The Life and Music of John Donovan

John Donovan was born in Malin Head in 1914 and died in Carndonagh Hospital in 1949. During his brief life he became Inishowen’s most popular entertainer and was the first singer from Inishowen to commit his songs to record. Many a household in Inishowen had copies of John’s three records and many remember his songs regularly requested on Radio Éireann in the 1950s.

John Donovan’s father, John Gabriel Donovan, a native of Dunmore East, Co. Waterford was born in 1885. He came from a seafaring family, with at least one of his brothers rising to the rank of Commodore and another to that of Captain. John Gabriel joined the staff of the Lloyd’s Shipping Co. as a signalsman and telegraphist and was posted to the island of Inishtrahull, off the coast of Malin Head. There he met and married an islander, Ellen McLaughlin, daughter of Nellie Rua and Mickey Donal Neil. Like many Inishowen families, the McLaughlins were best known by their nickname, The Donal Neils. They were farmers and fishermen living above Portmore on the island. When Ellen’s brother Den was drowned while fishing near the island, a relief committee set up a fund to purchase a farm for the widow and her children at Dunross, near Culdaff. Their descendants still live in Culdaff and the family is known as ‘The Widows’.

John Gabriel and Ellen Donal Neil were married in the Star of the Sea Church, Malin Head in 1909. Their first son Charles Edward was born the following year and four years later in 1914, John Joseph, the subject of this article, was born. Most children were not born on the island, but in the houses of relations or friends on the mainland. The women usually came ashore a few weeks before the baby was due in case medical assistance was needed. Charles Edward and John Gabriel were born in a house near the present day Malin Head Radio Station.

John was reared, educated and lived on Inishtrahull until 1926 when Lloyd’s Signal Station closed and the family moved to the mainland. Its last inhabitant finally abandoned Inishtrahull in 1929. The island lies seven miles off the coast of Malin Head separated from the mainland by a treacherous sound, which claimed the lives of many of the islanders. Viewed from the mainland, it consists of two mounds, known as the East and West Ends. It was inhabited during the 19th century by two distinct groups of people, the local fishing community and the employees of Irish Lights and Lloyds Shipping Company. In 1813 a lighthouse was constructed on the East End to manage the busy shipping lane from Britain to America. That lighthouse was used until 1958 when it was replaced by a new lighthouse on the West End. Incidentally, during the excavations prior to the building of the new lighthouse, a pre-Christian stone, known as the Mandolin Stone, was unearthed and can be viewed today in the County Museum in Letterkenny.

The island is accessed from the north through the main port of Portmore. There are two smaller landing points at Portahurry and Leck on the southern side. Before you enter the port, you will notice a large anchor painted on a rock on the mainland; this was to mark the point where the Irish Lights ship would drop anchor when it visited the lighthouse. With the help of the islanders, supplies of fuel, oil and food were brought ashore and carried up the steep path to the lighthouse. At the foot of this path, The Congested Districts Board established at the end of the 19th century, built a curing house for fish. Fishing was the main occupation of the islanders. Turbot from the Hempton Bank were sent to Fleetwood in England. The fish were kept fresh in the Blue Pool just below the Curing House, by tying them tail to tail, while a young boy had the job of keeping the seagulls away. Fish and lobsters were also traded with the passing transatlantic ships. One of the more lucrative enterprises was smuggling, especially tobacco. To avoid Customs and Excise duty, the tobacco was unloaded from the ships onto the islanders’ boats to be secretly landed on the mainland. In earlier days the islanders engaged in the nefarious activity of shipwrecking. By lighting fires on the island to misdirect ships, they caused them to founder on the rocks around the island. Barleycove, one of the inlets on the island, probably owes its name to that time. A ballad from the island commemorates the activity.

Further north on the East End was the island graveyard. It was used mainly for the burial of lighthouse keepers, as it was often difficult to transport the corpse to its homeland. The bodies of islanders were interred in family plots at Lagg or Aghaclay.

