In a work for our times, documentary maker Brian O’Flaherty has interviewed a vast array of historians, political commentators and writers to examine the life of revolutionary James Connolly, writes Fiona Mac Donald.
They discuss Connolly’s key writings and his vision of what an independent Ireland could achieve. Among the many contributors are Fintan O’Toole, Francis Devine, Anne Casey and Ross Connolly.
Historian Owen Dudley Edwards, of the University of Edinburgh, calls Connolly ‘the most profound mind and the greatest theoretician among the founders of the modern Irish state’.
The film includes original musical contributions from Christy Moore, Andy Irvine, Adrian Dunbar, Paul Cleary and Jimmy Kelly. International film-star Colm Meaney reads from Connolly’s works and letters.
James Connolly is one of the iconic figures of Irish History but James Connolly – A Working Class Hero places a spotlight on Connolly the person, his family life, his struggles and disappointments as well as his politics. This long-overdue documentary will inform a contemporary audience of the importance of James Connolly then and now.
The world premiere was on Sunday, 12th September at 8pm in Liberty Hall, Dublin.
