The Late Paddy Flannery All the world is a stage and all men and women merely players. They have their exitsand entrances and one man in his time plays many parts (his acts being seven ages)" - Shakespeare, As You Like It. The untimely passing of Paddy Flannery in October 2007 left the parish of Mountshannon and Whitegate with feelings of great loss. His contribution to his community was immense. Two of the organisations in the parish where Paddy excelled were GAA and drama, to name but two. His tremendous contribution to his local GAA club of Mountshannon and Whitegate is well documented, manifested by the huge GAA presence and guard of honour at his funeral at both the evening reception at the church and at the mass the following day. Paddy was a founder member of the Sliabh Aughty Drama Group and was a stage manager extraordinaire. He had the unique ability to design and manufacture sets for varied productions, the finished product always a sight to behold and always complemented the play in hand. He started his stage career at a young age with Scariff Macra Na Feirme. Thrown in at the deep end, he served his apprenticeship on the one act festival circuit. Black drapes and free-standing sets were the norm at that time all of which had to be placed during short interval breaks. Paddy was stage manager for the Mountshannon Drama Group in the early '70s. His skills were tops, every piece of set a work of art. On countless occasions when the curtain opened at festivals, a round of applause would erupt for Paddy Flannery's creation - a great boost for nervous thespians back stage. In the early '90s the name of the group changed to Sliabh Aughty Players. Paddy designed and built the set for The Field. The set was built at the back of Mountshannon hall using the long hall seats as his work bench. The tools of his trade were hammer, saw and nails. No powered screwdrivers or battery drills back then. While the set building was in progress, the producer who was directing the cast on stage requested Paddy to tone down the noise level to which the retort came swiftly from the back of the hall "do you want me to use a rubber hammer?" Once again, the set for The Field was outstanding, an old fashioned bar changed to a road side ditch in a matter of minutes. A church window was replicated from the window at the back of the altar of Mountshannon Church. These were just two of the many ingenious features. Paddy continued year after year with design and construction, each set having its own characteristics. The play The Honey Spike staged a journey from Antrim to Kerry depicting through sets the various counties en-route. The play The Power of Darkness was transformed by Paddy from a kitchen to an outside barn setting in just 10minutes. In 1994, the culrnination of Paddy Flannery's creations achieved the ultimate by winning the All-lreland Best Set Award for the play The Highest House on the Mountain. Design, detail and construction for this set included a thatched roof, once again showing his ability and creativity. Many drama lovers, amazed by Paddy's creation, took photographs of this set. Applause at all festivals became cornmon place. Sadly, Paddy Flannery's drama sets will no longer grace the stages of Ireland but he has left memories and a legacy of dedication, creativity and genius which will always be remembered throughout the drama circles of Ireland. Paddy, will always be remembered with fondness, the many talents of whom we could write a book, your involvement in your parish which was so unselfish. It has always been said if you want something done ask a busy person and that was Paddy Flannery giving, loving and serving. "There is a quiet light that shines in everyheart though it is always secretly there it draws no attention to itself. It is what illuminates our minds to see beauty, our desire to seek possibility and our hearts to love life. This shy inner light is what enables us to recognise and receive our very presence here as a blessing. Paddy may you be embraced by God in whom dawn and twilight are one." Bhi do obair criochnaithe ar an domhain seo roimh re. Ta a fhios again go bhfuil d'ait I bhflaitheas tuillte agat agus nach mbeidh fulaingt agat go deo deo. Courtesy of the Clare Champion 28 March 2008 Tweet

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