Lillian "Billie" Barry (27 January 1921 - 30 September 2014) [1] was an Irish singer, dancer and choreographer who founded the Billie Barry Stage School in 1964.
Billie Barry was born in Drumcondra, Dublin, Ireland, one of 15 children. [1] Her father, John Clarke-Barry, was a respected musician who took part in many orchestras. Her mother was an amateur operatic singer. Lillian, later known as "Billie", began performing as a singer at the age of five. She later joined the Barry Sisters singing group, which toured Ireland and the UK. [2]
She started the stage school after her husband Paddy was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Paddy died the following year. [3]
Billie Barry became a household name in Ireland due to the success the school enjoyed. Notable pupils include Angeline Ball, Susan McFadden, Brian McFadden, Mikey Graham (of Boyzone), Samantha Mumba, Hilda Fay, Lisa Lambe, Ruth-Anne Cunningham, Devon Murray and Jacinta Whyte. [4]
Billie Barry was awarded a "Living Legend" Award in 2010 from the Variety Club of Ireland. [5]
Dana Rosemary Scallon, known professionally as Dana, is an Irish singer and songwriter.
Billie Paul Piper is an English actress and former singer. She initially gained recognition as a singer after releasing her debut single "Because We Want To" at age 15, which made her the youngest female singer to enter the UK Singles Chart at number one; her follow-up single "Girlfriend" also entered at number one. In 1998, Piper released her debut studio album, Honey to the B, which was certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). Her second studio album, Walk of Life, was released in 2000 and spawned her third number one single, "Day & Night". In 2003, Piper announced that she had ended her music career to focus on acting.
The Dubliners were an Irish folk band founded in Dublin in 1962 as The Ronnie Drew Ballad Group, named after its founding member; they subsequently renamed themselves The Dubliners. The line-up saw many changes in personnel over their fifty-year career, but the group's success was centred on lead singers Luke Kelly and Ronnie Drew. The band garnered international success with their lively Irish folk songs, traditional street ballads and instrumentals. The band were regulars on the folk scenes in both Dublin and London in the early 1960s, and were signed to the Major Minor label in 1965 after backing from Dominic Behan who was paid by Major-Minor to work with the Dubliners and help them to build a better act fit for larger concert hall venues. The Dubliners worked with Behan regularly between 1965 and 1966; Behan wrote numerous songs for this act including the song McAlpine's Fusiliers created specifically to showcase Ronnie Drew's gravel voice. They went on to receive extensive airplay on Radio Caroline which was part-owned by Phil Solomon CEO of Major Minor, and eventually appeared on Top of the Pops in 1967 with hits "Seven Drunken Nights" and "The Black Velvet Band". Often performing political songs considered controversial at the time, they drew criticism from some folk purists and Ireland's national broadcaster RTÉ had placed an unofficial ban on their music from 1967 to 1971. During this time the band's popularity began to spread across mainland Europe and they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in the United States. The group's success remained steady right through the 1970s and a number of collaborations with The Pogues in 1987 saw them enter the UK Singles Chart on another two occasions.
Brian Nicholas McFadden is an Irish pop singer and television presenter who rose to fame in 1998 as a member of the Irish boy band Westlife. Following his departure from the group in 2004, McFadden released his debut solo album, Irish Son. He has since released four studio albums: Set in Stone, Wall of Soundz, The Irish Connection, and Otis.
Paddy Moloney was an Irish musician, composer, and record producer. He co-founded and led the Irish musical group the Chieftains, playing on all of their 44 albums. He was particularly associated with the revival of the uilleann pipes.
Celtic Woman is an all-female Irish musical ensemble conceived and created by David Kavanagh and Sharon Browne. They became successful internationally by releasing their music to a worldwide audience. David Downes, a former musical director of the Irish stage show Riverdance. In 2004, Downes recruited five Irish female musicians who had not previously performed together, vocalists Chloë Agnew, Órla Fallon, Lisa Kelly and Méav Ní Mhaolchatha, and fiddler Máiréad Nesbitt, as the first lineup of the group that he named "Celtic Woman". Downes chose a repertoire that ranged from traditional Celtic tunes to modern songs.
Mary Coughlan is an Irish singer.
Lucy Kennedy is an Irish television and radio presenter.
Anne Jackson was an American actress of stage, screen, and television. She was the wife of actor Eli Wallach, with whom she often co-starred. In 1956, she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her performance in Paddy Chayefsky's Middle of the Night. In 1963, she won an Obie Award for Best Actress for her performance in two Off-Broadway plays, The Typists and The Tiger.
Colm Anthony McFadden is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays at full forward for St Michael's and, from 2002 to 2016, for the Donegal county team.
Susan McFadden is an Irish actress and singer. She is best known for playing the roles of Sandy in Grease and Elle Woods in Legally Blonde the Musical in London's West End and being a member of Celtic Woman from 2012 to 2018.
Margaret Barry (1917–1989) was an Irish Traveller, traditional singer and banjo player.
Ruth-Anne Cunningham, known professionally as RuthAnne, is an Irish singer-songwriter. She is best known for co-writing "Too Little Too Late", performed by the US singer JoJo, "In the Name of Love" performed by Martin Garrix and Bebe Rexha, "Work Bitch" performed by Britney Spears, "Slow Hands" performed by Niall Horan, "Where Do Broken Hearts Go", "No Control" performed by One Direction and "Beautiful World" performed by Westlife. She also wrote and vocally features on the Fifty Shades Darker soundtrack with her song "Pray". In 2013, she also has uncredited vocals for the EDM-oriented song, "All You Need is Love", on Swedish DJ Avicii's True album.
This is a list of events that occurred during the year 2014 in Ireland.
Patrick McBrearty is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for Cill Chartha and the Donegal county team, which he has captained since 2023.
Aisling Clíodhnadh O'Sullivan, known professionally as Aisling Bea, is an Irish comedian, actor and writer. She created, wrote and starred in the comedy series This Way Up on Channel 4. As a stand-up comedian, she won the "So You Think You're Funny?" award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2012, being only the second woman to win the award in its then twenty-five year history. She also regularly appears on light entertainment comedy panel shows such as QI and 8 Out of 10 Cats.
Vogue Williams is an Irish model and media personality, known for participating in Dancing with the Stars and Stepping Out and for winning the 2015 series of Bear Grylls: Mission Survive.
Events during the year 2016 in Ireland.
Erica-Cody is an Irish R&B singer and songwriter.
Stephanie Adrienne McKeon is an Irish actress. She began her career as a teenager in the RTÉ soap opera Fair City (2004–2007). She was nominated for Laurence Olivier and WhatsOnStage Awards for her role as Anna in the West End production of Frozen.