‘Albert was just like all the rest of us’

Fondly remembered by the people of his native Rooskey, Albert Reynolds has been described as a "kind gentleman and the pride of the village" by those who knew him.

Born in 1932 in the village which straddles the counties of Roscommon, Longford, and Leitrim, to a family of three boys and one girl, his father made his living as a cabinet maker and undertaker while his mother tended to the children.

He attended the local school, and was yesterday remembered by former classmate Celia Hoey as being bright and cheerful. “Albert was just like all the rest of us, no airs of graces,” she recalled.

Celia also remembers the former taoiseach as an altar server during Station Masses in her house, and as a great singer. “Over the years he didn’t change one bit,” she said. “I will never forget his distinctive singing voice, he was a wonderful singer and I remember hearing him sing many times in the Annally Hotel in Longford.”

Having been elevated to the position of taoiseach in 1992, his home-coming crossing of the Shannon is a moment that lives long in the memory of the people of his native village.

“The place came to an absolute standstill,” said Celia’s husband Christy, who played football with Mr Reynolds for St Barry’s in the 50s. “Welcoming one of our own back as the taoiseach of the country was an immensely proud day for the people of Rooskey, Roscommon, and the whole of the midlands and west of Ireland.”

During his last year in primary school, he moved to a one-teacher school at Carrigeen in Kilglass, and achieved a scholarship to go to Summerhill College in Sligo. It was there that a long-lasting friendship with Strokestown native and former cathaoireach of Seanad Éireann Brian Mullooly began.

“I attended Summerhill back in 1948,” said Mr Mullooly. “Although Albert was two years ahead of me, because we were from neighbouring parishes we built up a strong friendship that lasted throughout the years.

“I remember when Albert did the Inter Cert, he performed excellently, one of the best of his year. He was extremely strong academically and he used this to become both successful in politics and in business. I’m proud to have been able to call him a friend.”

After brief stints as a junior clerk and a cabinet polisher, he became a clerk with Bord Na Móna in 1952. In the mid-1960s he and his brother Jim opened a ballroom, The Cloudland near Rooskey.

One business venture led to another and eventually into political life. He was first elected to the Longford County Council in 1974, entering the Dáil three years later.

Tommy Cox, of Cox’s Bar, said he was “a sound man”, adding: “He didn’t take a drink, but that didn’t stop him from buying plenty of it when he came around the place. He was just an ordinary man when he came through the doors here. He had that common touch that many of the politicians nowadays lack.”

Mr Reynolds worked in office roles in Dublin and Kildare before moving back home and taking up a position at CIE in Dromod and then in Longford town.

However, it was as a ballroom proprietor during the 60s that his flare for business really showed.

With electricity, polished floors, changing areas, toilet facilities and a capacity of 2,000 people, it was a game- changer in the industry.