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Brendan Behan

File:Brendan_Behan_and_Jackie_Gleason_NYWTS.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

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Brendan Behan

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Also known as Brendan Francis Aidan Behan, Francis Behan

Irish poet, short story writer, novelist, and playwright (1923-1964)

Person · Open Library

Born
1923
Died
1964
Works
54

Top works

  • Die Geisel
  • Confessions of an Irish rebel
  • The hostage
  • An giall
  • Brendan Behan's New York

via Open Library + Wikidata

Film & TV

Writing

Brendan Behan (1923-1964) was an Irish writer, one of the most popular Irish literary figures in his time. A former political militant, he spent much of his youth in prison. After his release, he established himself as a playwright, writing in both English and Irish. He had a lifelong struggle with alcoholism, leading to his death at the age of forty-one. His memoir Borstal Boy and play The Quare…

Known for

  • Brendan Behan: The Roaring Boy — Himself2014
  • A Hungry Feeling: The Life and Death of Brendan Behan — Self1988
  • Omnibus — Self1967
  • Small World — Self1958
  • Tonight Starring Jack Paar — Self1957

via TMDB

Music · MusicBrainz

Type
Person
Gender
Male
Origin
Ireland
Active from
1923
Active to
1964

via MusicBrainz · CC0

Listeners · Last.fm

Listeners
1,849
Total plays
9,160

Tags

spoken wordirishdrinkingall time favespoet

Brendan Francis Behan (Irish: Breandán Ó Beacháin) (9 February 1923 – 20 March 1964) was an Irish poet, short story writer, novelist, and playwright who wrote in both Irish and English. He was also an Irish republican and a volunteer in the Irish Republican Army. <a href="https://www.last.fm/music/Brendan+Behan">Read more on Last.fm</a>

via Last.fm · Brendan Behan

Quotes

  • When I came back to Dublin, I was courtmartialled in my absence and sentenced to death in my absence, so I said they could shoot me in my absence.
  • He was born an Englishman and remained one for years.
  • An author's first duty is to let down his country.
  • There's no bad publicity except an obituary.
  • The sun was in mind to come out but having a look at the weather it was in lost heart and went back again.
  • It's not that the Irish are cynical. It's rather that they have a wonderful lack of respect for everything and everybody.

via Wikiquote · CC BY-SA

Key facts

Born
Brendan Francis Aidan Behan , ( 1923-02-09 ) 9 February 1923, Dublin , Ireland
Died
20 March 1964 (1964-03-20) (aged 41), Dublin, Ireland
Occupation
Writer
Period
1942–1964
Genre
Poet, novelist, playwright
Subject
Irish republican struggle, often autobiographical
Notable works
The Quare Fellow , The Hostage , Borstal Boy
Spouse
Beatrice ffrench Salkeld ​ ​ ( married</span>"}]]}'>m. 1955 ) ​
Children
Blanaid Behan
Parents
Stephen Behan (father), Kathleen Behan (mother)
Relatives
Dominic Behan (brother), Brian Behan (brother)

via Wikipedia infobox

~25 min read

Encyclopedic overview

Brendan Francis Aidan Behan (christened Francis Behan) (/ˈbiːən/ BEE-ən; Irish: Breandán Ó Beacháin; 9 February 1923 – 20 March 1964) was an Irish poet, short story writer, novelist, playwright, and Irish Republican, an activist who wrote in both English and Irish. His widely acknowledged alcohol dependence, despite attempts to treat it, impacted his creative capacities and contributed to health and social problems which curtailed his artistic output and finally his life. He is widely regarded as one of Ireland's greatest writers.

An Irish Republican and a volunteer in the Irish Republican Army (IRA), Behan was born in Dublin into a staunchly republican family, becoming a member of the IRA's youth organization Fianna Éireann at the age of fourteen. There was also a strong emphasis on Irish history and culture in his home, which meant he was steeped in literature and patriotic ballads from an early age. At the age of 16, Behan joined the IRA, which led to his serving time in a borstal youth prison in the United Kingdom and imprisonment in Ireland. During this time, he took it upon himself to study and became a fluent speaker of the Irish language. Subsequently released from prison as part of a general amnesty given by the Fianna Fáil government in 1946, Behan moved between homes in Dublin, Kerry and Connemara and also resided in Paris for a time.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Brendan Behan” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (6)