It was with shock and sadness we heard of the death of Roma Tomelty on Wednesday morning. She suffered severe breathing difficulties and on Tuesday evening was rushed to the Mater Hospital but despite being taken straight to intensive care her body couldn’t cope and she died with her husband Colin and her daughter Rachel beside her.
Roma was a character in the truest sense of the word, she and her sister actress Frances were born into a theatrical family, their father Joe was beloved as an actor and playwright, Bobby Greer in the McCooeys, many appearances on stage and in feature films and remembered as the doctor in the famous film ‘A Night to Remember.’ It was in this heady atmosphere that Roma grew up knowing from a young age that the stage was for her.
As a teenage member of the Young Irish Theatre Company, Roma had been appearing in ‘All Souls Night’ in the Eblana in Dublin alongside Stephen Rea when her drama teacher, May McHenry, told her that Ulster Television was advertising for front of camera staff. ‘You should go for an audition at least,’ she suggested to her less than enthusiastic pupil.
Roma told me how she had agreed: “Although I’d actually been in the studios before to be interviewed by Ivor Mills about the J.M.Synge play ‘The Tinkers Wedding’ which our company claimed was a premiere performance for Northern Ireland. He said Queen’s University had already performed this play in 1950! He was very condescending and obviously trying to catch me out but I was able to correct him. ‘I think you will find they did it illegally.’ I was only 16 and very haughty.”
This lady didn’t suffer fools gladly! Despite the lure of £25 a week she turned her back on a television career and on the perks that came with it. “I got a call from a well spoken man inviting me to be the star guest at a gentlemen’s evening and the fee would be £25, tempting, but then he qualified the request telling me I would have to jump out of a giant cake – naked!”
She declined!
In the 1980s Roma and her husband Colin Carnegie established a professional theatre company specifically to perform works by Irish playwrights who were neglected at the time. Eventually they introduced more modern plays which they toured and performed at festivals to great success. She also appeared in many productions at the Lyric Theatre, on the London stage and with the Ulster Actors Company. Artistic director of UAC Roy Heayberd paid tribute saying that she was a delight to direct although she knew her own mind. “She was full of self confidence, a vivacious woman with a big personality and a big voice. She was a driving force,” he said, “an innovator.”
With her background it wasn’t surprising that she opened the only drama school at that time and at the height of the troubles it operated in the city centre in Queen’s Street. She believed that theatre introduced everyone to benefits they could call on in everyday life, self esteem, team work, building a good memory and accepting responsibility. Out of these years came Centre Stage Theatre Company, a company that toured throughout Ireland often liaising with education departments to work with school children, conducting summer drama courses and promoting new writers. Through Centre Stage, Roma and her husband have given hundreds of teenagers confidence and to accept the challenge of getting the job done to the best of their ability. The experience of Centre Stage has also given a grounding in theatre to those who decide to make the stage their chosen career, just like their own children. Roma and Colin have three daughters, Ruth, Rachel and Hanna and they are all involved in theatre – a true dynasty.
I was visiting the night Bill Clinton turned on the Christmas tree lights in Belfast. Rachel was 13 at the time; she gave a sigh and said, ‘Right. I’m going to see President Clinton, back later. We all advised her she wouldn’t even get close but ‘Well see’ came the mysterious reply.
A couple of hours later she arrived back. “Shake the hand that shook the hand of President Bill Clinton.” How come? She’d gone to the props wardrobe in the attic, taken out a false leg plaster of Paris and two crutches and once at the city hall, with a pained expression she limped towards the Christmas tree. The police cleared a way for her and she bravely made her pathetic way right up to the President of the United States of America and shook his hand.
Like so may others, Rachel had learned from her mum, the best in the business, a kind woman, a determined woman and a woman with a huge talent for theatre and the ability to enthuse her audience.
I will miss sitting with her in my garden, taking away poppy seeds to sow and tomatoes to eat and always enjoying her rich throaty laughter.
As tributes pour in from colleagues and friends far and wide, the acting profession recognise that they have lost a unique woman of the theatre.
Roma died in hospital with her husband Colin and her daughter Rachel beside her.
Our sympathies go to her family to Colin, her sister Frances and the girls.
ALL FALL DOWN
It’s been a sad and tragic week, every morning hearing the figures of virus deaths climbing round the world and locally to unimaginable numbers. Trump making his outrageous suggestions – I wonder if he has an undeveloped brain. His suggestion that drinking disinfectant could have a positive effect and be a cure is something a child would suggest in all innocence. His approach to people is juvenile too, everyone is his best friend or his worst enemy – playground stuff. With this in mind – I will be watching!
My week started with bang. I fell in the garden, with one arm in a sling and the other very painful I could’nt get up. Alan was concerned about hurting me so it was eventually a case of 999. Charming people but the end of the story, although successful, saw me telling my family the paramilitaries came to my rescue – shock horror. Of course I was well tended by two delightful paramedics and my thanks to them. A slip of the tongue can have unexpected consequences!
