William George Fay (12 November 1872 – 27 October 1947) was an actor and theatre producer who was one of the co-founders of 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 ...

. Fay was born in

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 ...

, where he attended

Belvedere College Belvedere College Society of Jesus, S.J. (sometimes St Francis Xavier's College) is a fee-paying voluntary secondary school for boys in Dublin, Ireland. Formally established in 1832 at Hardwicke Street in north inner city Dublin, the school was ...

.Ferriter, Diarmaid (2009)
"Fay, William George (‘Wille’)"
''

Dictionary of Irish Biography The ''Dictionary of Irish Biography'' (DIB) is a biographical dictionary of notable Irish people and people not born in the country who had notable careers in Ireland, including both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. History The ...

''. Retrirved 16 October 2024. He worked for a time in the 1890s with a touring theatre company in Ireland,

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, and

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. When he returned to Dublin, he worked with his older brother Frank, staging productions in halls around the city. Finally, they formed W. G. Fay's Irish National Dramatic Company, focused on the development of Irish acting talent. The brothers participated in founding the Abbey Theatre and were largely responsible for evolving the Abbey style of acting. After a falling-out with the Abbey directors in 1908, the brothers emigrated to the United States to work in theatre there. He moved to London in 1914, working as an actor on stage and in films. He played Johnnie, in the film,

Spellbound (1941 film) ''Spellbound'' (also known as ''Passing Clouds''; U.S. titles (1945 release): ''Ghost Story'' and ''The Spell of Amy Nugent'') is a 1941 British second feature ('B') drama film directed by John Harlow and starring Derek Farr, Vera Lindsay a ...

. One of his most notable film roles was as Father Tom in

Carol Reed Sir Carol Reed (30 December 1906 – 25 April 1976) was an English film director and producer, best known for '' Odd Man Out'' (1947), '' The Fallen Idol'' (1948), '' The Third Man'' (1949), and '' Oliver!'' (1968), for which he was awarded th ...

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

-set ''

Odd Man Out ''Odd Man Out'' is a 1947 British film noir directed by Carol Reed, and starring James Mason, Robert Newton, Cyril Cusack, and Kathleen Ryan. Set in Belfast, Northern Ireland, it follows a wounded Nationalist leader who attempts to evade pol ...

'' (1947), whose cast was dense with actors from the Abbey Theatre. His memoir, ''The Fays of the Abbey Theatre'', appeared in 1935. Willie Fay died in London in 1947, aged 74.

Filmography

References

Bibliography

* Igoe, Vivien. ''A Literary Guide to Dublin''. (Methuen, 1994) * Ryan, Philip B. ''The Lost Theatres of Dublin''. (The Badger Press, 1998) *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fay, William 1872 births 1947 deaths Abbey Theatre Irish male stage actors Irish male film actors Male actors from Dublin (city) People educated at Belvedere College Theatre people from Dublin (city)