barry wrote The Steward of Christendom and The Whereabouts of
Eneas McNulty, both of which are about the dislocations (physical and otherwise) of loyalist Irish people during the political upheavals of the early 20th century. The title character of the
latter (McNulty), for instance, is a young man forced to leave Ireland by his former friends for his political beliefs during the
Anglo-Irish War.
He also wrote Hinterland, a satirical play based loosely on Irish Prime Minister Charles Haughey, the performance of which caused a minor controversy in Dublin. The Sunday Times, which did not review the play, criticized it as "feeble, puerile,
trite, dissociated, shallow, exploitative and gratuitously offensive"[1].
Barry's novel A Long Long Way was shortlisted for the 2005 Man Booker Prize. The novel tells the story of Willie Dunne, a young
recruit to the Royal Dublin Fusiliers during the First World War. It brings to
life the divided loyalties that many Irish soldiers felt at the time following the Easter
Rising in 1916.
Barry's maternal great-grandfather, James Dunne, provided the inspiration for the main character in his most internationally
known play, The Steward of Christendom. The main character, named
Thomas Dunne in the play, was the chief superintendent of the Dublin Metropolitan
Police from 1913-1922. He oversaw the area surrounding Dublin Castle until the
Irish Free State takeover on 16 January
1922. One of his grandfathers belonged to the British Army Corps
of Royal Engineers.
He currently lives in County Wicklow with his family.
External links
References
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