The main settlement on the island was on the West End. The centre of the island is fertile and relatively sheltered. Here the 13 or so families who inhabited the island grew potatoes, oats and vegetables using seaweed as a fertiliser. They kept cows and sheep, also spinning and knitting for their own needs. The McGonigles, known as the Biddy James, were one of the most important island families. Biddy was known as the Queen of the Island and the family held the post of supplying the lighthouse twice a week with provisions from the mainland. Their boat, known as The Ballast Office Boat, was the main link to the mainland. The importance of the McGonigles in our story is that John Donovan, the singer, spent most of his life as a fisherman on the McGonigle’s boat. The Donal Neil’s house, his mother’s people, was just above Portmore at Barr a’ Phoirt. Behind it lay the residence of the King of the Island, Big Barney.

As you follow the path that takes you to the present lighthouse, you will pass the schoolhouse and the Master’s residence, lying under Cnoc a’ Hulla. The school and residence were built in 1901 and it was here that John Donovan was educated. At one time the school boasted an attendance of 60 pupils but by 1920 that was reduced to ten. The last master was Patrick McCallion. The school with its wooden floor and wainscoting was used for dances, handball and for religious practices. A priest visited the island once a month to say mass and on the remaining Sundays the inhabitants gathered to recite 15 decades of the rosary in the school. The priest often stayed overnight in Donovans and although he was a religious man, John Gabriel Donovan often complained when he had to give up his bed for the priest. In the hallway of the school a statue of the Blessed Virgin, donated by a Miss McCann, stood. The same statue can be seen today beside The Wee House of Malin. Education was of a very high standard as is witnessed by the subsequent careers of some of its students. The master often visited the houses at night to make sure that homework was done. For his own benefit he arranged that the McGonigles would fly a white flag on their boat should they happen to have a school inspector on board.

Near the school lived James and Mary McLaughlin’s or Hudie’s as they were known. One of the sons, Willie, was a very close friend of John Donovan and their families remained close to one another all of their lives. Willie’s son Liam runs the Crossroads Hotel in Malin at present. Another son, James, became a Captain on the Ships of Irish Lights and often visited the island. A daughter, Bridie, married Neil Toland who played with John Donovan in The Seaside Serenaders. John was best man at his wedding. Neil is still hale and hearty at 94 years of age and still plays the accordion to the delight of those who know him. During the Festival of the Peninsulas in September 2003, he drew an audience of 300 to the John Donovan Night in Malin Head Hall, which normally has a capacity of about 200.

Near the present Lighthouse, on what is now the helicopter pad, stood Donovan’s house. Next to it on the Lighthouse side was another Lloyd’s house occupied by the officer in charge for the company, Mr. Sulman. This house is now a storeroom. John Gabriel had not far to travel to work, as the Watch House where he kept look-out was just above his residence on Green Common. Here his job was to keep watch and record the passing of transatlantic ships. News of the arrival of a ship was passed to the mainland by semaphore and later telegraph and then to London by telegraph. This was done to make arrangements for docking, custom and excise check and the auction of whatever commodity the ship was carrying. It must be said that John Gabriel Donovan did not always get on with Mr. Sulman and their fractious relationship contributed to his subsequent ill health.

Apart from the winter weather and the treacherous crossing to the mainland, life on the island was relatively happy for the young John Donovan. During the summer, visitors from the mainland were a regular occurrence. Locals vs Visitors football matches followed by a Big Night in the local school or in one of the houses were the order of the day. It was probably here that John played his first fiddle, made by his father from a biscuit tin. By the time he was in his teens we know that John was a proficient fiddler, playing on a full-size fiddle. Apart from picking up tunes from his contemporaries he listened avidly to the radio picking up the latest in popular music. He was a keen sportsman, with a particular interest in football and boxing. Being a talented artist, he drew pictures of the great boxers and footballers of the day and related the story of a fight or match in comic-strip form on his father’s log-book. Later, he was the goalkeeper on the great Sea Rovers Team of 1934. His father kept two pairs of boxing gloves and often invited a caller to the house for a few rounds of sparring.

