Actress Geraldine Plunkett has paid tribute to “the heart of Glenroe” Emmet Bergin, who played her on-screen husband Dick Moran on the popular Irish drama.
Mr Bergin, who appeared in Glenroe from its inception in 1983 to the final series in 2001 as businessman Moran, died last Friday, his family said in a statement.
Gerldine Plunkett played his long-suffering wife Mary on the show and speaking to RTÉ Radio 1’s News at One on Wednesday she spoke of her “extreme sadness and shock” at his passing.
“We’ve all been ringing each other and we’re all terribly shocked and sad because we were all terribly fond of him.”
She also praised his versatility as an actor.
“The wider public knew him from Glenroe but he also did Veronica Guerin and all sorts of things,” she said.
“He did loads and loads of television and film over the years but I suppose because of Glenroe for such a long time, the general public would know him best from that series but before that and during that he had a thriving career on stage.
“He was in the Abbey for years and I’ve seen him give wonderful performances. He started acting when he was 16 and for the whole of life he was an actor and a really, really fine one.
She added, “He was great fun to be with and all of us in Glenroe were very close and we all went through a lot of life experiences together – people had babies, lost parents – and we all grew very close and got to know each other very well.
“Emmet was very much of the heart of it, he was a great fun. I’ve been talking to his wife and they’re all terribly shocked by the news.”
Before joining the RTÉ Sunday night soap, which followed the lives of the residents of the fictional Wicklow village and also starred Mick Lally, Joe Lynch, and Mary McEvoy, Mr Bergin had roles in Excalibur in 1981 and the RTÉ thriller The Burke Enigma. He also appeared in the RTÉ drama The Clinic.
His extensive stage work with the Abbey Theatre included True West, The Silver Tassie, and Philadelphia, Here I Come!
Dick and Mary Moran’s fractious marriage often provided much of the drama on the Sunday night show.
The late Wesley Burrowes, the creator and writer of the series described Glenroe as “rurban,” a drama that mixed both rural and urban storylines.
“It was the borderline of Dublin going into Wicklow and it did reflect Ireland at the time.” Geraldine said.
Asked if Mr Bergin felt typecast as Dick Moran and whether it was a restriction on other parts that might be offered, she said, “Not really. The public might think of you as the one character but in practise in the theatre you get to play a lot of roles.
“Emmet was never typecast. All of things he did outside of Glenroe proved that he had a very wide range, work that was completely different from Dick Moran. He was very versatile in fact and very good looking. I was the envy of the women of Ireland!
“But he was a very down to earth man. The public always thinks that you’re a little bit like your character on the television but you’re not.
“Emmet was a wonderful photographer and he was a great fisherman. They were his interests. He couldn’t wheel and deal to save his life.”
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