Mayo All-Ireland win has now inspired a play

‘The Curse be Damned’ is written by Niall Conway, who previously wrote a play to celebrate Armagh's All-Ireland win

The Curse Be Damned - a play by Niall Conway about Mayo's All-Ireland win, staged by Kilmeena Drama Group.

The great famine-busting Mayo odyssey continues to be celebrated in every possible medium — and now the play has arrived.

‘The Curse be Damned’ is written by Niall Conway and gets its first curtain call in Kilmeena Community Hall, west Mayo, on November 12th and 13th, performed by the Kilmeena Drama Group.

The already iconic phrase the title borrows has travelled the world, first shrieked by Midwest Radio commentator Stephen Grealis as the hooter sounded on Mayo's taking of Sam. 

“The famine is over. The curse be damned. Hit the nuclear button.”

The Mayo victory, breaking the long wait since 1951, has already inspired a raft of books and now Tyrone man Conway puts it on the stage.

"A comedy journey," Niall describes it as. The storyline follows three Mayo fans to all of the county's matches this year, a plot that delivered plenty of twists and turns of its own. 

"There are poignant moments too," Niall adds, "but it's an entertaining family night out that any Mayo fan will enjoy."

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Conway, who played minor and U21 from Tyrone, and is from the Clann na nGael club that produced Stephen O’Neill and Brian Dooher, previously put rivalry to one side to write a play to celebrate Armagh's All-Ireland win in 2024.

"That brought the house down. It was sold out in the Armagh clubs where we put it on and got standing ovations. And we were approached to do loads more clubs, but unfortunately the cast at the time had other commitments.

"I just think it's surprising there's not more plays around sport. It's a great vehicle for getting people into the arts and drama too."

Conway's most recent work was Imagine, a drama that explores an alternative history of The Beatles where John Lennon and Paul McCartney never met.

He has no direct Mayo connections, though Clann na nGael clubmate John Doherty was on the management team when Kilmeena pushed their own nuclear button, winning the 2022 All-Ireland junior club football title.

They defeated a Kerry side too, Gneeveguilla, and spoiler alert, Niall assures us his production has a very happy ending too.