Art imitating life for Knockcroghery resident in John McGahern inspired film

He never acted before or ever stood on a stage, but for Philip Dolan it seemed written in the stars that he would make his big screen debut in That they may face the Rising Sun, the acclaimed new movie based on John McGahern’s final novel.

For starters, Philip, a Cavan man who has lived in Knockcroghery for almost fifty years, has always been a big fan of John McGahern’s work, and some of the characters in McGahern’s final novel were based on people that Philip had known. They included the person inspired by the character ‘Jamesie’ who he plays in the film.

Firstly though, how did a man, in his mid-seventies, with no acting experience end up featuring in a movie that is receiving much critical acclaim? Well, that moment of serendipity happened back in February 2022 when the film’s director Pat Collins came to Murray’s Bar in Knockcroghery as part of documentary he was making on Traveller singer Tommy McCarthy.

Tommy McCarthy is a frequent visitor to the South Roscommon Singer’s Circle, which was having a gathering that same night. Pat Collins stayed on after filming to listen to the contributions and was taken by a witty childhood story recounted by Philip, a long serving member of the circle along with his wife Marina from Moore.

“I can’t sing, but I told a story about Glangevlin in West Cavan where I am from and apparently Pat said: ‘That’s my Jamesie!’. They were looking for someone to play the character Jamesie at the time,” recalls Philip.

After that night, the director made contact with Declan Coyne from the singer’s circle, wondering who the man was who told the story. A week later Pat Collins along with casting director Maureen Hughes came to Knockcroghery to meet Philip. “They got me to read and record some things and they left, saying they were considering other people as well. But within an hour or two, I got a phone call to say the part is yours if you want it.” Despite being a first-time actor, incredibly there were no nerves. “Rather than nervous, I was very nostalgic. I was very conscious of playing a character from characters I remembered from 50-60 years ago and that I now know are long gone.” He based his performance on one of the many characters he had known in Glangevlin, Knockcroghery and other places, characters who added such colour to many rural communities.

He and Marina came to Knockcroghery 46 years ago, and live in the station house. “We got to know fantastic old characters here. Then there was my uncle in Elphin who died at the age of 96 and there were old characters that I knew in Glangevlin. I was just doing it as they were doing it.

“Being in this film was like taking a step back into the time, and I think that’s the beauty of the film - that it does bring you back to a time long gone. It’s set in the 1970s but the world is such a different place to now.” His lifelong love of John McGahern’s work also helped during the rehearsals, which took place in Leenane and in Clonbur, and with the making of the movie itself, which was filmed in Connemara in the summer of 2022. He also noted that he had recently re-read McGahern’s final novel.

Philip recalls a time during his long career in the oil industry, which took him all over the world, when he realised how regarded a writer McGahern was, even outside Ireland.

“The first time I became aware of how universally accepted John McGahern was when I was working in Paris in 2006 and I remember reading about his death in a French paper in the airport. And when I came into the office, everybody in the office was talking about McGahern.” That They May Face the Rising Sun film itself is the story about Joe and Kate Ruttledge, played by Barry Ward and Ann Bederke, who have returned from London to live and work among a small, rural, lakeside community in Ireland near to where Joe grew up.

Their lives and those of the memorable characters are framed within the cycle of a year and the passing seasons, encompassing events such as haymaking, market days, lambing, and various celebrations like Christmas and Easter. It’s well accepted that the story is about the writer himself and his wife Madeline at the time they returned to Leitrim.

The role of ‘Jamesie’, played by Philip, is one of those unique characters in every rural community but have now pretty much disappeared. Philip describes his character as a man who was a “hoor for news”.

There are so many wonderful threads which align to ensure Philip would be drawn into a cinematic world inspired by McGahern’s writings.

He is convinced that the character he played was based on his brother’s brother-in-law, who was friendly with John McGahern. This particular vignette brings us to Roscommon, Knockcroghery and Murray’s Bar where Philip’s whole movie adventure had its beginnings.

“I am quite certain that Jamesie was my brother’s brother-in-law in real life because he went to the factory quite a few times in Athleague with John McGahern. He’s the one that used to go to John McGahern’s sister as Jamesie does in the film, and help with the cows and sheep. On the way back from the factory, he and John McGahern would stop in different pubs and McGahern would say to his brother-in-law “We’ll go by Murray’s, I want to meet Jamesie.” Philip said that McGahern idolised Jamesie (Jimmy) Murray, the legendary Roscommon player who captained the county to two famous All-Ireland titles in 1943 and 1944.

“John McGahern adored Jamesie’s fame. He used to love meeting Jamesie. In one of his memoirs, he refers to Jamesie Murray distinctly. When he was back then in Cootehall, after his mother died in Aughawillan, McGahern said they used to kick the ball in the field at the back of the pub and tried to do it like Jamesie Murray did it, and he mentioned some of the other Roscommon players as well.” That lost world full of colourful characters was part of Philip’s life growing up as it was for John McGahern whose homeplace near Ballinamore was not too far from Glangevlin.

“Where McGahern grew up, it would be the same way of thinking, the same attitude to things, the same attitude to news, the same attitude to curiosity,” he says.

He is quick to mention one of the great characters in McGahern’s book, ‘The Shah’, played by John Olohan in the film. “The Shah was a real-life character in Ballinamore, he ran a garage, Pat McManus was his name, he was John McGahern’s uncle. I knew Pat McManus, I often got petrol off him in the early seventies.” Recalling the whole experience of the film and its promotion, Philip still has to pinch himself as he talks about attending the London and Dublin premieres. He has also been on the Joe Duffy radio show speaking about the film and working with a talented cast, which he said were nothing but supportive, most notably Barry Ward.

He also talks fondly of the great family get together after the London premiere, which included a sister-in-law who has been living in London since 1960. “She organised the whole gang, my still living brothers and sisters, all from Ireland. We all gathered in the Porterhouse in the Strand in London and that was arranged separately by my nephew Philip. When we got to the Porterhouse, the whole crew and cast were there as well. They had chosen the same place by pure coincidence.” Philip is very appreciative of all the local support he has received, not least from his wife Marina, and Declan Coyne and colleagues from the Singer’s Circle. No doubt, his children Petra (Switzerland), Killian (Australia) and Shauna, who is a ship’s engineer working at sea, are very proud of their father’s achievement.

While he dearly hopes that the film will bring “some recognition to Roscommon and Knockcroghery”, you do get the feeling that personally, the limelight is not where Philip wants to be, despite thoroughly enjoying the adventure. “The old people used to always say that it was never lucky to be too noticed, and shady corners were the safest,” he laughed.

*That They May Face the Rising Sun’ will be released nationwide on April 25. Directed by renowned Pat Collins, the film stars Barry Ward (Jimmy’s Hall, Bad Sisters) and Anna Bederke (Soul Kitchen, Sterben) in the lead roles. Lalor Roddy (Grabbers, God’s Creatures), Sean McGinley (Michael Collins, Braveheart), Ruth McCabe (Philomena, Joy Ride) and first-time actor Philip Dolan make up the rich cast of supporting characters.  The film will have a special preview at the Carrick Cineplex in Carrick-on-Shannon, tomorrow evening, Thursday, April 18th with director Pat Collins and writer Eamonn Little in attendance for questions and answers.