Introduction
A British and American film crew arrive in the Northern Irish city of Derry to shoot a drama about the Troubles, in Séamas O’Reilly’s keenly observed and snappily written debut novel.
Plot and Themes
The premise of O’Reilly’s debut novel is that a Hollywood actor has flown into Derry to star in a new TV series about the Troubles called Dead City, then mysteriously disappeared. However, the novel’s real interest lies in exploring what happens when a place becomes defined by a particular historical moment, to the extent that stories told about it lapse into formula. As one character remarks about the TV series:
“A young lad coming of age in a time of violence, will he get caught up in everything or find another way through blah blah blah.”
O’Reilly is determined to show that the people of Derry are not easily stereotyped. He uses Dead City as a starting point to navigate through different characters connected to the series, including a stressed scriptwriter and a local historian who questions,
“How do you talk about the past as a person still living it, in a place that barely survived it?”
As the novel progresses, the links between these characters emerge, creating a patchwork portrait of the city, reminiscent of Tommy Orange’s novel which used a chorus of voices to explore Native American lives.
Character Perspectives
Each character addresses the reader directly. For instance, Dympna comments on the impact of Hollywood’s arrival:
“The whole place has gone mad with Hollywood arriving,”
noting that people hope it will boost the economy
“like Thrones did for Belfast”.Dympna’s daughter is preparing to audition and quizzes her about the 1970s,
“like some fella from the UN on a fact-finding mission”,while Dympna reflects on the things she has concealed from her children:
“I wondered there and then if awareness is all it’s cracked up to be if you can’t tell the whole story.”
The question of who tells the story and why is central to the novel, though O’Reilly’s light touch prevents this theme from feeling overdone. He keenly observes absurdities and the commercialization of tragedy: the artist who painted murals on Bogside walls now conducts lecture tours, sporting a
“wee moustache and crucifix earring like a plastic Provo”;the ex-IRA hitman offers his services as a
“consultant”.Those once bound by a code of silence openly demonstrate how to make a bottle bomb. As one character bluntly states,
“Say Nothing my arse.”
Economic Realities and Stereotypes
Economic necessity compels locals to accept work that perpetuates clichés. Local painters are hired to recreate an old mural for the film set. One painter says,
“I can do the gunman, you can start with the dove,”
to which another replies,
“If I do another dove as long as I live, God help me.”
Aspiring actor Turlough expresses his frustration:
“This crock of shite is the only chance I have of getting out of here.”
The locals observe that the production crew is mostly American and British: Americans sentimentalize their Irish heritage—one theory about the missing star is that she has
“gone native like a load of Yanks do”—while the British
“treat their own violence like the hiccups, something mad and terrible that was happening for some mysterious reason”.Meanwhile, Eileen hopes her home will be used as a filming location so she can afford a new extension, watching the crew examine her ornaments like
“artefacts they pulled from a bog”.
Haunting Past and Grief
This recreation and commodification of the past acts as a form of haunting throughout the novel. The dead remain inescapable. Ann-Marie’s son was shot by a British soldier; his image is now endlessly reproduced on book covers and
“bloody tea-towels”.Ann-Marie’s cold rage and clear articulation of grief’s contradictions make her one of the novel’s most powerful voices. She reflects:
“My heart is small and hard, wind-bleached like seaside beach seats.”
Regarding the lads who returned safely after her son’s death, she says:
“It wasn’t their fault and I’ll never forgive them.”
Author’s Style and Reception
O’Reilly’s first book was a heartbreakingly funny memoir about his mother’s death, and he demonstrates a rare ability to navigate oppositions with agility. The humour in Prestige Drama is skilfully employed, enabling O’Reilly to address sensitive subjects often avoided. His language is vivid; for example, a hungover man wakes up
“slowly, like a column of dog food muscling its way out of a tin”.
Some readers might feel the missing actor storyline could have been more prominent, but Prestige Drama focuses primarily on the ordinary people behind the televised portrayal of events. James Plunkett, author of the 1969 novel Strumpet City, another polyphonic work about an Irish city, explained his novel’s success by stating he
“didn’t lift my eye away from people at any stage, didn’t lift my eye away from the parish … for the whole of life is in that parish, where else can it be”.
