Forty-six years ago, Cathal Dunne stood under the lights of Jerusalem’s Eurovision stage, charming Europe with his self-penned song Happy Man. This week, under very different skies, he stood once again in the spotlight—this time in the medieval town of Athenry in County Galway, promoting his deeply moving historical novel, Athenry – A Famine Tale of Love and Survival.
Dunne, long domiciled in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, returned to Ireland this month not only to walk in the footsteps of his ancestors but to pay homage to them through the pages of an epic tale rooted in the darkest chapter of Irish history, the Great Famine.
With a group of American readers and fans in tow, Dunne arrived in Athenry to explore the town’s rich heritage, its stone fortifications, and narrow Norman streets—settings that inspired the harrowing journey of Liam and Máire, the star-crossed couple at the heart of his novel.
Known for decades as a gifted singer, songwriter, and pianist, the Cork-born artist has always worn his heart on his sleeve—especially when it comes to Irish identity.
“I’ve always been a storyteller,” he says. “This story, though—it’s different. It came from a deeper place. A place of pain, of history, of memory. I wanted to honour those who came before us.”
Athenry, published by Mercier Press, is a sweeping narrative set in the autumn of 1845, just as the potato blight swept across Ireland, leaving devastation and mass emigration in its wake. The story follows Liam O’Donaghue, a Connemara pony trainer who is forced to flee famine-stricken Ireland, and his wife Máire, who stays behind to protect their newborn son. Their lives are ripped apart, but their love endures.
“It’s a story of impossible odds,” says Dunne. “Liam ends up on famine ships, in penal colonies, even at the Australian and California gold rushes, but always with the dream of returning home to his wife and child.”
Along the way, Liam forms a friendship with Kumba, an African gold miner, adding layers of cultural depth and global migration to a very Irish story.
“The Famine didn’t just disperse the Irish—it connected them with people and places all over the world,” he explains. “That’s part of the story too: the shared experience of struggle.”
The novel’s inspiration, Dunne admits, stems from Pete St John’s iconic folk ballad The Fields of Athenry. “In just a few verses, it tells the tragedy of the Famine, the heartbreak of separation,” he says. “That always stayed with me.”
Dunne’s personal legacy also pulses through every page. His uncle was the late Taoiseach and sporting icon Jack Lynch, whose love of Cork and of Irish tradition deeply influenced the singer-turned-novelist. Dunne’s recent single Cork My Home, launched during a May visit to Leeside, was also a tribute to his uncle’s enduring legacy.
“I like to think that Athenry and Cork My Home are both legacy projects—each a way to keep Irish history and passion alive.”
A pandemic project with global reach
Dunne began work on Athenry during the Covid-19 lockdown, diving into years of historical research. “I came across these detailed Australian records—daily journals from famine ships and penal colonies. That’s when I realised this story needed to be told, and told right.”
He credits historian Michelle O’Mahony of Dunmanway with fact-checking the manuscript line by line to ensure historical accuracy. “Michelle’s insight was invaluable. She made sure every townland, date, and ship was grounded in reality,” says Dunne.
The result is a novel already drawing critical praise. Music legend Phil Coulter called it “a masterful capture of love in a time of cruelty,” while bestselling author Malachy McCourt lauded its “poetic flow.”
The visit to Athenry, the town from which the novel takes its name, was both poignant and celebratory. Dunne visited local landmarks including Athenry Castle and the town’s historic walls, tracing the same cobblestone paths his characters might have walked.
“It’s incredibly special to bring the story home, literally,” he says.
What’s next for Dunne? Possibly the silver screen.
“There’s been interest in adapting Athenry into a film or mini-series,” he reveals. “Noel Pearson reached out to say he loved it. That’s exciting—especially if it helps the story reach even more people.”
Pearson, the producer behind films such as My Left Foot, is known for bringing Irish stories to life with cinematic power.
“I wrote the novel almost like a screenplay,” Dunne adds. “Every scene, I could see it. Feel it.”
In the end, Athenry is more than historical fiction—it’s a tribute.
“It’s for those who survived, and those who didn’t,” says Dunne. “For the families torn apart by hunger and the hope that still flickered despite it all.”
As 2025 marks 180 years since the potato blight first blackened Irish soil, Dunne hopes his book resonates widely.
“My fervent hope is that every Irish reader sees a part of their ancestry in these characters,” he says. “And that others, wherever they’re from, recognise the universality of survival, love, and longing for home.”
Cathal Dunne’s Athenry – A Famine Tale of Love and Survival is available now from Mercier Press.
