Micheál MacLiammóir

Biography

Micheál MacLiammóir was a theatrical giant who dominated Irish theatre for over 50 years. Actor, designer, playwright and brilliant raconteur he was very much his own creation. He cut an imposing figure under the spotlight and in real life dressed flamboyantly wearing full make-up at all times and a jet black hairpiece. When he died in 1978 aged 79 The Irish Times wrote, "Nobody can assess the contribution that Micheál MacLiammóir made to Irish theatre." Throughout his life MacLiammóir closely guarded the fact that he was not in fact Irish at all but had been born in London. As Alfred Willmore he had been a child actor on the London stage in the company of Noël Coward. He later travelled widely throughout Europe, studying arts and languages, before reaching Ireland where he met his future partner, the actor Hilton Edwards. In 1928 the two men started the world famous Gate Theatre in Dublin and among the early players were James Mason and Orson Welles, the latter employing him later to be Iago to Welles' cinematic Othello. MacLiammóir appeared on Broadway in the 1930s and from the 1950s onwards toured the world in an acclaimed one man show 'The Importance of Being Oscar', based on the life of Oscar Wilde. He followed this in 1963 with 'I Must Be Talking to My Friends', a show about Irish writers, and lastly with 'Talking About Yeats', his final one man entertainment. On MacLiammóir's death Sir John Gielgud commented, "Designer, wit, linguist and boon companion as well as actor, he was a uniquely talented and delightful creature."