Liam Redmond

Liam Redmond (27 July 1913 – 28 October 1989) was an Irish character actor whose career spanned stage, film, and television across more than five decades. Born in Limerick, Ireland, he was one of four children of Thomas Redmond, a cabinet-maker, and Eileen Redmond. He received his early education at the Christian Brothers schools in Dublin before enrolling at University College, Dublin, where he initially studied medicine before turning to drama.

While serving as Director of the Dramatic Society at University College, Redmond met Barbara MacDonagh, the society's secretary, whom he later married. Barbara was the sister of poet Donagh MacDonagh and the daughter of Thomas MacDonagh, a leader of the 1916 Rising, and Muriel Gifford. The couple had four children together. Redmond was invited to join the Abbey Theatre in 1935 by William Butler Yeats, who brought him on as a producer. That same year, Redmond made his acting debut at the Abbey in Seán O'Casey's The Silver Tassie. Yeats subsequently wrote his play Death of Cuchullain with Redmond in mind to star as Cúchullain, the hero of one of Ireland's foundational myths.

Redmond's Broadway career began in 1939 in New York City with Paul Vincent Carroll's The White Steed, and he continued to appear on Broadway through 1968. At the outbreak of the Second World War he returned to Britain, where he became a regular presence on the London stage. During this period he was among the founders of WAAMA, the Writers', Artists', Actors' and Musicians' Association, which served as a precursor to Irish Actors' Equity. His advocacy within the organization — specifically his position that part-time professionals, typically civil servants who acted on the side, should be paid at a higher rate than professional actors for both rehearsals and performances — effectively eliminated that class of performer and raised wages for working actors across the board.

His Broadway work included notable performances across three decades. In 1955 he played Canon McCooey in The Wayward Saint, a role for which he received the George Jean Nathan Award. In 1968 he appeared in two productions, Joe Orton's Loot and Brian Friel's The Loves of Cass McGuire.

Alongside his stage work, Redmond maintained an active screen career from the 1950s through the 1980s. He appeared frequently in television series including The Avengers, The Saint, Daniel Boone, and Z-Cars, and was regularly cast in military, religious, and judicial roles in film. His film credits include I See a Dark Stranger (1946), Captain Boycott (1947), High Treason (1951), The Cruel Sea (1953), Playboy of the Western World (1962), Kid Galahad (1962), The Luck of Ginger Coffey (1964), The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (1966), Tobruk (1967), and Barry Lyndon (1975). His portrayal of a kindly occult expert in the cult horror film Night of the Demon (1957) earned particular recognition among admirers of that film.

Redmond retired to Dublin in his later years. His wife Barbara died in 1987, two years before his own death. He died in 1989 at the age of 76 following a prolonged period of ill health.