Various Scripts
Flann O'Brien's career included the gamut of work from letter
writing, satire columnist, novelist, playwright, and overall critic of
life. Some of his plays have been produced, and the adaptation by
Hugh Leonard of his novel The Dalkey Archive was successful.
His Faustus Kelly, a story about a man that sold his soul for a seat in
parliament was performed and published. Also popular and published
was his The Insect Play, an adaptation from the play by Karel Capek
illustrating the ridiculousness of fighting between different Irish camps.
In the early 1960s he turned his hand to television script writing for
weekly broadcasts. His pieces were often between five and ten pages,
an had similar themes as his column. The screenplay would be sparse
as far as scenary goes, and the dialogue and action would usually wind
up in a pun or another ridiculous verbal conundrum. The screenplays
are largely unpublished and some appear in manuscript form at the Special
Collections Rare Book Room in Morris Library, Carbondale, IL.
FLANN O'BRIEN PAGE