Off screen family saga

She was the screen icon who put Ireland in the Hollywood limelight. But a battle over her legacy could take the shine off Maureen O’Hara’s glittering career. Investigative Correspondent Conor Ryan reports

HIS is a dispute that threatens to herald a very sorry end to a truly celebrated life. At its core is the question of control over the life’s work of a cinema icon and the legacy she has wanted to leave in her adopted home on the Cork-Kerry border.

Maureen O’Hara pioneered the success of Irish idols in Hollywood. The Ranelagh-born actress’ contribution is already projected through the generations of film stars with Irish accents that followed her. But she wanted more than that. She had a dream.