Playwright Tom Murphy says "indifference is the worst thing to fear".
'The Sanctuary Lamp' by Tom Murphy was first performed on 7 October 1975 at the Abbey Theatre as part of the Dublin Theatre Festival. The play about three down-and-outs who seek shelter in a church proved controversial. Des Hickey asks the playwright if he had meant to outrage audiences in this radio interview broadcast two weeks later on 'The Arts: Appraisal'.
Murphy says he expected a very strong reaction, but "indifference is the worst thing to fear". He doesn't set out to be sensational, and considers this a very religious play, though it is anti-institutional. When asked about the germination of it, he thinks that he was probably feeling a mood of isolation and wanted to write about it. Then the unlikely combination of hearing interviews with Fr Peyton and boxer Jack Doyle gave him an idea about the sanctuary lamp and what it meant to him.
He also notes that a large proportion of those who walked out of the Abbey were Americans on holiday in Ireland, who had spent the day "locked up in a coach". 'The Sanctuary Lamp' "isn't quite the fare" for them.
Title: |
The Sanctuary Lamp |
Clip Duration: |
00:08:03 |
Material Type: |
Audio |
Clip Title: |
'The Sanctuary Lamp' Outrages at the Abbey |
Series Title: |
The Arts: Appraisal |
Information: |
‘The Arts’ was an RTÉ radio series about poetry, music and literature. The first programme was broadcast on 7 February 1973 and featured poet John Montague introduced by Liam Miller. Other presenters included the poet Eavan Boland, who won a Jacob’s award in 1976 for her work on the show. ‘Appraisal’ was a radio arts magazine, presented by Des Hickey. It was first broadcast on 23 February 1972, in a weekly slot on Radio Éireann. According to the RTÉ Guide, it aimed to “give a general flavour of what is happening in the theatre, in music, dance, cinema, mime, poetry and even books throughout the whole country” (16 May 1986, p. 12). It used a large panel of experts to review and discuss work. ‘Appraisal’ was incorporated into ‘The Arts’ in 1973, becoming a fortnightly programme until 15 October 1980, when it reverted to weekly. It ended on 8 September 1988. The accompanying image of Tom Murphy was taken by Roy Bedell in 1973. © RTÉ Archives |
Local Keywords: |
Abbey Theatre, Drama, Literature, Plays, Playwrights, Tom Murphy, The Sanctuary Lamp, Des Hickey, The Arts, Appraisal |
Coverage: |
Ireland |
Topic: |
Arts and Culture |
Contributor(s): |
Des Hickey (Presenter) |
Publisher: |
RTÉ |
First Broadcast Channel: |
Radio Éireann |
Broadcast Date: |
21/10/1975 |
Production Year: |
1975 |
Country of Production: |
Ireland |
Original Identifier: |
BB2285 |
IPR Restrictions: |
Rights Reserved - Free Access |
Rights, Terms and Conditions: |
Copyright RTÉ. This material may not be replicated in any form or manner without the prior express permission of RTÉ. Any form of reproduction in print, television, video, multimedia, web site or other electronic media or any form of dissemination for commercial or non-commercial use must be licensed by the RTÉ Archives.
If you wish to licence video or audio clips, still images or text, or would like further guidance please contact us. RTÉ Archives are committed to respecting the copyright of others and have attempted to source and credit the copyright owners of all material used here. RTÉ would like to hear from any copyright owners who are not properly identified here so that the necessary corrections can be made. If you feel your copyright has not been respected please contact us. |
Item Type: |
part/extract |
Sound: |
Mono |
Language: |
English (eng) |
