Dervla Murphy (28 November 1931 – 22 May 2022) was an Irish touring cyclist and author of adventure travel books, writing for more than 50 years. Murphy is best known for her 1965 book '' Full Tilt: Ireland to India with a Bicycle'', about an overland cycling trip through Europe, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. She followed this with volunteer work helping Tibetan refugees in India and Nepal and trekking with a mule through Ethiopia. Murphy took a break from travel writing following the birth of her daughter, and then wrote about her travels with Rachel in India, Pakistan, South America, Madagascar and Cameroon. She later wrote about her solo trips through Romania, Africa, Laos, the states of the former

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

and

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

. In 2005, she visited Cuba with her daughter and three granddaughters. Murphy normally travelled alone without luxuries and depending on the hospitality of local people. She was in some dangerous situations; for example, she was attacked by wolves in the former Yugoslavia, threatened by soldiers in Ethiopia, and robbed in Siberia. However, she described her worst incident as tripping over cats at home and shattering her left arm.

Early life

Dervla Murphy was born and brought up in Lismore,

County Waterford County Waterford () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is named after the city of Waterford. ...

. Her parents were from

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

and had moved to Lismore when her father was appointed county librarian. When Murphy was one year old, her mother developed

rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term autoimmune disorder that primarily affects synovial joint, joints. It typically results in warm, swollen, and painful joints. Pain and stiffness often worsen following rest. Most commonly, the wrist and h ...

, from which she suffered for the rest of her life. They were advised not to have any more children and Dervla grew up as an only child. From a young age, Murphy planned to travel:

For my tenth birthday my parents gave me a second-hand bicycle and Pappa er grandfathersent me a second-hand atlas. Already I was an enthusiastic cyclist, though I had never before owned a bicycle, and soon after my birthday I resolved to cycle to India one day. I have never forgotten the exact spot, on a steep hill near Lismore, where this decision was made. Half-way up I rather proudly looked at my legs, slowly pushing the pedals around, and the thought came "If I went on doing this for long enough I could get to India."

Murphy attended secondary school at the Ursuline Convent in

Waterford Waterford ( ) is a City status in Ireland, city in County Waterford in the South-East Region, Ireland, south-east of Ireland. It is located within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford H ...

but left at age 14 to take care of her disabled mother. During young adulthood she took a number of short trips (between three and six weeks): to Wales and southern England in 1951; to Belgium, Germany and France in 1952; and two trips to Spain in 1954 and 1956. She published a number of travel articles in the ''Hibernia'' journal and the ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray backgrou ...

'' newspaper, but her Spanish travel book was rejected by publishers. Murphy's first lover, Godfrey, died abroad in 1958 and her father became ill with

nephritis Nephritis is inflammation of the kidneys and may involve the glomeruli, tubules, or interstitial tissue surrounding the glomeruli and tubules. It is one of several different types of nephropathy. Types * Glomerulonephritis is inflammation ...

, a complication of influenza, and died in February 1961. Her mother's health had been deteriorating for many years, and she died in August 1962. Her mother's death freed Murphy from her domestic duties and allowed her to make the extended trip for which she had long planned:

The hardships and poverty of my youth had been a good apprenticeship for this form of travel. I had been brought up to understand that material possessions and physical comfort should never be confused with success, achievement and security.

Murphy published an autobiography '' Wheels Within Wheels'' in 1979, describing her life before the journey described in ''Full Tilt''.

Travels and writing

''Full Tilt'' and other early writings

In 1963, Murphy set off on her first long-distance bicycle tour, a self-supported trip from Ireland to India. Taking a pistol along with other equipment aboard her Armstrong Cadet men's bicycle (named ''Rozinante'' in allusion to

Don Quixote , the full title being ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'', is a Spanish novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts in 1605 and 1615, the novel is considered a founding work of Western literature and is of ...

's steed and always known as ''Roz''), she passed through Europe during one of the worst winters in years. In

, Murphy began to write a journal instead of mailing letters. In Iran, she used her gun to frighten off a group of thieves, and "used unprintable tactics" to escape from an attempted rapist at a police station. She received her worst injury of the journey on a bus in the

Kingdom of Afghanistan The Kingdom of Afghanistan (; ) was a monarchy in Southern Central Asia that was established in 1926 as a successor state to the Emirate of Afghanistan. It was proclaimed by its first king, Amanullah Khan, seven years after he acceded to the ...

