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Ulysses Medal for Brian Friel
17.06.09
ACCLAIMED playwright
Brian Friel has been decorated with UCD's highest
honour - the Ulysses Medal.
Greencastle-based Mr Friel fittingly received the
award yesterday on Bloomsday - the annual day of
celebration to mark the life and work of Ulysses
author James Joyce.
Mr Friel, who was accompanied to the hour-long
ceremony by his wife Anne, was chosen for the medal
in recognition of his contribution to literature
over the past 40 years.
The award was founded in 2005 to highlight the
"creative brilliance" of UCD alumnus James Joyce as
part of the university's 150th anniversary
celebrations. |
It is bestowed on
people whose work is deemed to have made an
outstanding global contribution.
UCD School of English, Drama and Film, Professor
Anthony Roche said the award honoured the
achievements of a man "who is not only Ireland's
greatest living playwright but one of the greatest
playwrights in the world".
Mr Friel's plays include, 'Philadelphia, Here I
Come' (1964), 'Aristocrats' (1979), 'Translations'
(1980), and 'Dancing at Lughnasa' (1990).
Previous recipients of the UCD Ulysses Medal include
Thomas Kinsella, Edna O'Brien and Maeve Binchy. |
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