FESTIVAL BY ZOOM
Like events all over the world the organisers Ridvan Festival in Belfast during last week had to be fluid with their plans. Originally the idea was to celebrated in a tent but they were forced to think outside the box or outside the tent in this case! No longer even a picnic in the park as hoped rather family and friends joining together electronically on Zoom, a very modern way to honour Baha’u’llah, founder of the Bahá’í faith,
Thousands of people worldwide prepared for Ridvan, The King of Festivals. This might not mean a lot to most but the Bahá’í community in Northern Ireland were remembering the time when Baha’u’llah announced to his followers that he was the promised one and the bearer of new divine teachings that would enable humanity to build a new civilisation based on unity, love and justice, a new stage in our evolution based on peace and an end to violence and who can argue against that.
Soha Graham from Enniskillen is a doctor working with premature babies and she was very involved with the festival, ideally held in a tent decked out in flowers and decorations and the music of bird song set up inside Morton Community Centre off the Lisburn Road but this time in individual family homes. There was singing, readings, quotations from the works of Baha’u’llah, tea, coffee and happiness.
Sofa explained the background.
“Baha’u’llah was born in Iran and imprisoned by the government as he began to spread his teachings. He was then exiled from Iran to Iraq, but before being exiled again to Turkey in 1863, he stayed in a garden on the banks of the Tigris River in Bagdad for 12 days, during which his many followers and admirers came to bid him farewell. There, in a white tent piled high with roses Baha’u’llah made his announcement to the friends gathered there that he was God’s messenger for a new age foretold in the world’s scriptures. He called the garden Ridvan meaning paradise.”
The Baha’i population in Northern Ireland may be relatively small here but their work building and strengthening communities is impressive and people from many faiths and none, Hindu, Indian, Muslim, Catholics and Protestants enjoyed the event because even on social media everyone is welcome to all festivals especially families who have come to live in Northern Ireland from other parts of the world as it’s an opportunity to meet and make friends albeit this year via Zoom, Face Time or What’s App., a temporary measure until the time is right.
The founder of the Baha’i faith teaches that all religions come from one God, humanity is one family and God periodically reveals his will through divine messengers whose teaching guide and educate and help humanity to advance. These messengers have included Abraham, Krishna, Zoroaster, Moses, Buddah, Jesus and Muhammed and their religions are like chapters of a book part of one religion from God.
The Baha’i belief.
They celebrate their faith and they celebrate each other and in Windsor Ward, from the City Hospital to Lisburn Road’s Marks and Spencer, on special holy days throughout the year joy overflows and men, women and children from all backgrounds in this diverse neighbourhood and beyond join in singing and storytelling.
“We’re all individuals,” Sofa said, “but we are a community, we are here for the common good and despite restrictions we will make sure everyone has a happy day.”
More from: www.bahai-belfast.org.uk
I’m shattered.
Until I gave up listening to the news, 5 Live radio was my favourite, over the years great for news coverage and through it I have developed an interest in sport. Phone-ins are sensible and expand knowledge and Nicky Campbell is my pinup boy. I’d wait for him at seven o’clock in the morning, so attractive on the studio camera; he has the ability to make me cry and make me laugh and I loved to see him behind his desk interacting with whatever other presenter it is for the breakfast programme.
Now I won’t see him anymore. At first I thought the studio web camera wasn’t working. Since this thing called Sounds that BBC has introduced everything has changed, you can’t even go to Radio 4 without trawling through Sounds. It’s the beginning of a bigger picture called scaling down.
I phone the recommend number 08085 909693 to ask for information. No reply. Again – no reply. Never a reply.
I asked Google what should I do? Try this number came the reply 0370 010 0222. Success. A very nice young woman in Belfast explained that this service is not happening any more, too expensive and too few people watching. I don’t understand this because once you go into 5 Live on an iPad the picture comes up automatically. Was she saying 5 Live have poor audience figures? I expressed my disappointment and told her I was shattered. She took my comments down and said they would go before some group which included the Director General. Really! Not to be put off I sent my feelings to the top.
Reply.
Dear Mrs Hailes,
BBC Radio 5 Live has taken the decision to turn off the 24/7 live video feed from its homepage as we develop our website to be focused on the audio we produce. Whilst we appreciate this is disappointing for those that have viewed it in the past, this feed did not have many viewers across the day and often featured empty studios when we are broadcasting out on location.
Video remains an important part of our output, and we will continue to feature video on our social media platforms, around special events through the BBC’s news and sport websites and for programmes like Kermode and Mayo and selected other programmes where we know we have a regular audience for video content.
Not convinced. Keep Kermode and Mayo, I want Nicky Campbell.
Let’s pray for a better week to come, and let’s pray for those families grieving for their loved ones who have died and those who are diagnosed. We are getting tense and if the weather breaks it will be more difficult to maintain tempers and keep calm . My heart goes out to parents single and together who are trying to make life bearable for their children often in confined conditions.
