Ireland

Joe Joyce: The quiet man who was a great journalist, funeral told

The author of 10 books and two plays ‘felt compelled to write’, his daughter recalled

Joe Joyce: 'a brilliant investigative reporter and story teller and a great colleague'

Patsy McGarry
Mon Jun 10 2024 - 18:58

The late Joe Joyce “loved journalism” and would regale his three daughters “about the various shenanigans of the newspaper and political world of the 1970s and 80s”, Molly Joyce recalled on Monday afternoon at his funeral service in Dublin.

“Underneath Dad’s commitment to journalism was his absolute belief in questioning the accepted narrative and following the facts wherever they might lead,” she said.

Commenting on the two plays and 10 books that he wrote, two in collaboration with Peter Murtagh, she said “he felt compelled to write and we all observed that he was happiest when right in the middle of researching and writing on his latest project.”

Joe Joyce (77) died on June 6th at St Vincent’s hospital Dublin following many years of illness.

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Twice Journalist of the Year, he was also the author of seven historical and crime thrillers. His non-fiction work included two books co-authored with Peter Murtagh; `The Boss: Charles J Haughey in Government’ (1983) and `Blind Justice’ (1984) about the 1976 Sallins mail train robbery.

“It was through journalism that he met his wife Frances at the age of 21,” Molly Joyce told the large congregation at the funeral service in the Victorian chapel at Dublin’s Harold’s Cross. “They met at a party and he was intrigued by her exotic background, a Canadian in Ireland which was in those days somewhat rare.” Her mother’s plan “to stay a short six months in Ireland morphed into a 56 year partnership.”

Speaking for herself and her sisters, she concluded “we want to say we were lucky to have had such a wonderful Dad and to have so many years with him.” They would “keep him close always and we won’t forget the last piece of advice he gave us – to take care of each other.”

Earlier, Catherine Joyce told the congregation “there are a few people very close to dad who can’t be here today but who we know are thinking of him, and we of them, his sister Marie and two of his closest friends Don Buckley and Geraldine Kennedy.”

In a tribute Peter Murtagh said “Joe was my friend for a long time and I loved him.” He recalled a quotation shown him by Don Buckley on Sunday which both felt appropriate. `Let grief be a fallen leaf/ At the dawning of the day’, from Patrick Kavanagh’s poem `On Raglan Road.’

“For many years, Don and Joe were inseparable, part of a larger group of Irish Times reporters that included Willy Clingan, Geraldine Kennedy, Jack Fagan and, a little later, myself.” With Renagh Holohan, they had been “delving into serious ill-treatment of suspects while in garda custody.” This story of the ‘Heavy Gang’ was “truly ground-breaking journalism, spearheaded by a quiet man, a great journalist.”

It was also Joe Joyce, again with Don Buckley, who “revealed the Kerry Babies story, in all its awfulness.”

[ Kerry Babies: gardaí retain confidence in DNA evidence but investigators face a steep challenge ]

For a time he, Don Buckley and Joe Joyce worked on Southside, “a really excellent free sheet local paper” where “there was a lot of fun too.” An example was their po-faced report of a Beckett play being staged at the Abbey Theatre, under the heading `Foxrock Man Has Play on In Abbey’, with the reporter byline “J Joyce.”

About `The Boss’ he said it “would not have been written without Joe” such was his “understanding of politics, his insight into how the system worked.”

Addressing his friend, he said “Joe, it was a joy, an absolute privilege and an honour to have been your friend, to have had you as my best man. I owe you so much and will miss you like hell.”

Chief mourners were Joe Joyce’s wife Frances O’Rourke and their daughters Catherine, Joanna and Molly. The service was conducted by Fr Joe Kennedy. Cremation took place afterwards.

Among the large attendance were chair of The Irish Times Trust and former Provost of TCD John Hegarty, former Irish Times editor Paul O’Neill, Ireland and Britain Editor at The Irish Times Mark Hennessy, and former colleagues Stephen Collins, Joseph O’Malley, Denis Coghlan, Joe Breen, Paul Murray, Christine Newman, Fionnuala Mulcahy, Orna Mulcahy, Kieran Fagan, Deaglán de Bréadún, Justin Comiskey, Mary Rose Doorly, Emmanuel Kehoe, Fergus Finlay and Jonathan Williams.

Patsy McGarry

Patsy McGarry

Patsy McGarry is a contributor to The Irish Times

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