, when a rifle butt hit her and fractured three ribs; however, this only delayed her for a short while. She wrote appreciatively about the landscape and people of Afghanistan, calling herself "Afghanatical" and claiming that the Afghan "is a man after my own heart". In Pakistan, she visited

Swat A SWAT (''Special Weapons and Tactics'') team is a generic term for a police tactical unit within the United States, though the term has also been used by other nations. SWAT units are generally trained, equipped, and deployed to res ...

(where she was a guest of the last

wali The term ''wali'' is most commonly used by Muslims to refer to a saint, or literally a "friend of God".John Renard, ''Friends of God: Islamic Images of Piety, Commitment, and Servanthood'' (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2008); John ...

, Miangul Aurangzeb) and the mountain area of

Gilgit Gilgit (; Shina language, Shina: ; ) is a city in Pakistani-administered Gilgit-Baltistan, Gilgit–Baltistan in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kas ...

. The final leg of her trip took her through the

Punjab region Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

and over the border to India towards Delhi. Her journal was later published by John Murray as her first book '' Full Tilt: Ireland to India with a Bicycle''. She had sent it to John Murray at the suggestion of Penelope Betjeman whom she had met in Delhi during her journey, although initially too modest to contact such an illustrious publisher of travel books; she had a happy publishing relationship with Jock Murray (John Murray VI) until his death in 1993. After arriving in Delhi, Murphy worked as a volunteer helping Tibetan refugees under the auspices of

Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization. It was founded in the UK in 1919; its goal is to improve the lives of children worldwide. The organization raises money to imp ...

. She spent five months in a refugee camp in Dharamsala run by Tsering Dolma, sister of the

14th Dalai Lama The 14th Dalai Lama (born 6 July 1935; full spiritual name: Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, shortened as Tenzin Gyatso; ) is the incumbent Dalai Lama, the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism. He served a ...

. She then cycled through the Kullu Valley, spending Christmas in Malana. Her journals from this period were published in her second book, '' Tibetan Foothold''. On returning to Europe, Murphy took part in a fundraising campaign for Save the Children, and in 1965, she worked with another group of Tibetan refugees in

Pokhara Pokhara ( ) is a metropolis, metropolitan city located in central Nepal, which serves as the capital of Gandaki Province. Named the country's "capital of tourism" it is the List of cities in Nepal, second largest city after Kathmandu, with 599,5 ...

Kingdom of Nepal The Kingdom of Nepal was a Hindu monarchy in South Asia, founded in 1768 through the unification of Nepal, expansion of the Gorkha Kingdom. The kingdom was also known as the Gorkha Empire and was sometimes called History of Asal Hindustan, ...

(described in '' The Waiting Land''). In 1966, Murphy made her first trip to Africa. She travelled to the Empire of Ethiopia and walked with a pack mule from

Asmara Asmara ( ), or Asmera (), is the capital and most populous city of Eritrea, in the country's Central Region (Eritrea), Central Region. It sits at an elevation of , making it the List of capital cities by altitude, sixth highest capital in the wo ...

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; ,) is the capital city of Ethiopia, as well as the regional state of Oromia. With an estimated population of 2,739,551 inhabitants as of the 2007 census, it is the largest city in the country and the List of cities in Africa b ...

, confronted by Kalashnikov-carrying soldiers on the way. This journey was described in her fourth book, '' In Ethiopia with a Mule''.

Travels with Rachel

Murphy's daughter Rachel accompanied her on a trip to India at the age of five; they flew into

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

and travelled to

Goa Goa (; ; ) is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is bound by the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north, and Karnataka to the ...

and

Coorg Kodagu district () (also known by its former name Coorg) is an administrative district in the Karnataka state of India. Before 1956, it was an administratively separate Coorg State at which point it was merged into an enlarged Mysore State ...

(described in '' On a Shoestring to Coorg''). The pair later journeyed to

Baltistan Baltistan (); also known as Baltiyul or Little Tibet, is a mountainous region in the Pakistani-administered territory of Gilgit-Baltistan and constitutes a northern portion of the larger Kashmir region that has been the subject of a dispute bet ...

