George A. Birmingham

George A. Birmingham was the pen name of James Owen Hannay (16 July 1865 - 2 February 1950), Irish clergyman and prolific novelist.^[1]

Life and career

Hannay was born in Belfast and educated at Methodist College Belfast from 1883-1884 before attending Trinity College, Dublin.^[2] He was ordained in 1889 as a Church of Ireland (Anglican) minister and served as rector of Holy Trinity Church, Westport in County Mayo. His early writings raised the ire of nationalist Catholics, and he withdrew from the Gaelic League in the wake of ongoing protests about the tour of his successful play General John Regan. He became rector of Kildare parish from 1918 to 1920, and after serving as chaplain to the Viceroy of Ireland, he joined the British ambassadorial team in Budapest in 1922. He returned to officiate at Mells, Somerset from 1924 to 1934, after which he was appointed vicar of Holy Trinity Church in the London suburb of Kensington where he served from 1934^[3] to his death in 1950.

Sailing

James Hannay enjoyed sailing, and was taught the rudiments by his father and grandfather in Belfast. When he was based in Westport, his financial success of his writing enabled him to purchase a boat. He bought a Dublin Bay Water Wag. In recognition of Hannay, the Water Wag Club of Dun Laoghaire returned to Westport and Clew Bay in 2016. In the frontispiece of his book The Inviolable Sanctuary Burmingham includes a picture of the Water Wag.

Publications

• The Seething Pot (1905)
• Hyacinth (1906)
• Benedict Kavanagh (1907)
• The Northern Iron (1907)
• The Bad Times (1908)
• Spanish Gold (1908)
• The Search Party (1909)
• Lalage's Lovers (1911)
• The Major's Niece (1911)
• The Simpkins Plot (1911)
• The Inviolable Sanctuary (1911)
• Priscilla's Spies; The Red Hand of Ulster (1912)
• Do (1913)
• General John Regan: A Play in Three Acts (1913)
• The Adventures of Dr. Whitty (1913)
• Connaught to Chicago (1914) [also printed as From Dublin to Chicago]
• The Lost Tribes (1914)
• Gossamer (1915)
• Minnie's Bishop and Other Stories (1915)
• The Island Mystery (1918)
• Our Casualty (1919)
• Up the Rebels! (1919)
• Inisheeny (1920)
• Good Conduct (1920)
• Lady Bountiful (1921)
• The Lost Lawyer (1921)
• The Great-Grandmother (1922)
• A Public Scandal (1922)
• Fed Up (1923)
• Found Money (1923)
• King Tommy (1923)
• Send for Dr Grady (1923)
• The Grand Duchess (1924)
• Bindon Parva (1925)
• The Gun-Runners (1925)
• Goodly Pearls (1926)
• The Smuggler's Cave (1926)
• Lady of the Abbey (1926)
• Now You Tell One: Stories of Irish Wit & Humour (1927)
• Fidgets (1927)
• Ships and Sealing Wax (1927)
• Elizabeth and the Archdeacon (1928)
• The Runaways (1928)
• The Major's Candlesticks (1929)
• Murder Most Foul! (1929)
• The Hymn Tune Mystery (1930)
• Wild Justice (1930)
• The Silver-Gilt Standard (1932)
• Angel's Adventure (1933)
• Two Fools (1934)
• Love or Money (1935)
• Millicent's Corner (1935)
• Daphne's Fishing (1937)
• Mrs. Miller's Aunt (1937)
• Magilligan Strand (1938)
• Appeasement (1939)
• Miss Maitland's Spy (1940)
• The Search for Susie (1941)
• Over the Border (1942)
• Poor Sir Edward (1943)
• Lieutenant Commander (1944)
• Good Intentions (1945)
• The Piccadilly Lady (1946)
• Golden Apple (1947)
• A Sea Battle (1948)
• Laura's Bishop (1949)
• Two Scamps (1950)

Other works

• The Spirit and Origin of Christian Monasticism (1903) from his Donnellan Lectures
• The Wisdom of the Desert (1904)
• Irishmen All (1913)
• The Lighter Side of Irish Life (1914)
• Golden Sayings from George A. Birmingham (1915)
• Recollections of Sir Jonah Barrington (1918)
• A Padre in France (1918)
• An Irishman Looks at His World (1918)
• A Wayfarer in Hungary (1925)
• Spillikins: Essays (1926)
• Can You Answer This? A Question Book (1927)
• Do you Know Your History? A History Questions Book (1928)
• Pleasant Places (1934)

References

1. Taylor, Brian (1995). The Life and Writings of James Owen Hannay (George Birmingham) 1865-1950. (Studies in British Literature). Edwin Mellen Press, ISBN 978-0-7734-9123-6.
2. Henderson, JW (1939). Methodist College Belfast 1868-1938 a Survey and Retrospect Volume One. Belfast: Methodist College Belfast. p. 87.
3. Henderson, JW (1939). Methodist College Belfast 1868-1938 a Survey and Retrospect Volume One. Belfast: Methodist College Belfast. p. 87.

External links

• Works by George A. Birmingham at Project Gutenberg
• Works by or about George A. Birmingham at Internet Archive
• Works by George A. Birmingham at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)