Birdy Sweeney (14 June 1931 – 11 May 1999) was an Irish actor and comedian. Born Edmund Francis Sweeney in

Dungannon Dungannon (, ) is a town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is the second-largest town in the county (after Omagh) and had a population of 16,282 at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2021 Census. The Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough Counci ...

, County Tyrone, he was nicknamed "Birdy" from his childhood ability to imitate bird calls which he demonstrated on

BBC Radio Ulster BBC Radio Ulster is a Northern Ireland, Northern Irish national radio station owned and operated by BBC Northern Ireland, a division of the BBC. It was established on New Year's Day 1975, replacing what had been an opt-out of BBC Radio 4. Acc ...

. He was a stand-up comedian on the club circuit for more than thirty years before he gained his first acting work as an extra in BBC Northern Ireland's adaptation of the play ''Too Late to Talk to Billy'' in 1982.Exshaw, John
Obituary: Birdy Sweeney
''The Independent'', 14 May 1999. Sweeney made minor appearances in several major films, including '' The Crying Game'' (1992), '' The Hanging Gale'' (1995), '' The Snapper'' (1993) '' The Butcher Boy'' (1997), and '' Angela's Ashes'', and made his stage debut in the 1989 Dublin production of '' The Iceman Cometh'' at the

Abbey Theatre The Abbey Theatre (), also known as the National Theatre of Ireland () is a theatre in Dublin, Ireland. First opening to the public on 27 December 1904, and moved from its original building after a fire in 1951, it has remained active to the p ...

. From 1996, he played farmer Eamon Byrne in the first four series of the BBC drama series '' Ballykissangel''.Ballykissangel actor dies
''BBC News'', 12 May 1999

Death

Sweeney died on 11 May 1999 at St. Vincent's University Hospital, Dublin, aged 67, He was survived by his wife Alice and their eight children.

Filmography

References

External links

* 1931 births 1999 deaths Male film actors from Northern Ireland Male stage actors from Northern Ireland Male television actors from Northern Ireland People from Dungannon Stand-up comedians from Northern Ireland 20th-century male actors from Northern Ireland 20th-century British comedians Actors from County Tyrone {{NorthernIreland-bio-stub