Tributes paid to actor Mick Lally

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Mick Lally - Acclaimed for performances on stage and screen

Mr Lally, who was 64, was known to millions for his role as Miley Byrne in RTÉ's 'Glenroe'.

View our gallery 'Mick Lally - In Pictures' here.

A native of Tourmakeady, Co Mayo, he was a graduate of University College Galway and taught briefly before becoming a full-time actor.

Along with Garry Hynes, he was a founder member of the Druid Theatre company which worked closely with many Irish playwrights, most notably Tom Murphy.

His work on television in the RTÉ series 'Bracken' and later 'Glenroe' as Miley Byrne made him a household name.

He also starred in the BBC television series 'Ballykissangel', TG4's 'Ros na Rún' and in the award-winning 'Ballroom of Romance'.

His versatility as an actor extended to the cinema where he appeared in Irish language films.

He was a fluent Irish speaker and a formidable advocate of the language.

Listen to Mick Lally and friend and co-star Mary McEvoy chatting to Miriam O'Callaghan on 'Miriam Meets' earlier this year.

Mick Lally also starred in the blockbuster 'Alexander', directed by Oliver Stone, and provided the voice in the animated film 'The Secret of Kells'.

He was a renowned actor whose dedication to his craft won the respect and admiration of his fellow actors and of audiences both at home and internationally.

Tribute - Mary McEvoy
Mick Lally's friend and co-star Mary McEvoy, who played his on-screen wife Biddy in 'Glenroe', said he was "great fun", "a consummate actor" and someone who "loved to work".

Asked on the RTÉ 'One O'Clock News' what she would remember most about Mick Lally, she replied: "I'll just remember him. He was like something so constant in my life. I wouldn't see him every day - for months we'd go without talking or speaking because he'd be doing something else and I'd be doing something else - but when we got together it was just this friendship that was relaxed. We just picked up where we left off and got on with it. I enjoyed his company very much."

Tribute - An Taoiseach, Brian Cowen
Paying tribute, An Taoiseach, Brian Cowen, said: "I was shocked and saddened by the sudden passing of Mick Lally.

"He was one of the most loved actors of his generation and will be dearly missed by the public and his colleagues in theatre and television.

"Versatile in both the Irish and English languages, his genius at capturing and portraying the essence of the characters he played brought him wide popular and critical acclaim.

"Our sympathies are with his wife Peige, three children Saileog, Maghnus and Darach and his parents.

"Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam uasal."

Tribute - Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport, Mary Hanafin
The Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport, Mary Hanafin, said: "Mick Lally's contribution to the theatrical world has been immense. Whether he was voicing Keane, Synge or indeed Burrowes, his was a distinctive, inimitable contribution to our stage and screen craft.

"His wonderful ability to communicate with his audiences whether in the intimate setting in the early days of Druid, on stage in the National Theatre or in the sitting rooms of homes every Sunday for over 10 years playing the character of Miley in 'Glenroe', Mick Lally was an integral part of the world of acting and, by extension, our society.

"His rich distinctive tones were at home too in the Irish language and theatre goers from the Abbey to the Taibhdhearc will have wonderful memories of the man from Tourmakeady.

"A testimony to his prowess as an actor was that he could resonate across the generations - with the theatre community, the television and film world and, with very notable success, with the young generation of 'The Secret of Kells', this year's Oscar nominee.

"Mick was a versatile actor and although associated forever with Miley, was never one to be typecast."

Tribute - Pat Moylan, Chair of the Arts Council
Pat Moylan, Chair of the Arts Council, said: "This is a sad and shocking loss to all of us. While Mick will always be best known and fondly remembered as Miley from 'Glenroe', the theatre community will also be mourning the loss of a talented and dedicated professional who worked in all the major theatres in the country.

"Alongside his television and film career, Mick was a founding member of Druid Theatre in Galway in 1975 with Garry Hynes and Marie Mullen.

"He was a talented actor and a gentleman, and his loss will be felt by those both outside and within the wider arts community."

Glen Killane, Managing Director, RTÉ Television, issued the following statement on learning of the death of actor Mick Lally:

Tribute - Glen Killane, Managing Director, RTÉ Television

Glen Killane, Managing Director of RTÉ Television, said: "It was with great sadness that we learnt of Mick Lally's death this morning."

"He was of course renowned as a talented actor on stage and screen, particularly for his work as a founding member of Druid Theatre Company; in seminal features like 'Ballroom of Romance' and indeed in Hollywood blockbusters, including 'Alexander'."

"It was however in the Wesley Burrowes-penned drama series Bracken and Glenroe that we worked with him most closely here in RTÉ Television."

"His role as Miley Byrne truly endeared him to the nation and brought him into people's homes every Sunday evening over an 18-year period."

"His great skill as an actor was apparent in the pure, naturalistic believability of the loveable character which he inhabited and made his own."