('' Where the Indus is Young''), Peru (''Eight Feet in the Andes'') and Madagascar (''Muddling through in Madagascar''). Their last trip was through Cameroon on a horse, where Dervla was frequently mistaken for Rachel's husband (''Cameroon with Egbert''). She surmised that this misgendering occurred not only because of her physique but also because the idea of women travelling so far without a man was inconceivable. She tried different ways to correct the understanding, the most successful being unbuttoning her shirt. "It was, like her literary voice, frank and persuasive," wrote Jori Finkel in her ''

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' obituary. On travelling with a child, Murphy wrote:

A child's presence emphasises your trust in the community's goodwill. And because children pay little attention to racial or cultural differences, junior companions rapidly demolish barriers of shyness or apprehension often raised when foreigners unexpectedly approach a remote village.

Politicisation

In 1978, Murphy wrote '' A Place Apart'' about her travels in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

and encounters with members of the Protestant and Catholic religious communities. It won the 1979

Christopher Ewart-Biggs Memorial Prize The Christopher Ewart-Biggs Memorial Prize was created in 1977, in memory of Christopher Ewart-Biggs, British Ambassador to Ireland, who was assassinated by the Provisional Irish Republican Army The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provi ...

. She credits her 1982 book ''Race to the Finish? The Nuclear Stakes'' as a turning point that led her to write more about political issues. In 1985 she lived for several months in

Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

and

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

, talking to members of the Asian, Afro-Caribbean and White communities and witnessing first-hand one of the Handsworth riots (described in ''Tales From Two Cities''). In 1992, she cycled from Kenya to Zimbabwe, where she witnessed the impact of AIDS; when describing this journey in ''The Ukimwi Road'', she criticised the role of

non-governmental organisations A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

sub-Saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lie south of the Sahara. These include Central Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa, and West Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the list of sovereign states and ...

. Her other writings include discussions about the aftermath of

apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

(''South from the Limpopo'') and the

Rwandan genocide The Rwandan genocide, also known as the genocide against the Tutsi, occurred from 7 April to 19 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. Over a span of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Gre ...

(''Visiting Rwanda''), the displacement of tribal peoples (''One Foot in Laos''), and post-war reconstruction of the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

(''Through the Embers of Chaos''). She was

anti-globalization The anti-globalization movement, or counter-globalization movement, is a social movement critical of economic globalization. The movement is also commonly referred to as the global justice movement, alter-globalization movement, anti-globalist ...

and critical of

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

, the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...

, the

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution funded by 191 member countries, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is regarded as the global lender of las ...

and the

World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland that regulates and facilitates international trade. Governments use the organization to establish, revise, and enforce the rules that g ...

. She spoke out against

nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced by ...

and

climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...

. Murphy stated that some readers disapproved of the "political stuff", but another group "tells me they haven't thought about these things in this way before and are glad that I've written and thought more about the political side. My view is that I have these things I want to say and I don't really care if it spoils a pure travel book."

Irish babushka

In 2002, aged 71, Murphy planned to cycle in the Ussuriland region of eastern Russia. She broke her knee while on the

Baikal Amur Mainline Lake Baikal is a rift lake and the deepest lake in the world. It is situated in southern Siberia, Russia between the Federal subjects of Russia, federal subjects of Irkutsk Oblast, Irkutsk Oblasts of Russia, Oblast to the northwest and the Repu ...

railway, then tore a calf muscle while recuperating at

Lake Baikal Lake Baikal is a rift lake and the deepest lake in the world. It is situated in southern Siberia, Russia between the Federal subjects of Russia, federal subjects of Irkutsk Oblast, Irkutsk Oblasts of Russia, Oblast to the northwest and the Repu ...

, and her plans changed to a journey around Siberia by train, boat and bus, documented in ''Through Siberia by Accident''. She revisited Siberia and wrote a companion book, ''Silverland''. In 2005, she visited Cuba with her daughter and three granddaughters, and made two return trips in 2006 and 2007 (described in '' The Island that Dared''). Her Havana experiences are also featured in a collection of traveller's tales. Over the summer of 2011, Murphy spent a month in the Palestinian

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...

, where she met liberals and Islamists,

Hamas The Islamic Resistance Movement, abbreviated Hamas (the Arabic acronym from ), is a Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islam, Sunni Islamism, Islamist political organisation with a military wing, the Qassam Brigades. It has Gaza Strip under Hama ...

and

Fatah Fatah ( ; ), formally the Palestinian National Liberation Movement (), is a Palestinian nationalist and Arab socialist political party. It is the largest faction of the confederated multi-party Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and ...

supporters. She described her stay in a book published in 2013: '' A Month by the Sea''. She wrote about further encounters with Israelis and Palestinians in her 2015 book, '' Between River and Sea''.

