# Barry McGovern

Barry McGovern (born 1948) is an Irish stage, film and television actor.

## Background

He was educated at Castleknock College, Dublin. McGovern is a former member of the RTÉ Players and the Abbey Theatre Company. He has worked in theatre, film, radio and television, as well as written music for many shows, and co-written two musicals and directed plays and operas. He is known internationally for his award-winning one-man Beckett shows I'll Go On and Watt which the Gate Theatre presented at the 1985 and 2010 Dublin Theatre Festival respectively. McGovern revived "I'll Go On" for a run at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City for L.A.'s Center Theatre Group in 2014.

## Filmography

Film :
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1987 | Riders to the Sea | Bartley | |
| 1990 | Joe Versus the Volcano | Luggage Salesman | |
| 1991 | Billy Bathgate | Father McInerny | |
| 1992 | Far and Away | McGuire | |
| 1995 | Braveheart | King's Advisor | |
| 1996 | The Disappearance of Finbar | Action Committee Chairman | |
| 1997 | Driftwood | McTavish | |
| 1997 | The Informant | Courtroom Judge | TV movie |
| 1998 | The General | IRA Man 1 | |
| 1999 | Felicia's Journey | Gatherer | |
| 2001 | Waiting for Godot | Vladimir | |
| 2015 | My Name Is Emily | Dr. Golding | |
| 2018 | Penance | The Commandant (Old Antaine) | Irish language |
| 2024 | Blue Fiddle | | Irish language |
| Television ||||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1979 | Play for Today | Sean | 1 episode |
| 1984 | Caught in a Free State | Eamon de Valera | 4 episodes |
| 1987 | Foreign Bodies | Dermot #1 | TV movie |
| 1990 | Dear Sarah | Giuseppe Conlon | TV movie |
| 1991 | The Treaty | Eamon de Valera | TV movie |
| 1995 | The Governor | Solicitor | 1 episode |
| 1995–96 | Finbarr's Class | Mannix Beatty | 24 episodes |
| 1998 | Ballykissangel | Con Casey | 1 episode |
| 1998 | Miracle at Midnight | Rabbi Ben Abrams | 1 episode |
| 2007 | The Tudors | Bishop Bonnivet | 2 episodes |
| 2008 | School Run | Padraig Ó Cinnéide | 2 episodes |
| 2010 | Na Cloigne | Ceannfort Ó Sé | 3 episodes |
| 2010 | An Crisis | Piaras De Barra | Irish language; 1 episode |
| 2014 | Game of Thrones | Dying Man | Episode: "Mockingbird" |
| 2016 | Vikings | French Archbishop | 1 episode |
| 2021 | Foundation | Orlio | 1 episode |
| 2024 | Crá | Art Ó Súilleabháin | Irish language; All 6 episodes |

## Reviews

* (on his one man show "I'll Go On")
** "McGovern illuminates the accessibility of the novels, their Irishness and their brilliant, bitter humour...brilliant" - The New York Times
** "Barry McGovern's dazzling one-man performance…makes for wicked, compulsive fun" - The Irish Times
** "An outright triumph…arrestingly funny" - Time
** "90 minutes of laughter, bitterness, compassion and verbal music to leave you rapt" - New York
** "Superb one-man show…. Without doubt one of the best interpreters of Samuel Beckett's work, McGovern's performance is masterful" - Sunday Business
** “Barry McGovern’s astounding performance was not only the best of the festival, but also among the best I’ve ever seen… genius, no other word for it." - Sun Herald

## Awards and nominations

Ovation Awards
* 2012: Nominated for Lead Actor in a Play for the role of Vladimir in the Center Theatre Group production of "Waiting For Godot"