Late Late Show: Thalidomide survivors say 'we cannot afford to wait any longer'

Thalidomide survivor Peggy Murphy from Cork, who is now in her 90s, spoke to Ryan Tubridy alongside her son Martin on the Late Late Show. Peggy was unaware of the adverse effects of the drug when she took Thalidomide while pregnant with Martin. Picture: RTÉ

Thalidomide survivors have said they cannot afford to wait any longer in their 61-year battle with Government for an apology and adequate compensation.

Survivors of Ireland’s longest-running medical tragedy, the Thalidomide scandal, have spoken about their ongoing campaign and increasing weariness with State inaction on RTÉ’s Late Late Show.

During tonight's Late Late Show, Ryan Tubridy hosted Irish Thalidomide Association advocates Finola Cassidy and John Stack, and also spoke with two mums in the audience — Peggy Murphy from Cork, and Mary Clarken from Portlaoise, both now aged in their 90s — whose children had been adversely affected by Thalidomide.

Finola Cassidy and John Stack of the Irish Thalidomide Association on the Late Late Show. Finola said: 'Acknowledge the wrong, apologise for it, welcome the unacknowledged, and plan for our future with a fair deal.' Pictures: RTÉ

Thalidomide, a sedative drug used to treat morning sickness, was prescribed and also sold over the counter without prescription to pregnant women in Ireland from 1959.

Over 51,000 packets of Softenon, the biggest seller in Ireland, were sold here in 1961.

The drug caused thousands of miscarriages and babies who survived the pregnancy were born with catastrophic injuries — missing or foreshortened limbs, organ damage, deafness, and painful nerve-ending damage.

Mary Clarken from Portlaoise and her daughter Sharon, who was born with a deformed arm due to Thalidomide, both spoke with Ryan Tubridy on tonight's Late Late Show. Picture: RTÉ

Thalidomide was withdrawn internationally in 1961 after it was found to cause major birth defects but it was not withdrawn in Ireland until the following year.

The Irish Thalidomide Association (ITA) said that it remained on pharmacy shelves and in homes for longer after the State failed to ensure a complete recall of supplies, causing further catastrophic damage to families across the country.

A 2012 photo of Peggy Murphy with her son Martin. Thalidomide remined on sale over the counter more than a year after it was withdrawn internationally. Picture: Denis Scannell/Irish Examiner

Thalidomide survivors and their families have campaigned for decades for a State apology and for a ‘fair and equitable’ compensation package.

Although the Government does provide some financial assistance and they are eligible for medical cards, survivors say the support is completely inadequate.

“Thalidomide was a wrecking ball to the embryo,” Finola Cassidy, Thalidomide survivor and ITA spokesperson said. 

“They failed us as children, they are still failing us now. This did not happen on their [the present Government’s] watch but they are the custodians of the State’s stance on how we get closure — 61 years of this is just cruel.

“It is horrific to read the old government briefing documents I found in the National Archives and see first-hand how they tried to manipulate the Thalidomide story and not accept their hand, act, and part in it.”

There are now only 40 Irish Thalidomide survivors.

"Acknowledge the wrong, apologise for it, welcome the unacknowledged and plan for our future with a fair deal."@ThalidomideIre#LateLate pic.twitter.com/UebNuT7RKp

— The Late Late Show (@RTELateLateShow) February 24, 2023

Ireland’s youngest ‘acknowledged’ Thalidomide survivor John Stack, now 60, is chairman of the ITA.

Mr Stack was born 14 months after the international withdrawal of the drug was not heeded by the Irish State.

“We have waited a very long time, over 60 years, and we cannot afford to wait any longer,” Mr Stack said.

On the Late Late Show, Ryan Tubridy spoke with Mary Clarken with her daughter Sharon, and (right) Peggy Murphy with her son Martin, all of whom were affected by Ireland's Thalidomide scandal. Picture: RTÉ

“You’d have to be in the whole of your health to keep this relentless campaign going — and we aren’t," he said.

"Our health and mobility are failing and it will only get worse. 

"This has been the fight of our lives, for all our lives and our parents’ lives, and it is time the Government ended the battle with us.”

Two mothers affected by Thalidomide, both now in their 90s — Peggy Murphy from Cork with her son Martin, and Mary Clarken from Portlaoise with her daughter Sharon — told Ryan Tubridy how they were treated and how after 61 years they deserved to hear it was not their fault.