Thurles Information

Tipperary filmmaker Anne Williamson has won international recognition in Los Angeles for her short film Bridget, a powerful drama based on the life and death of Bridget Cleary, who was murdered in Co Tipperary in 1895.

Ms Williamson, from Mullinahone, Co Tipperary, directed and co-wrote the film, which revisits one of Ireland’s most haunting historical stories. Bridget tells of the murder of 26-year-old Bridget Cleary, who was killed by her husband, Michael Cleary, after he claimed she had been taken by fairies and replaced by a changeling.

The film was co-written by Williamson and Brian Clancy from Clooneen and was filmed by cinematographer Louis Buggy of Diceman Films. It combines a modern-day introduction, filmed in colour, with a striking black-and-white historical retelling of the events surrounding Bridget’s death.

Speaking at a recent screening of the film at the Abymill Theatre in Fethard, Co. Tipperary, Ms Williamson said the story had stayed with her since childhood. “It was always a story that fascinated me from listening to stories my grandfather told me when I was a child,” she said. “It was always a tale that tore at my heart strings — the fact that Bridget was burned and buried in the middle of the night with no mourners. It always got to me that she was wronged.”

Ms Williamson travelled to Los Angeles with cast members Vicky Maher, who plays Bridget Cleary; John Peter Morris, who plays Michael Cleary; and Deirdre De Búrca, who plays a local gossip. All three were present at the Regal Theatre in Los Angeles when Williamson collected her award.

The production features performances from members of the Fionn MacCumhaill Players from south Tipperary. The cast also includes young actor Cathal Fahey as Danny, Mark Fitzgerald as his father, and Eugene O’Meara as his grandfather, who introduces the story.

The drama includes an original ballad, ‘The Maid of Old Clooneen’, written and performed by Dublin folk singer Chris Kavanagh.

Local support for the film has been strong, with cast and crew members receiving messages of congratulations from across Ireland and abroad following Ms Williamson’s success in Los Angeles.

Fethard undertaker and publican Mr Jasper Murphy, who plays a priest in the film, said the award had brought great pride to everyone involved.

Bridget shines a new light on the Bridget Cleary story, seeking to restore dignity to a young woman whose death shocked Ireland and became known around the world. Through the dedication of local writers, actors, musicians and film makers, the film brings this tragic chapter of Tipperary history to a new international audience.