Legendary Irish actor, Milo O’ Shea has died in New York at the age of 86, following a short illness.
Best known as a character actor, O’ Shea was born and reared in Dublin. Although he was a veteran theatre actor, he garnered public and critical acclaim for his film and television roles.
His career spanned a wide variety of film genres. He starred as Leopold Bloom in Joseph Strick’s 1967 version of James Joyce’s ‘Ulysses’, as mad scientist Mr. Durand Durand in Roger Vadim’s 1968 film ‘Barbarella’ and as a priest in Neil Jordan’s 1997 film ‘The Butcher Boy’.
He gained recognition in the UK when he starred in the 1960s BBC sitcom ‘Me Mammy’.
Younger audiences will know him as the Irish actor who appeared in all their favourite shows. Throughout his career he has appeared in ‘Who’s the Boss?’, ‘The Golden Girls’, ‘Cheers’, ‘St. Elsewhere’, ‘Spin City’, ‘Frasier’, ‘The West Wing’ and HBO prison drama ‘Oz’.
Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Jimmy Deenihan, paid tribute to the actor saying:
“Milo O’Shea was a giant of stage and screen. During his career in theatre and film, both at home and abroad, he is remembered for the quality of his performances in a range of challenging and often ground-breaking roles.
His portrayal of Leopold Bloom in Ulysses was a particular highlight of his film career, a role that many people recall when they think of him.
Over his life, he reached the widest audiences from across the globe – on stage, on film, and on television – and was internationally recognised for the quality of his work.
I would like to express my deep condolences to his family, and to his many friends, at this time.”
He is survived by his wife, actress Kitty Sullivan, his two sons, Colm and Steven, and three grandchildren.
