Tribute to Denny Corcoran

Foundry… ACEC…
Ballyhassey Ballad
G r o u p . . . P a n t o …
Groucho… Dolittle…
The Liar O’Brien…
Brigadoon… GAA
star… Drummer… Frank
Sinarta.. Denny Corcoran was all
of those but I suppose it would be
fair to say that he was the quintessential
gentleman above all else.
For over 40 years, he was
involved an all aspects of the
theatre and arts in the ancient city
that he loved so well, including
the Waterford Pantomime Society
and the Tops of the Town. Denny
was also a vital cog in the De
La Salle Musical Society in the
late 1950’s. In 1967 he won the
inaugural ‘Tops’ with the Iron
Foundry. He directed the Waterford
Pantomime Society from
1985 until 2000.
In 2008 he accepted The Lifetime
Achievement Award from
Ger O’Brien at the Waterford
Massed Bands Concert in the
Sacred Heart Church. Two
years later he was presented with
Waterford Person of the Year
Award in the City Hall. Denny
was the Grand Marshall at the
2011 St Patrick’s Day parade
here in Waterford city, a day he
treasured.
During his long and distinguished
career as an actor, comedian
and director Denny never
saw another person as an old colleague
or a young colleague: everyone
was equal to him, that was
one of his magical traits. If you
were five, fifteen of fifty years
old, Denny spoke to you the
same way. In 2003 Michael Grant
directed a tribute to Denny which
was called “Down Memory
Lane’’ and that was 41 years after
Denny had made his debut in
Tops of the Town.
The Foundry rivalry with
Waterford Glass became part of
theatrical folklore here in Waterford
and Denny was the pivotal
figure in that rivalry but he stood
tall and proud, whatever the
outcome might have been. He
was a winner, of course, but he
knew how to treat triumph and
defeat with equal measure and his
persona shone like a beacon both
on and off the stage during those
extraordinary years of that unique
competition.
Tony Murphy, my father-inlaw,
simply adored the man. He
worked with Denny when he
joined the ACEC troop for the
‘Tops’ and I have had the pleasure
of listening to Tony and Denny
recall those wonderful times on
many occasions. They are memories
that I will treasure for the rest
of my life. Denny, ‘Bula’ Power
, Ann McGrath, Martin Flynn,
Ernie Moyser, Bernie Wymberry,
Tommy Drohan, Bernie
Flanagan, Paddy Galvin and Ben
Brown, just to mention a few personalities,
gave us folks born in
the early 50’s some incredible
moments in The Theatre Royal
and for that we will always be
eternally grateful.
The Ballyhassey Group, which
featured Denny, ‘Bula’ Ann and
Martin, were a group way ahead
of their time and I think it would
be fair to say that if they were
performing the songs that they
sang back in those glorious days
at the present time they would
all end up in jail! My God, they
were simple times and as we now
live in a politically correct era the
motley crew that toured England
and the USA would have been
deported, such was the raunchy
but harmless lyrics that they
crafted into their stage act.
Away from the stage, Denny
was a fine goalkeeper with the De
La Salle football team which won
the Waterford Senior Football
Championship in 1958. The previous
year he played on the Waterford
team which defeated Kerry
in Walsh Park and he took great
enjoyment from the ten years he
played between the sticks for the
Deise. His wonderful and delightful
song “My City Of Music’’ was
written while he was working in
the Foundry. It took him just 30
minutes to write it and it remains
a perennial favourite to many
thousands of people to this day.
I suppose it will be the song that
will keep Denny’s name etched in
our hears forever more.
His unique acting craft was
summed up brilliantly in Jim
Nolan’s play ‘The God’s Are
Angry Miss Kerr’, which was
first premiered in the 80’s and
it was in fact the first-ever Red
Kettle play. However Liam
Meagher and Waterford Dramatic
Society decided to revive the play
in the late 90’s and, along with
Jim, they decided to cast Denny
in the role of “Liar O’Brien’’.
By Jim’s own admission it was
an extraordinary performance
by Denny, because he adlibbed
quite a lot of Jim Nolan’s lines
and he somehow managed to give
the play an entire new meaning,
something that Jim loved. Jim
described Denny’s performance
as ‘a joy’.
On a personal level, I got to
know Denny on the local cabaret
scene in the early 70’s. He was
in a three piece band called “The
Promises’’ along with Paddy
Galvin and Ben Brown. Following
the success of “The Young
Generation Choir’’, which
was the brainchild of Fr Billy
Meehan, I began playing with
young musicians like Marian and
Bobby Bradfield, Dermot Marsh,
Danny Devine and the late Bobby
Bible. We used to play all of the
pubs which hired groups and we
also began playing at weddings
and dinner-dances. Denny’s band
were on the same circuit and the
kindness and advice he gave us
was invaluable. On one particular
evening we were playing a gig in
the Tower Hotel. ‘The Promises’
were also playing in a different
room in The Tower that evening
and I can still remember Denny
coming in and asking me if I
had a spare bass drum foot-pedal
because the spring on his had
snapped. Both of us played the
drums and thankfully I was able
to help him out with his request. I
was really pleased that I could in
some little way return all of the
kindness he had shown us, as we
set out on what was to be a highly
enjoyable 35 years on the local
music scene.
In latter years I, from time to
time, enjoyed Denny’s company
on Thursday evenings with his
friends Nicky Cummins, Brendan
McGrath and Paddy Madigan
in Alfie Hale’s Bar on the hill
of Ballybricken. His wisdom
and knowledge and his gift of
knowing how to enjoy the music
and his incredible love of life
were a joy to behold.
When someone special like
Denny leaves us the memories
come flooding back. I can recall
one act in the panto back in the
80’s when he was on stage with
Nicky Cummins. The bould Nicky
handed a sheet of sandpaper to
Denny and he quickly retorted
“why are you giving me a map
of the Sahara Desert?” For some
reason that little piece of magical
theatre has remained with me to
this day. In his sublime song ‘My
City Of Music’ (which surely has
to become the official anthem of
Waterford ), Denny sings about
the ‘ancient city that I love’. He
certainly did love Waterford and
Waterford loved Denny.
Denny departed the stage of
life on Sunday, 17th May 2015
and he is now starring under the
spot lights of a much better place
up above in heaven, of that there
is no doubt. However I genuinely
believe that the music as we knew
it died when Denny left us and
moved into the wings on 17th
May. Rest well my friend and
again thank you for being there,
not only for me but for all of the
people you helped during your
time with us. A new curtain call
awaits, Denny.