Alexander Randal Mark McDonnell, 9th Earl of Antrim, (3 February 1935 – 21 July 2021), known as Alexander Dunluce, was a Northern Irish landowner, peer, artist, and art restorer. He lived mostly at his ancestral home,

Glenarm Castle Glenarm Castle, Glenarm, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, is the ancestral home of the Earl of Antrim. History There has been a castle at Glenarm since the 13th century, where it resides at the heart of one of Northern Ireland's oldest estates. ...

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. As his titles were in the

peerage of Ireland The Peerage of Ireland consists of those titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lord or King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It is one of the five divisi ...

, he did not sit in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

. The son of the 8th Earl of Antrim (1911–1977) and his artist wife

Angela Sykes Angela Christina MacDonnell, Countess of Antrim (6 September 1911 – 27 August 1984), also known as Angela Antrim, was Countess of Antrim, a sculptor, a cartoonist, and an illustrator. Early life and education Angela Christina Sykes was born 6 ...

(1911–1984), as the heir apparent to his father's titles he was styled

Viscount Dunluce A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

from his birth until 1977.

Early life

Brought up as a Roman Catholic, Antrim was educated at

Downside School Downside School is a co-educational Catholic independent boarding and day school in the English public school tradition for pupils aged 11 to 18. It is located between Bath, Frome, Wells and Bruton, and is attached to Downside Abbey. Originall ...

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

, and the Ruskin School of Drawing & Fine Art. He subsequently worked as an

art restorer The conservation and restoration of cultural property focuses on protection and care of cultural property (tangible cultural heritage), including artworks, architecture, archaeology, and museum collections. Conservation activities include prev ...

for the

Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

, holding the posts of Keeper of Conservation, 1975–1995, and Director of Collection Services, 1990–1995. He was also a Director of

Ulster Television UTV (formerly Ulster Television, branded on air as ITV1) is the ITV region covering Northern Ireland, ITV subsidiary and the former on-air name of the free-to-air public broadcast television channel serving the area. It is run by ITV plc an ...

from 1982 to 2000, Chairman of Northern Salmon Co. Ltd, from 2000 to 2008, and Prime Warden of the

Worshipful Company of Fishmongers The Worshipful Company of Fishmongers (or Fishmongers' Company) is one of the 110 Livery Companies of the City of London, being an incorporated guild of sellers of fish and seafood in the City. The Company ranks fourth in the order of prec ...

for the year 1995–1996. He was the first to spot the potential of Bankside Power Station as a site for the

Tate Modern Tate Modern is an art gallery located in London. It houses the United Kingdom's national collection of international modern and contemporary art, and forms part of the Tate group together with Tate Britain, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives. It is ...

Family

Antrim was married twice and had three children, by his first marriage: * Lady Flora Pennybacker (born 1963) * Lady Alice McDonnell (born 1964) *

Randal Alexander McDonnell, 10th Earl of Antrim Randal Alexander McDonnell, 10th Earl of Antrim DL (born 2 July 1967), previously known as Viscount Dunluce, is a Northern Irish landowner, with an estate based at Glenarm Castle, and a City of London businessman, chairman of Sarasin & Partners LL ...

(born 1967); m. Aurora

Gunn Gunn may refer to: Places * Gunn City, Missouri, a village * Gunn, Northern Territory, outer suburb of Darwin * Gunn, Alberta, Canada, a hamlet * Gunn Valley, a mountain valley in British Columbia, Canada * Gun Lake (British Columbia), a Canad ...

. And from his second marriage: * Lady Rachel McDonnell (born 1978) His younger brother is the artist

Hector McDonnell The Hon. Hector John McDonnell (born 1947) is a Northern Irish painter, etcher, and author, specializing in architectural art, landscape, and portrait work. Early life A younger son of Randal McDonnell, 8th Earl of Antrim, by his marriage to the ...

Death

Lord Antrim died on 21 July 2021, at the age of 86 after a short illness (sepsis). His funeral was held at the Our Lady of Immaculate Conception Church in

Glenarm Glenarm () is a village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It lies on the North Channel coast north of the town of Larne and the village of Ballygalley, and south of the village of Carnlough. It is situated in the civil parish of Tickmacreva ...

Appointments

*Director of

(UTV) *Fellow of the

Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...

*Member of the

Marine Biological Association The Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom (MBA) is a learned society with a scientific laboratory that undertakes research in marine biology. The organisation was founded in 1884 and has been based in Plymouth since the Citadel H ...

*Patron of the Arts Society of Ulster

Sources

*''The Complete Peerage'', volume 14 (1998) *''Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 106th Edition'' (1999)
9th Earl of Antrim at thepeerage.com
1935 births 2021 deaths People educated at Downside School Prime Wardens of the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Earls of Antrim {{Ireland-earl-stub