User:Dunne97/sandbox

Gabriel Fallon

Later Life & Death

Gabriel Fallon’s later years consisted of his involvement with his religion and the Catholic church in Ireland. Fallon was a devout member of the catholic church and part of ‘An Ríoghacht’, which was a conservative Catholic group. His well-known background included being a drama critic for Irish Monthly (1926-51), Catholic Standard (1938-54) and Evening Press in 1954. He also achieved high recognition for being an actor in several theatrical plays and for his role in ‘Men of Ireland’ as Father O’Sullivan.

A modern & busy Abbey Theatre in Dublin City

Credited for his role as a theatre critic, especially in the Abbey Theatre in Dublin where he was then made a director following the death of Lennox Robinson in 1959. This came a year after his [Fallon] retirement from the Civil Service. His involvement with the theatre can be found in the Abbey Theatre Archives.

In the 50s, Fallon was a lecturer on theatre arts and public speaking in UCD. In his later years he was also a regular guest producer on Radio Éireann. The first production of ‘Katie Roche’ was produced by Fallon in November of 1964 and was aired on Radio Éireann.

Fallon acted in plays written by close friend, Sean O’Casey. Both had acted at the Abbey Theatre but when O’Casey moved to London, their relationship faded. When O’Casey died in 1964, Fallon, who was director of the Abbey at the time, closed its doors as a mark of respect for the deceased.

After many years of involvement in the Abbey Theatre, from acting, producing, and directing, he resigned from the theatre in 1974.

For his [Fallon] eightieth birthday, he spoke of a quotation from the poem ‘September 1913’ by W.B. Yeats, founder of The Abbey Theatre, to criticize a materialistic Ireland.

Gabriel Fallon died on June 10, at his home in Whitworth Road, Drumcondra in 1980. He was aged 81. He is buried in Deans Grange cemetery in Dublin. His obituary can be found online.