Quotes from Literary Festival Weekend
“I was working as a nurse
in England but I got expelled from the
hospital for being pregnant. When I
had had my baby the nurses were wicked
to me. I had no one really. My landlady
, who was always nice to me, came to
see me in hospital. But before coming
to my room the nurses showed her my
baby, Phillip. When she saw my baby
was black she left the hospital without
coming to see me, all my things were
packed up and sent to the hospital,
I was literally homeless.”
Philomena Lynott, speaking on
Saturday night, as part of Athlone Literary
Festival 2011.
“I remember finding out I
was pregnant, I was in England and my
friend, another Irish girl, was pregnant
too. We were so worried we wondered
what we were going to do. We had heard
that if we boiled some gin and dropped
copper pennies into it and then drank
it we could get rid of our babies. So
we did that, but clearly it didn’t
work.”
Philomena Lynott, speaking on
Saturday night, as part of Athlone Literary
Festival 2011.
“There’s sort of a
Third Reich moment about me, I’d
always be the one saying ‘Hang
‘em high’.”
Marie Louise O’Donnell
speaking at John Lonergan evening on
Friday night as part of Athlone Literary
Festival 2011.
“For me you have to start
at kindness. Most people call prisoners
scumbags and we say ‘sure let
them kill themselves’, it’s
only when they come out and start killing
us that we go whaaa.”
John Lonergan speaking on Friday
night as part of Athlone Literary Festival
2011.
“What does the State do for
victims of serious crime, I would say
very, very little.”
Athlone’s John Donohue,
speaking at the John Lonergan evening,
on Friday night as part of Athlone Literary
Festival 2011.
“The real difficulties in
running prisons is that there is no
long term planning. John Lonergan spoke
out on behalf of prisoners trying to
introduce new ideas. But we need to
have standards in a system that has
none.”
Mrs Justice Catherine McGuinness,
speaking at John Lonergan evening on
Friday night, as part of Athlone Literary
Festival 2011.
“You know I went into Eason’s
in Dublin and I went looking for a copy
of me ole book but it wasn’t on
the shelf which I thought was very strange.
So I asked the guy working there whether
my book was out on the shelf.
“No, no, no” he said “they’re
thieving it.” So it was placed
in behind the counter.
Often when I pass former prisoners in
the street they always say “well
Sir I read your book”, now I say
“ I hope you paid for it!”.
John Lonergan, speaking on Friday
night, as part of Athlone Literary Festival
2011.
“When I lost my husband and
my two brothers those deaths weighed
heavily on me I was under an immeasurable
amount of grief. So when I lost my seat
I thought it’s not the end of
the world, no one died….people
started sending me cards telling me
to enjoy my retirement but retirement
was not written all over me, certainly
not.”
Mary O’Rourke, speaking
at the Sunday Miscellany, as part of
the Athlone Literary Festival last weekend.
“There’s a rumour spreading
around Dublin like wildfire that I am
having an affair with Vincent Browne.
But Vincent would never go for a woman
of my girth he prefers thin blonde girls!”
Marie Louise O’Donnell,
speaking at the Official Opening of
the Athlone Literary Festival on Friday.
“In the workhouse in Birmingham
the abuse I suffered was unbelievable.
A girl told me one day that it would
be harder to give Phillip up for adoption
because he was black. I said ‘but
I don’t want to give Phillip up
for adoption.’ So I went down
to the nursery and I grabbed Phillip
and I ran. I knew they were chasing
me so I ran to the top of the building
and then up the fire escape. Everyone
thought I was going to jump with my
baby. They got to me eventually and
took Phillip. But my fortunes changed
the very next day, I turned 18 and under
English law they couldn’t take
my baby from me.” Philomena
Lynott, speaking on Saturday night,
as part of Athlone Literary Festival.
“There is always one instance,
one moment in every play where a change
occurs and the lives of all the characters
are transformed. This can be potential
change becoming real change or apparent
change becoming no real change at all.”
Druid Theatre director, Thomas
Conway, speaking at a Play-writing workshop
in the Shamrock Lodge on Friday last,
as part of the Athlone Literary festival.
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