This article is from page 18 of the 2008-08-19 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 18 JPG
THE loss of Ronnie Drew is being felt sharply in every corner of the island this morning. There are few who will feel this loss keener than friend and long time collaborator Mike Hanrahan.
The Ennis musician and former member of Stockton’s Wing has be- come almost synonymous with Drew over the last decade.
‘For me there was only one Ronnie Drew and what I learned from him as an entertainer is one thing but to know him as a friend is a totally dif- ferent ball-game,” said Mike.
“When the lights went up you had Ronnie the stage man but when the lights went out the gig was over. I knew him as a person, as a dear loved friend and as a family man. It might sound mad but stardom didn’t sit very well with Ronnie – he didn’t buy into it. He understood that he had to show up at openings and get his picture in the paper but he didn’t let that take over.
“IT knew him as a person, and as an individual he was a simple dignified man, very caring and understanding.
‘For me I can easily separate Ron- nie the entertainer and Ronnie the man, and I’d be proud to know either 0) md oles 00 ae
Hanrahan and Drew’s first offi-
cial collaboration came in the 1997 production of the hugely successful stage show ‘Ronnie I Hardly New Ya’. The pair have worked together on countless other projects over the last decade.
“He was a very dignified man and we all wondered if going public on his illness was the right thing to do. But I think he used the TV to come to terms with his own mortality and his own sickness,’ continued Mike.
“In doing that I think he has touched thousands of people who have been affected by cancer. I will forever hold him in such esteem for that.
“He had great courage to tell the story in the way he did, when the Late Late was hammering down the door to try and get him to tell the Story.
“When he eventually told the story he did it in his own way. He gave people so much hope, the amount of emails that we received after that from sufferers of cancer was unbe- lievable. It was beautiful.
“By dealing with his own illness he was able to help people deal with their own situation. That was Ron- nie’s way all through his life.”