Walter Macken

This new biography sheds light on the private life of one of Ireland's foremost writers, through his many unpublished and privately held papers and letters. Walter Macken was born in Galway in 1915 and died there in 1967. Originally an actor, principally with an Taidhbhearc in Galway and The Abbey Theatre, he played lead roles on Broadway and also acted in films, notably in Brendan Behan's The Quare Fellow. Known for his romanticized portrayal of the Irish and the portrait he painted of the colonial oppression of the people, Macken's writings are outstanding examples of literary efforts to reflect the realities of rural life in Ireland in the last century.