Brendan Cauldwell Dies Aged 83 (2006)
	Famed Actor Began Career in Sligo Shows (2006)
	World of Drama Mourns Death of Pauline Flanagan (2003)
	Eddie Fitzpatrick - An Appreciation (1973)

Brendan Cauldwell dies aged 83

12 January 2006

The death has taken place of Irish actor Brendan Cauldwell at the age of 83. Mr Cauldwell had played the role of Pascal Mulvey in the RTÉ soap Fair City since 1996. Born in Fairview in Dublin and educated in O'Connell's CBS, he worked in the insurance industry in Sligo before becoming a full time actor. His interest in acting was prompted by his uncle, who taught him different dialects in an attempt to solve a bad stammer he suffered from as a child.

Mr Cauldwell went on to act in a host of stage, screen and radio productions over the years, including Strumpet City, Far and Away and Angela's Ashes. In recent years he spent much of his time acting on Fair City, but his involvement with RTÉ dates back to 1955 when he joined the RTÉ Repertory Company. Many tributes have been paid to his memory, from people including actor Anna Manahan who described him as a wonderful actor and friend. Fair City Executive Producer, Niall Mathews, said Brendan had always been the consummate professional and would be hugely missed by all on the show. Brendan Cauldwell died in his sleep this morning. He is survived by his wife Maureen and 3 children.

Famed Actor Began Career in Sligo Shows

from The Sligo Champion, February 1st, 2006

The recent death of Fair City actor, Brendan Cauldwell, evoked many memories of the halcyon days of amateur drama in Sligo, where, as a young man, the famous actor first took to the stage. Working in the insurance business in Sligo, Brendan became a popular member of the Sligo Unkown Players, appearing in many of their productions in the early 1950’s. One of his co-stars of those days, Eithne Dolan, remembers Brendan as a “marvellous actor” who was always destined for greater things. “It was a privilege to have played with him, and for his part, he never forgot that it was in Sligo that he began his acting career. “I spoke with his daughter after his death, and she said he frequently recalled with great fondness his days in Sligo”, Eithne said.

Brendan Cauldwell joined the Sligo Unknown Players in 1949 and acted in many plays such as “They Got What They Wanted” and “The Shadow of a Gunman” under the direction of the late Charlie Hughes at the Gillooly Hall. He also acted with The Bernadette Players, with the late Gerry Westby as producer, and gave a memorable portrayal of Heathcliffe in “Wuthering Heights”. After leaving Sligo, Brendan went on to thrill audiences all over Ireland with many performances on radio and televsion and in film. In recent years, his more memorable television appearances included Strumpet City and the RTE ‘soap’, Fair City, where he became known to a whole new generation of fans and admirers.

World of Drama Mourns Death of Pauline Flanagan

Article in The Sligo Champion, July 2nd, 2003

The death occurred at the weekend in the United States of well-known Sligo-born actress Pauline Flanagan, a star of both stage and screen. Seventy eight years old Mrs. Flanagan, who came from High Street where her parents, P.J. and Elizabeth, ran a thriving wholesale and retail business. The following is an extract from an interview Mrs. Flanagan gave to Jim Gray in the Sligo Champion in July 2002 when she was playing Mammo in Tom Murphy's "Bailegangaire" at Dublin's Peacock Theatre:

At an age when most people would be quite content to luxuriate in the haven of retirement, Sligo born actress Pauline Flanagan simply can't get enough of treading the boards. "I'm sixty years acting now. I've loved and continue to love every minute of it. There isn't a reason in the world to stop. I'll go on doing it as long as I'm able and as long as there's a part to play", she cheerfully declares. The extraordinary Sligo-born New Jersey based actress is currently playing Mammo in Tom Murphy's "Bailegangaire" at Dublin's Peacock Theatre, a role which not only enhances a packed and glowing CV, but, equally important from her point of view , affords her the opportunity to visit her native land.

Although based in the US for most of her adult life, Pauline remains as Sligo as the Garavogue. Both her parents, P.J. and Elizabeth, were mayors of the town, as was her uncle Tom. The family ran a thriving wholesale and retail business in High Street. The rots are strong and durable. "I still love Sligo with all my heart", she says, easily falling into fond reminiscence about growing up here during the war years. "It was a great place to grow p. The world was at war, and yet as children in Sligo, we were as free as the birds. Walking down High Street now brings back many memories, and although the town has changed so much from when I knew it, it retains all its own charms", she says.

