Controversial Irish television: The Gay Byrne/Annie Murphy interview 1993

6 comments

1. This wasn’t that long ago and it’s crazy when you contrast with the world we live in now.

   ***An RTÉ News report broadcast on 3 April 1993.***

   *On 2 April 1993 Annie Murphy, mother of Peter who was fathered by Eamonn Casey, appeared on the Late Late Show to talk about her son, her affair with the then Bishop of Kerry and her book ‘Forbidden Fruit: The True Story of My Secret Love for the Bishop of Galway’.*

   *The previous year it had been revealed that Bishop Eamonn Casey had fathered a child with American Annie Murphy. The child named Peter was born in 1973 when Casey was still the Bishop of Kerry. Eamonn Casey resigned as a result of the revelations.*

   *The day after her appearance on the Late Late Show, Annie Murphy attended a press conference in Dublin and responded to criticism of her treatment on the show by host Gay Byrne and audience members. She agreed with a suggestion made by Gay Byrne that her son would be alright if he turned out to be half the man Bishop Casey is and defended her somewhat abrupt exit from the show. She also refuted any claims that she had been in a relationship with another man before her son was born.*

   *Ms Murphy’s lawyer Peter McKay stated that on two occasions he had contacted Bishop Casey’s attorney and invited him to have Bishop Casey call so that a manuscript of the book could be forwarded to him ahead of its publication. However, Casey never called.*

   *Annie Murphy stated that Casey had been in contact with her to say that he would like to develop a relationship with his son out of the media limelight.*

2. This wasn’t Byrne’s greatest moment for sure but I would never allow it to discredit his entire career and talents as an interviewer.

3. All the women were essentially trying to debunk the idea that the bishop got her preggers. They claimed Annie was forgetting details like the colour of the jumper the bishop was wearing on a certain day, that Annie was actually with another fella, and she was making the whole thing up, that the baby didn’t look like the bishop etc etc

4. Feels like at the time this was a bigger scandal than the actual raping of children and imprisonment of pregnant women. even now- a man has an affair with a women, who cares- the catholic church members have done much much worse

5. Ireland less than 30 years ago. How it has changed in that short period.

6. Not Gay Byrnes finest moment. Hilarious the way some people went on about Annie Murphy as if she physically raped Bishop Casey and he was an innocent victim.