“This is a terrific piece of drama, with a strong narrative drive, visionary
directing and brilliant performances. Yew Tree Theatre's director John Breen has achieved a remarkable, relishable piece of theatre here.”
What happens to a man who becomes the saviour of a nation? Who does he talk to when he talks to himself? Fr Mathew founded his temperance movement in 1838 in Cork. Within two years he had four million members. A quiet revoloution began. Daniel o Connell’s million man meetings took place against a background of order and sobriety, change was in the air and for once the Irish people looked as though they were going to take their destiny in their hands. Then came the famine and the opportunity was lost for two generations. Fr Matthew was one of the most significant figures of the 19th century. He was a radical liberation theologist a century before the world would hear of the phrase. He lived Christ’s message so completely that the Catholic Hierarchy were terrified of giving him power. His story encompasses the key events and personalities of the 19th century on both sides of the Atlantic and shows the rise and fall of a man who did what no one else has been able to do before or since: get the Irish to give up Drink.
