
Siobhán McKenna
Siobhán McKenna (1923-1986) was an acclaimed Irish actress known for her captivating stage and screen performances. Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, McKenna developed a passion for acting from a young age and went on to become one of Ireland's most celebrated thespians.
After graduating from University College Dublin, McKenna began her professional acting career on the Irish stage, earning critical acclaim for her powerful interpretations of classic roles such as Pegeen Mike in J.M. Synge's "The Playboy of the Western World" and Nora Clitheroe in Sean O'Casey's "The Plough and the Stars." Her talent and natural stage presence soon caught the attention of film directors, and she transitioned to the silver screen, delivering memorable performances in movies like "Ryan's Daughter" and "The Playboy of the Western World."
Throughout her career, McKenna was recognized with numerous accolades, including three Irish Film and Television Awards and a BAFTA. She was also honored with a prestigious CBE in 1977 for her contributions to the arts. Beyond her acting work, McKenna was deeply committed to preserving and promoting Irish culture and was an outspoken advocate for human rights and social justice causes.
Known For | Acting |
---|---|
Most Rating | 0.052 |
Birthday | 1923-05-24 |
Place of Birth | Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK |
Also Known As | Siobhán Giollamhuire Nic Cionnaith, |

1960

Cradle of Genius
0/0
Longtime playwrights and performers of the Abbey Theatre share colourful reminiscences of the national institution founded by W.B. Yeats and Lady Greg...
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Cradle of Genius

1965

Doctor Zhivago
7.5/1172
The life of a Russian physician and poet who, although married to another, falls in love with a political activist's wife and experiences hardship dur...
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Doctor Zhivago

1961

King of Kings
7.112/205
Who is Jesus, and why does he impact all he meets? He is respected and reviled, emulated and accused, beloved, betrayed, and finally crucified. Yet th...
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King of Kings

1964

Of Human Bondage
6.4/15
Medical student Philip falls in love with Mildred, a waitress. Although she is a flirt, they have a love affair. But when Philip is told about her con...
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Of Human Bondage

1975

Philadelphia, Here I Come
6.8/5
Friel contrasts Gar's cloistered emotional life with his gregarious social persona by portraying him as two distinct characters, a public self (Donal...
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Philadelphia, Here I Come

1949

The Lost People
5.7/3
Set in a German theatre after the Second World War, two British soldiers are holding a disparate and hostile band of refugees in this theatre, prior t...
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The Lost People

1984

Angels in the Annexe
0/0
Mr Brittain is determined that this year the school will do a really different Christmas show. Unfortunately Miss Jarvis has always organised the nat...
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Angels in the Annexe

1979

Roald Dahl’s Tales of the Unexpected: The Landlady
0/0
The unnamed Landlady (Siobhan McKenna) is the titular main villainess from "The Landlady", episode 1.05 of Tales of The Unexpected (airdate April 21,...
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Roald Dahl’s Tales of the Unexpected: The Landlady

1965

Zhivago: Behind the Camera with David Lean
0/0
In this promotional short for the feature film Doctor Zhivago (1965), director David Lean explains why he chose the performers for the leading roles i...
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Zhivago: Behind the Camera with David Lean

1981

The Journal of Bridget Hitler
0/0
An Irishwoman married to a German in pre-First World War Liverpool prepares to meet her brother-in-law – a young man named Adolf Hitler. Years later s...
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The Journal of Bridget Hitler

1950

W. B. Yeats: A Tribute
0/0
Yeats poems set to visuals of Sligo, Dublin and London. One of the series of non-fction films produced by the National Film Institute.
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W. B. Yeats: A Tribute

1951

Fortune in Diamonds
7.5/2
As the Boer War ends a South African soldier hides a cache of diamonds he finds on a body. He returns to the town he left three years earlier where hi...
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Fortune in Diamonds

1948

Daughter of Darkness
5.8/10
In Ballyconnen, Emmy Baudine is a beautiful but disturbed young woman who works for the local priest. When the carnival comes to town, she encounters...
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Daughter of Darkness

1962

The Playboy of the Western World
5.6/5
A quiet little village, and especially a pretty young woman, falls under the spell of a charming, somewhat roguish stranger who suddenly appears one d...
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The Playboy of the Western World

1984

Memed My Hawk
5/3
In 1920s Turkey, a young peasant is smitten with a beautiful young girl, who has been promised in marriage to the fat, dullard cousin of the province'...
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Memed My Hawk

1947

Hungry Hill
5.4/5
Life becomes a tragedy for the wife of an Irish heir to a 19th-century family feud and fortune.
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Hungry Hill

1958

The Winslow Boy
0/0
In pre-WW1 England, a youngster is expelled from a naval academy over a petty theft, but his parents raise a political furor by demanding a trial.
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The Winslow Boy

1976

Circasia
5/1
Happenings in a small Irish traveling circus.
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