Novelist and author Maurice Walsh talks about his life in Scotland.
The novelist and short story writer Maurice Walsh was born in 1879 near Listowel, County Kerry into a farming family. He joined the Civil Service when his secondary education finished, Ireland still being part of the British Empire at that time.
His job as a customs and excise officer saw him first posted to Limerick, then northern England and Scotland, where he worked with whisky distilleries in the Highlands.
The foundation of the Irish Free State enabled him to transfer to the Irish Civil Service. The return to Ireland resulted in him devoting more and more of his time to writing. While some of his stories had been published in magazines from 1908 onwards, his first novel 'The Key Above The Door' was published in 1926.
Many of his novels are set in Scotland, and have been translated into French, German, Italian, Danish and Flemish. Mauirce Walsh's short stories also achieved popularity thanks to their circulation in Irish, British and American magazines.
His best known story 'The Quiet Man' was published in the Saturday Evening Post in 1933. This story was adapted as a feature film directed by John Ford, shot in counties Mayo and Galway. With Maureen O'Hara and John Wayne in the lead roles the film was released in 1952 and was a resounding success internationally.
Maurice Walsh's time in Scotland, his enjoyment of the outdoors and the people he encountered gave him a deep understanding of the country's culture and customs.
At that time the Scots firmly preferred Hogmanay (the traditional Scottish New Year's Eve Celebrations) to Christmas. Maurice Walsh himself took part in 'first-footing' as back then he fitted the part, being a dark haired man who,
Knocked on the door after midnight, and all the ladies came to embrace you.
On one occasion a young woman with red hair opened the door to him, but he refuses to be drawn on whether this is the inspiration for the principal female character in 'The Quiet Man'.
Burns Night on 25 January is also celebrated throughout Scotland, paying tribute to the life and work of poet Robert Burns (1759-1796), and is second only to Hogmanay in the Scottish cultural calendar,
The worship of Burns is called bardolatry.
This episode of 'Broadsheet' was broadcast on 30 October 1962. The reporter is Toni Allen.
'Broadsheet' was a magazine style, nightly review of people and events introduced by John O'Donoghue and presented by the Broadsheet Unit.