With the loss of his Lloyd’s job in 1926, John Gabriel’s health deteriorated so much that he was admitted to St. Conal’s Hospital in Letterkenny where he died 19 years later. The eldest son, Charles went to Kevin St. in Dublin to pursue his studies as a radio officer. Due to the excellent education he had received on the island and the expert tutoring of his father, he completed an 18 months course in six months graduating with a first class ticket. Subsequently, he went to sea for the next six years and on his return to Malin Head he got a position in the local Radio Station. In 1943 he married a local girl, Cecelia Doherty (Jack). John was best man at his brother’s wedding. Charles and Cecelia had two children, John (Jack) who never married and still lives in Malin Head (died), and Anne who is married to the author of this article. They have three sons. These are the nearest remaining relatives of John Donovan.

John and his mother first moved to Carndonagh where they lived above what is now the Centra supermarket. The following year they returned to Malin Head to live at No. 6 Coastguard Station and later they moved to No. 2 where they resided until they died. Meanwhile, John’s friend from his island days, Willie Hudie had also gone to Kevin St. and became a radio officer. John’s ambition to follow in the footsteps of his older brother and best friend was thwarted when, despite passing his exams with ease, he was turned down on medical grounds due to an eye defect. Later, the story repeated itself when John applied for a position in the Post Office. So, John Donovan settled down to life as a fisherman and lived at No. 6 Coastguard Station with his mother.

In 1932 Fr. McNamee in Malin Head decided to set up a band which he called The Victory Band to commemorate the political achievements of De Valera. In those days every parish had a hall and a band and some had more than one. In 1913 the AOH built a hall on Black Mountain between Malin Town and Malin Head. To combat the questionable goings-on in that hall, Fr. Morris built a hall in Malin Head in 1924. A hall was also built in Malin Town. The Colgan Hall was built in Carndonagh where the Criterium (The Crit) was already in full swing. Carndonagh had a great musical tradition and a number of famous bands. But every parish had halls and bands: Rasheeny, Ballyliffin (now the Oratory), Clonmany (now the tug-of-war hall), Urris, the Illies, the Carrick Hall, Umericam, Buncrana, Kinnego, Glengad (two halls), Bocan, Culdaff and many more. These halls were the centre of entertainment for the local community. Dances were held usually on a Sunday night from 9 till 2. In the era we are describing, rural electrification has not reached the county. Tilley lamps were usually the form of lighting. There was no amplification. Wooden forms along the walls acted as seating for the women. Men normally stood at the back. Cloakrooms and toilets were scarce. Although there were no relief bands, there was often some sort of interval act. The soldiers from Dunree and Leenan Forts often put on drill displays. There was often a raffle. Fights were not unusual. Transport was normally by bicycle or on foot. Hackney cars carried people from a distance or brought the band. Jimmy John Donal was the regular driver for the Seaside Serenaders.

Dances were arranged to suit the audiences. The range was wide: ceilí dancing, waltzes, both old time and modern, quicksteps, foxtrots, polkas, barn-dances, military two-steps, Shoe-the-Donkey, highlands, brooklands, quadrilles etc. The dances originated from various cultures, Scottish, Irish, English, and, with the coming of radio, music from the U.S. was becoming popular. Certain dances proved popular in certain halls and with certain bands e.g. Ballyliffin was famous for its lancers. Good dancing was admired and dancing with a bad partner was once described as “trying to manoeuvre a lorry without steering”. Although many a man came in his working clothes, fashion was a feature of the dances. Hair was set with sugar and rouge came from the cover of the Irish Messenger! Summer frocks and trousers with a 28 inch wide leg were the height of fashion! Having to ride home on a bike or particularly on the bar limited the fashion.

John Donovan was a natural entertainer and interspersed his songs with jokes and play acting. On some occasions he arrived by walking down the middle of the hall dressed in a trench coat and silk scarf. His mother kept his bulky hair in place with the application of carrageen moss.

