Cathleen Delany (21 July 1907 – 19 June 1997) was an Irish actress of stage and screen.

Life

Born Kathleen Mary Delany to journalist Alfred Delany and his wife, Kathleen Mary Kilgannon of 98 Marlboro Rd. in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. She was professionally known as Cathleen Delany. She was one of the principal players of the first decade of the

Gate Theatre The Gate Theatre is a Theater (structure), theatre on Cavendish Row in Dublin, Ireland. It was founded in 1928. History Beginnings The Gate Theatre was founded in 1928 by Hilton Edwards and Micheál MacLiammóir with Daisy Bannard Cogley and Ge ...

's existence. Considered a talented singer she began in local theatre with the

Rathmines Rathmines () is an affluent inner suburb on the Southside of Dublin in Ireland. It lies three kilometres south of the city centre. It begins at the southern side of the Grand Canal and stretches along the Rathmines Road as far as Rathgar to t ...

and

Rathgar Rathgar (), is a suburb of Dublin in Ireland. It was originally a village which from 1862 was part of the township of Rathmines and Rathgar; it was absorbed by the growing city and became a suburb in 1930. It lies about three kilometres south of ...

Musical Society. From there she auditioned for the Gate. She debuted on the Gate stage in '' The Agamemnon of Aeschylus'' in 1933. Delany worked with

Hilton Edwards Hilton Edwards (2 February 1903 – 18 November 1982) was an English-born Irish actor, lighting designer and theatrical producer. He co-founded the Gate Theatre with his partner Micheál Mac Liammóir and two others, and has been referred to as ...

and

Micheál Mac Liammóir Micheál Mac Liammóir (born Alfred Willmore; 25 October 1899 – 6 March 1978) was an actor, designer, dramatist, writer and impresario in 20th-century Ireland. Though born in London to an English family with no Irish connections, he emigrated ...

during their

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

season in 1934 and in 1936 she went with them on their first tour of

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

. When they returned she began touring

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

with Longford Productions. She moved to the screen and performed in a wide variety of roles. Her last stage performance was in May, 1988 in the Gate in

Brian Friel Brian Patrick Friel (c. 9 January 1929 – 2 October 2015) was an Irish dramatist, short story writer and founder of the Field Day Theatre Company. He had been considered one of the greatest living English-language dramatists. (subscription req ...

's adaptation of ''Fathers and Sons''. In the 1970s, Delany also started to work for film and television. She played the elderly Aunt Julia in '' The Dead'' (1987),

John Huston John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter, actor and visual artist. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered ...

's adaption of the

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...

short story. Her last role was in the television series ''Jake's Progress'' in 1995. Delany married John O'Dea, and raised her niece Hazel Roost from infancy. She died a month before her 90th birthday.

Performances

Screen

* 1972 ''A War of Children'' (TV film) - Mrs. Doyle * 1978 ''Last of Summer'' (TV) - Dotey Cregan * 1983 ''

Attracta Athracht (Modern Irish ''Naomh Adhracht''; in Latin sources ''Attracta'') is the patron saint of the parish of Locha Techet (Lough Gara) and Tourlestrane, Co. Sligo, Ireland. She was a sister of Bishop Conal of Drumconnell. Her feast day is ...

'' - Sarah Crookham * 1984 ''

The Irish R.M. ''The Irish R.M.'' is a trilogy of books by the Anglo-Irish novelists Somerville and Ross and a 1983 television comedy-drama series based on them. They are set in the turn-of-the-twentieth-century west of Ireland. Books The television series ...

'' (TV) - Louisa Butler-Know * 1987 '' The Dead'' - Aunt Julia * 1988 ''Brigit'' * 1988 ''

Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an " ...

'' (TV) - Miss Rice * 1989 ''Ticket to Ride'' (TV) - Mrs. Durkin * 1990 ''The Love She Sought'' (TV film) - Mrs. Curry, the Bishop's Housekeeper * 1990 ''The Real Charlotte'' (TV) - Mrs. Gascoine * 1991 '' The Miracle'' -Miss Strange * 1991 ''

December Bride ''December Bride'' is an American sitcom that aired on the CBS television network from 1954 to 1959. It was adapted from the original CBS radio network series of the same name that aired from June 1952 through September 1953. Overview ''Dec ...

'' -Agnes the Midwife * 1993 '' The Snapper'' (TV) - Oul'one * 1993 ''

Lovejoy ''Lovejoy'' is a British television comedy-drama mystery series, based on the novels by John Grant under the pen name Jonathan Gash. The show, which ran to 71 episodes over six series, was originally broadcast on BBC1 between 10 January 19 ...

'' (TV) - Old Lady * 1995 ''Jake's Progress'' (TV) - Helen

Stage

* ''A Bride for the Unicorn'' * ''Abdication'' * ''Anything But the Truth'' * ''Ascendancy'' * ''Asmodée'' * ''Bitter Rue'' * ''Cadenza in Black'' * ''Hamilton and Jones'' * ''Here's Your Uncle George!'' * ''John Donne'' * ''Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme'' * ''Lord Edward'' * ''Lovers : Losers'' * ''Patrick Sarsfield'' * ''Pride and Prejudice'' * ''Sea Change'' * ''She Sits Smiling'' * ''Sister Eucharia'' * ''Tartufe'' * ''The Absentee'' * ''The Avenger'' * ''The Barber of Seville'' * ''The Earl of Straw'' * ''The New Girl'' * ''The Strange Lover'' * ''The Uncrowned King'' * ''The United Brothers'' * ''Three Leopards'' * ''Yahoo''

References

External links