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06 Sept 2025
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06 Sept 2025
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The cottage in Glenties, known as the Laurels, which was used by Brian Friel for his highly acclaimed play, Dancing at Lughnasa
The first step has been taken in the process to allow Donegal County Council to lease Glenties courthouse to the Brian Friel Trust.
On Tuesday, the heritage officer for Donegal County Council, Joseph Gallagher, attended the Glenties Municipal District where he outlined a proposal to lease the courthouse to the trust. The proposal was met with resounding support.
Brian Friel was the best-known Irish playwright of his generation and an accomplished short-story writer who had a strong affection for Donegal.
Much of his internationally-renowned works are set in the fictional Ballybeg, based on Glenties, where his mother's family home, The Laurels, is located. The proposal to redevelop Glenties courthouse will also complement and contribute to the conservation and reuse of The Laurels which is proposed as part of a separate but related development. The Laurels is the setting for his play Dancing at Lughnasa.
The proposal by the Brian Friel Trust is to reuse the courthouse as the Brian Friel Centre which will serve as a visit centre in the area. The courthouse was built by the Grand Jury in 1843 and is located near the main street and garda station. The ownership was later transferred to Donegal County Council.
It is planned to lease the courthouse to the Brian Friel Trust for a nominal annual rent and the lease is expected to last 99 years.
The courthouse is steeped in history and is of architectural, social and artistic interest. Part of the film The Hanging Gale was filmed in the courthouse in 1994.
On his final sitting in the court house, the then District Court Judge Paul Kelly, pleaded with the Court Service not to shut the historic building on a permanent basis. The courthouse had fallen into a state of disrepair and hailstones had fallen onto the benches during a January sitting of the court.
Sinn Féin Councillor Marie Therese Gallagher said that the move would be transformative for Glenties.The Cathaoirleach of the Glenties Municipal District, Councillor Anthony Molloy also welcomed the news.
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