While being nostalgic about the past, she offers a rich endorsement of the cultural changes which characterise present-day Sligo. "My niece, Mona Rooney, who lives at New Circular Road, brought me to the Blue Raincoat Theatre's performance space where Dennys used to be, and to the new Model and Niland on the Mall, and they just took my breath away. The way the whole artistic movement has taken off here is truly mind-boggling, and it's wonderful to see", she enthuses. While facilities and opportunities for artistic expression were not as plentiful in the Sligo of her youth, there was always a strong tradition of cultural activity, manifested most forcibly in the local Feiseanna.

"As children, we were always in plays and drama competitions in Feis Shligigh and Feis Ceoil, and I remember in particular a teacher at the Ursuline Convent, Jill Noone, who instilled in us a love of words and plays", she recalls. Armed with that love of drama, it was only natural that she would graduate to the Unknown Players, then the region's foremost amateur drama group, and once bitten by the bug, there was no turning back. She entered the professional ranks through a somewhat unusual route, placing an advertisement in "The Irish Press" along with her friend, Aileen Harte. She can still vividly recall the wording: "Two young ladies, with exceptional amateur dramatic experience, wish to join exclusive repertory company for the summer season". They were offered jobs by the Garryowen Players for the summer of 1949 in Bundoran's Hamilton Hall in "Peg O' My Heart", and a career was born.

More than forty years on, she has literally played everything, but she's still as excited about her profession as she was the first day she stepped onto the Sligo Town Hall stage in Feis Shligigh. "At my age, you just wouldn't do it if you didn't love it. I still get the same kick out of it as I always did", she explains. Pauline values the opportunity she's had in the past ten years to return to perform in Dublin on an annual basis. Not only has it given her the chance to retrace her Sligo roots, but on a professional level, her recent work has brought her a plethora of accolades and awards. She won the Samuel Beckett Award and the Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actress in "Dolly West's Kitchen" by Frank Mc Guinness, while she was nominated as Best Supporting Actress for her part in Marina Carr's "By the Bog of Cats".

She regards her role as Mammo in "Bailegangaire" as the most challenging of her career. "It is undoubtedly the most demanding role I've ever done", she maintains. "I have to hold the audience with the narrative line. The play is so brilliantly written that I have to get every word he wrote, and the life behind those words, and engage the audience so that they listen to them. It's a difficult challenge, but so far the audience reaction has been excellent, and it's going very well. I'm thoroughly enjoying it".

Unfortunately, Pauline will be unable to fit in another visit to Sligo before returning next month to New Jersey, where she lives with her husband of 44 years, George Vogel. They have two adult daughters and a grandchild. But she definitely plans to come back to the place she still calls home. "Hopefully, there will be other opportunities to play in Dublin, and once that happens, you can be sure Sligo will be on my itinerary. I've always loved going back home", she says.

Eddie Fitzpatrick - An Appreciation

from The Sligo Champion, August 31st, 1973

It is almost impossible for us in the Sligo Drama Circle to believe that Eddie Fitzpatrick is dead - has made his final exit. Eddie meant a lot to the Circle and to everyone in it. As an actor he had star quality. He could easily have made it onto the professional stage had he not been so committed to Sligo. He proved as much in Melbournes' Little Theatre but the call of his native town brought him back from Australia and his talents enriched many a Sligo gathering since.

I was privileged to be associated with him over the years and my memories of Eddie are so many, so rich and so varied that it is difficult to be selective. But "My Three Angels" stands out. This was my first venture in production with the Circle and I was fortunate to have three brilliant "Angels", Paddy Dooney, Brian Bohan and, of course, Eddie. So good were they, that in the All-Ireland Drama Finals in Athlone that year, the Best Actor Award was divided between them and for the only time in the history of the Athlone Festival, three Gold Medals were given. Gold medal performances were given many times since then by Eddie Fitzpatrick but such was his dedication to his art that he gave an equally good performance whether his audience was a packed Belfast Opera House where he played "The Playboy" or an empty Town Hall during a dress rehearsal.

I remember Eddie asking me to be his personal prompter during the run of Paul Vincent Carroll's "Shadow and Substance" when he played the Canon. He often joked about this afterwards, wondering which of us was the "shadow" and which the "substance". There were so many parts, so many plays, so many memories. "Rev Hale" in "The Crucible", "Master Boyle" in "Philadelphia, Here I Come", "Andy" in "Lovers" and his unforgettable "Joxer" in "Juno and the Paycock". And how can we ever have a Drama Circle function again without Eddie and "St. George and the Dragon" or "The Blackbird". If I'm crying while I write this, I do so unashamed for we all loved Eddie. The Drama Circle will never be the same without him or indeed will Sligo Town.

To Joan and his young family, what can we say? Nothing except that Eddie will live forever in our memories and that heaven is now a happier place since the great actor and entertainer has joined another band of Angels on a more exalted stage.