Mayo mourns the loss of renowned author Michael Mullen

CASTLEBAR is mourning the loss of one its finest ever writers following the passing of Michael Mullen.

Michael (pictured), who passed away on Sunday, was a prolific writer throughout his life, penning books on various subjects including children’s books, world history and local history.

A former school principal at Glenisland NS, Michael penned several noteworthy books and was arguably best known for his 1981 work Kelly: A Novel.

He was immersed in his hometown of Castlebar all his life and was a contributor to the Connaught Telegraph for over 50 years.

Author, local historian and Mayo News columnist John Healy recalled Mr Madden as ‘a father figure’ in Castlebar.

“He was quite a humble man. He was very well read. At the same time, he could converse with anybody. He was a familiar figure around the streets. He was a sort of father figure of the town,” Mr Healy said yesterday (Monday).

“He was a familiar figure in the Linenhall … people would be delighted to see him. He’d sit and talk literature for hours with people. He was very good to young writers; anyone who wanted an insight into what to write or how to write, he’d welcome them into the home and help them.

“He was a very ordinary man, in that sense of the word. In spite of all his learning he could mix with anybody. He had a great way of kids even though he didn’t have kids of his own. He wrote children’s books and was very friendly with children. As a teacher he was well loved by the children,” Mr Healy added.

A keen observer of politics, Michael was a personal friend of former Mayo TD and EU Commissioner Pádraic Flynn.

Outside of Ireland, he was a frequent visitor to the world-renowned Shakespeare bookshop in Paris where he befriended its owner, George Whitman, and once gave a reading of his work.

He travelled extensively throughout his life and was once a guest of the Romanov family in Russia, who became the subject of his book titled The Last Days of The Romanovs.

His contribution to literature was recognised when he became the inaugural winner of the Wild Atlantic Words Festival’s first Appreciation Award a number of years ago.

Mr Mullen penned some much-loved stories for children, most notably The Flight of the Earls, the work of Pádraic de Barra and the late Cardinal Ó Fiach and The Four Masters.

Among his books for adults are The Festival of Fools (1984); The Road Taken: A Guide to the Roads and Scenery of Mayo (2008); Mayo: The Waters and the Wild (written in partnership with John P McHugh in 2004); To Hell or Connaught   (1994); The Hungry Land (1993); The Viking Princess (1990) and Festival of Fools (1984).

He also researched and wrote a book about the history of The Great Famine in Mayo which focused on the Connaught Telegraph’s weekly coverage of the era.

In addition, he was an active member of Castlebar Probus, an organisation of retired professional and businesspeople in Castlebar.

Michael Mullen will repose at Coady’s Funeral home this evening (Tuesday, February 20) from 5.30pm with removal at 7pm to The Church of the Holy Rosary, Castlebar.

Requiem Mass will take place on Wednesday, February 21, at 11.30am followed by burial afterwards in Castlebar Old Cemetery.

His Requiem Mass will be streamed live at http://www.churchtv.ie/castlebar or listened to in Castlebar on the Parish Radio Channel 105.3FM.

May he rest in peace.