Personal life and interests

Murphy never married. In 1968, she gave birth to her only child, Rachel, fathered by ''

Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...

'' journalist Terence de Vere White. Her decision to bring up her daughter alone was described as "a brave choice in 1960s Ireland" by ''

The Sunday Business Post The ''Business Post'' (formerly ''The Sunday Business Post'') is a Sunday newspaper distributed nationally in Ireland and an online publication. It is focused mainly on business and financial issues in Ireland. Founding to Irish financial crisi ...

'', although she said she felt safe from criticism because she was in her thirties and was financially and professionally secure. Following Rachel's birth, she spent five years as a book reviewer before returning to travel writing. Murphy lived in Lismore with five dogs and three cats. She was a patron of

Sustrans Sustrans ( ) is a United Kingdom-based walking, wheeling and cycling charity, and the custodian of the National Cycle Network. Its flagship project is the National Cycle Network, which has created of signed cycle routes throughout the United ...

, a British charity for sustainable travel, and of the Lismore Immrama Festival of Travel Writing. In 2009, Murphy appeared on the

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

programme ''

Great Lives ''Great Lives'' is a BBC Radio 4 biography series, produced in Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the re ...

'', nominating Dame Freya Stark as a Great Life, supported by expert John Murray VII of the publishing family. She was herself chosen as the subject of the programme by Hilary Bradt in 2025. In April 2022, she spoke at her home to an interviewer from the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

'', who was "instructed by her publisher to bring along some 'really good cheddar'. And beer." During the conversation Murphy "claim dto have no time to dwell on the past because she finds so much in current events to worry about, following the news on the BBC World Service radio and Al Jazeera on her computer because she has no desire for — indeed, has never owned — a television." and said that "There are so many books to be read. The problem is, at 90, there isn’t enough time to read them all".

Death

Murphy died at her home in Lismore on 22 May 2022, aged 90. She was survived by her daughter Rachel and her three grand-daughters. The President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, said "Her contribution to writing, and to travel writing in particular, had a unique commitment to the value of human experience in all its diversity."

Recognition

In 2019, she was presented with the inaugural ''Inspiring Cyclist of the Year'' award by Dublin-based advocacy group I BIKE Dublin. The same year, she received the

Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

's Ness Award "for the popularisation of geography through travel literature".

Publications

Murphy's books from 1965 to 1979 have all been republished in new editions by Eland, as travel classics.

References

External links

Dervla Murphy website@FullTilting – Dervla Murphy info

Profiles

The First Lady of Irish Cycling''Who is Dervla Murphy''
2010 documentary film by Martina McGlynn and Garret Daly which includes interviews with the author, her daughter and publisher, and contemporary travel writers

Book reviews

Clifford L. Graves reviews ''Full Tilt'', The Best of Bicycling, Jan 1969
Not a person to murder
Barbara Trapido reviews ''South From The Limpopo'', The Spectator, 4 October 1997

Alain Gilloux reviews ''One Foot in Laos'', Asiaweek, 14 July 2000
On a Shoestring to Coorg
Shriram Krishnamurthi reviews ''On a Shoestring to Coorg'', Brown University, Feb 2005

Rory Maclean reviews ''Silverland'', The Daily Telegraph, 26 November 2006
Cuba on the cusp of change
JS Tennant reviews ''The Island that Dared'', Irish Times, 18 October 2008

Interviews

Joanne Hayden, Sunday Business Post, 18 August 2002

Nicholas Wroe, The Guardian, 15 April 2006
On Top of the World
Vicky Allan, Sunday Herald, 20 January 2007
Interview with Dervla Murphy
Rachel Moffat, Studies in Travel Writing website, 2009

Irish Times, 20 February 2010
'‘You could say I’m reluctantly retired from writing books': travel writer Dervla Murphy
Philip Watson, The Guardian, 24 January 2018 {{DEFAULTSORT:Murphy, Dervla 1931 births 2022 deaths 20th-century Irish women writers 20th-century Irish travel writers 21st-century Irish women writers 21st-century Irish travel writers Christopher Ewart-Biggs Memorial Prize recipients Cycling writers Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature Irish female cyclists Irish women travel writers People from Lismore, County Waterford Solo female touring cyclists Writers from County Waterford