Had he been born a century earlier, Gabriel Byrne might have been an actor, or perhaps a teacher, or even a politician. It seems likely, however, that in those days, Mr. Byrne would have been a writer. He has the intellectual ability and the temperament, plus the observational skills and, as you will see, a way with words.
In 1988, Mr. Byrne wrote a column for Magill Magazine, a British journal, entitled “Fade In, Fade Out.” Some of these essays later appeared in his book Pictures In My Head. In 1997, he wrote four essays for the magazine, including the searing examination of a former teacher, entitled “The Man in Black,” which was published in Magill in December 1997.
These essays are now available for your reading pleasure in the Press section of the Gallery. They are made available by Linda and Scarlett, who have published them on their website, Gabriel Byrne and In Treatment.
We thank them for their painstaking work and research in discovering these gems and providing them to us!
These are scans of the actual archived print pages and some of them are not very high quality. But they are what we have! So download them to your desktop and then open them up in an image viewer so you can resize them for a better reading experience.
Which essay is your favorite? Share your thoughts in the Comments Section!
Here is Gabriel talking about writing:
There is a rumor floating about that he is working on another book. Oh please, Make It So, Mr. Byrne!
Thank you Stella. It’s always interesting and fun to read something from Mr. Byrne. I like ‘Song of the open road’
I do, too. “The Man in Black” just takes my breath away, though.
It must be difficult to be Gabriel, he has so many talents, but only one life to use them. I love to see him on screen, but I hope he will have time to write more in the future.
Nora, there is a strong indication that he is working on “Book Two” of his memoirs. Send positive writing thoughts in his general direction, ok? ;-)
What is his writing secret? I am still struggling to find myself out of my writing maze! Amazing writing!
Stay true to your voice and your experience, T. That’s the ticket. Easier to say than to do, I know. Do not give up!
Wowzer. A Man For All Seasons is he.
Now THAT is role I’d like to see him tackle. LOL
My favorite is THE MAN IN BLACK. My teachers were tough on me in school, and I can relate to it. Many times I’ve been told I’m an amadan.
Gosh, Patrick! You sent me to the dictionary again (“amadan” is the Gaelic word for “fool” or “idiot.”). I agree with you about the essay. What I respond to is the amount of time that has passed and the wisdom and understanding that the former student now possesses. Gives us all hope, doesn’t it?