Niamh Cusack: ‘We were all very proud of Cyril’s acting – but he wasn’t cut out for fatherhood’

The actress on growing up in the great theatrical dynasty

Niamh Cusack. Photo: David Conachy

Ciara Dwyer

Dublin-born actress Niamh Cusack looks out of the large Georgian window in the Gate Theatre and smiles. The theatre has a lot of family history for her – all happy memories. Cusack made her professional debut here, as did her late mother, Maureen Kiely.

“This was before I was born. Micheál and Hilton loved my mother,” she says, referring to the passionate pair who ran the Gate – Micheál MacLiammóir and Hilton Edwards. “I think they loved my mother more than they loved my father.”