Tom Vaughan-Lawlor has told RTÉ Entertainment that the opportunity to explore another chapter in Irish history with his new film Baltimore was impossible to resist.
Directed by Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor, Baltimore tells the story of English heiress turned IRA member Rose Dugdale, who died aged 83 last week. Imogen Poots stars in the lead role, and Vaughan-Lawlor plays Dominic, a member of Dugdale's IRA unit.
In January 1974, Dugdale attempted to bomb the British Army barracks in Strabane using a helicopter. Then, in April of that year, she led the Russborough House robbery, described as "the biggest art theft in the world". Paintings including a Vermeer, a Goya, two Gainsboroughs, and three Rubens were stolen, and the ransom was set at £500,000.
"I love heist movies, so in a way, that's a huge thing for me. And, also, the way the film is told in a kind of 1970s-style, new wave cinema genre - that really appealed to me," Vaughan-Lawlor told RTÉ Entertainment.
"The story is fascinating; her story is fascinating. It was the biggest art heist in the world at the time. It was audacious and bonkers - and it wasn't even sanctioned by the IRA Army Council. It was a renegade mission.
"[In the script] I found this kind of motley crew of this English aristocrat with this failed priest IRA man and this young up-and-coming kid living in this kind of cottage, this rustic environment, debating art and politics, and faith - I found it offbeat and subversive and strange, and unusual. Also, what drew me to it is Joe and Christine's track record. Their films are really nuanced and detailed, and subtle."
Vaughan-Lawlor has previously portrayed press secretary PJ Mara in Charlie, Pádraig Pearse in Trial of the Century, IRA prisoner Larry Marley in Maze, and gallery director Hugh Lane in Citizen Lane. Baltimore's dramatisation of Rose Dugdale's life and the Russborough House robbery is another "historical piece" that belongs on his CV.
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"What you hope for is variety and you try not to be pigeonholed into one thing. I'm very fortunate that I get to try different things," he continued.
"What's clever about Baltimore is that it has biopic qualities - in the sense we get a journey within her life - but her character or her journey is the jumping-off point for bigger questions about art and identity, and faith. And Imogen is amazing in it."
Baltimore is in cinemas now. The documentary series The Heiress and The Heist is available on the RTÉ Player,
