I am sorry to learn of the passing of Hugh Leonard. Hugh will be remembered as a great literary figure of modern Ireland. He was one of this country’s most distinguished playwrights as well as being a journalist of distinction.
Hugh Leonard was a man of strong views and great wit and these traits were reflected in his writings. His Curmudgeon column which ran for many years in the Sunday Independent was required reading and was always guaranteed to raise a smile.
In his plays, Hugh was often provocative and he was never afraid to challenge the orthodoxies of the day. He was also a versatile writer with a great sense of history. He wrote a best-selling and celebrated fictional account of the life of Charles Stewart Parnell.
Insurrection , the 1916 commemorative series comprised of eight television dramatisations, which Hugh wrote in 1966, on the fiftieth anniversary of the Rising, did much to shape understanding of the birth of our nation for a new generation.
I extend my deepest sympathies to Hugh Leonard’s family and many friends.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.
Ends