The funeral took yesterday of renowned playwright Brian Friel. He was buried in Glenties, the Donegal town where he based some of his best-known plays.
The 86-year-old passed away at home on Friday. He is survived by his wife Anne, daughters Mary (Bateman), Judy (Maher), Sally (Sultan) and son David. He was predeceased by his daughter Patricia.
Meryl Streep and Liam Neeson, who both appeared in Brian Friel productions, were among the many public figures who paid tribute to the master playwright.
Streep, who starred in Pat O'Connor's 1998 film version of Friel's Tony award-winning play Dancing at Lughnasa, described him as a “tender dramatist, an insightful humanist and a lovely man”.
Meryl Streep and Kathy Burke in Dancing at Lughanasa
She added: “I am so sad to hear the world has lost the great Brian Friel; when a poet dies, we lose not just his, but the voices of all the people who passed through his life and imagination. Friel introduced the people of Donegal to us as if we were all members of his family and community.
“We couldn't help but recognise the people we loved in our own towns and lives, the people who make us laugh and make us furious.”
Liam Neeson, who began his career in Friel's plays, described him as “Ireland’s Chekhov” and a “master craftsman”.