One of John’s great talents was his ability to pick up songs and tunes from various quarters and arrange them to suit the band. From listening to someone singing a song, hearing it on radio, reading it in the Ireland’s Own, or from the penny sheet music which was popular at the time or bought in Derry in Davis of the Strand Rd. or Phillips of Shipquay St., John could adapt it for the band. His most celebrated song ‘My lovely Irish Rose’ was adapted from a poem by Carndonagh man Fred Kearney. It is still open to debate whether he actually composed any original material. Many of the songs sung in John Donovan’s days are still popular today e.g. The Hills of Donegal, Kevin Barry, Cutting the Corn in Creeslough, The Wild Colonial Boy, Roamin in the Gloamin, Marie’s Wedding, Harbour Lights, Mary of Argyle and many more.

John and the band were much sought after for Big Nights and were often invited to the Big Houses to entertain guests. After a dance in Ballyliffin, John would often go to the Upper Hotel in the village to entertain the guests of the owners Mr. and Mrs. McFaul. While John sang for the guests, the rest of the band would seek out the kitchen for a good feed.

He often spent Sunday afternoon in Farren’s Bar in Malin Head, entertaining the Selfridge family and their guests from Derry. Unfortunately it was on occasions such as these that John was able to freely indulge his weakness for drink. By 1945 John was at the height of his career. Stephen Butler, who managed Neal Doherty’s in Carn and had connections in the recording industry, arranged for John to record six of his songs. So in 1945, John went to Dublin and recorded the following: The Harvest Moon, As Years Roll By, The Tramp’s Mother, You’re as Welcome as the Flowers in May, My Lovely Irish Rose, and the Rose of Moray.

The recording process was a very simple affair compared to recording today. On these songs John was accompanied by Mr. Albert Healy, who later appeared on many RTÉ programmes as a musician.

To accompany the launch of the records Stephen Butler arranged a number of publicity photographs to be taken in Carn. On the appointed day John arrived in his best suit and tie, no doubt under his mother’s instructions. Stephen thought the attire was too formal for a fisherman. So John went onto the street where he met Paddy Den, grandfather of P.J. McLaughlin of Inishowen Community Radio. Paddy was wearing a fisherman’s sweater which John duly borrowed and that is how he appeared on many of the photos that survive today. Incidentally the mandolin John is holding is only a prop; John played the fiddle, not the mandolin.

Although at the height of his career, a darker side of John’s life began to take hold. In 1945 his father died in Letterkenny and a year later his mother died. Charlie, his brother, had married in 1943 (John was the best man at his wedding as he also was at the wedding of his band colleague, Neil Toland) and was working in the Radio Station in Malin Head. John’s failure to become a radio operator and later a telegraphist in the Post Office service still haunted him. His earlier drinking days were taking effect and he was sent to Peamount Hospital with suspected tuberculosis. After six months there he returned to Carndonagh Hospital. Although he had many visitors, John missed the life of a celebrity, when he could draw hundreds in Inishowen to hear him sing.

One afternoon, just after lunch he went to the hospital bathroom. After a lengthy absence an attendant found that he had climbed down a drain pipe and a half-hour later, John’s body was found in a few feet of water in the river which runs near the hospital. The subsequent inquest returned a verdict of asphyxia due to drowning. He was buried in the graveyard in Lagg alongside his parents. Their grave is just a few yards from the entrance side of the church.

Because of the nature of his death and the custom of the time, little comment was made on the life and untimely death of John Donovan. However his songs live on and not only are they sung throughout Inishowen and abroad where exiles gather, but it is remarkable how many people remember them as part of their growing up and more remarkable how many of those original records have survived. They are a tribute to a talented singer, gifted showman and much admired personality. The words of the Coroner at his inquest are very fitting.

“He gave freely of his gifted voice, and for that alone he would be remembered”.

The many people I interviewed gave different views and insights into the life of John Donovan. Despite conflicting opinions on various aspects of his life, they were unanimous in their view that whatever faults he had, John Donovan was a great singer.