Tom Hickey RIP

All of us at Druid are saddened to hear of the passing of actor Tom Hickey.

Among his many achievements, his role as JPW King in the premiere of Tom Murphy's The Gigli Concert and his collaboration with writer Tom MacIntyre and director Patrick Mason on The Great Hunger, both at the Abbey Theatre, marked significant turning points for the Irish theatre.

At Druid, he played Red Raftery in the premiere of Marina Carr's On Raftery's Hill (2000) and later worked on John B Keane's Sharon's Grave (2003) and the double-bill of The Playboy of the Western World and The Shadow of the Glen (2008).

'He was a great talent, an absorbing person, was always "standing very by" for the Irish theatre, and we will miss him' - Garry Hynes, Druid's Artistic Director.

Image: Tom Hickey in On Raftery's Hill (2000), photograph by Derek Speirs