Life of incredible Ilen sailor O’Brien to be recalled at Calves Week talk

A TALK on the life of renowned 1920s sailor Conor O’Brien will take place during Calves Week in Schull. Author Vincent Murphy will deliver the talk which details Conor O’Brien’s life and circumnavigation of the world in the 1920s.

The talk will be based on Vincent’s book published earlier this year, Conor O’Brien Sailor Extraordinaire.

Conor’s fascinating escapades included gun-running along with Erskine Childers for the Irish Volunteers in 1914 when, in his yacht Kelpie, he landed arms at Kilcoole in Co Wicklow. In 1922 Conor designed a yacht called Saoirse and had it built in the Baltimore Fisheries School. In this yacht, Conor undertook his ground-breaking circumnavigation of the world, from 1923 to 1925.

When he returned, he was contracted to deliver the boat Ilen to the Falkland Islands with two sailors from Cape Clear – Colm and Denis Cadogan. In the 1990s Ilen was brought back to Ireland and restored at Hegarty’s boatyard in Old Court near Baltimore.

Conor sailed Saoirse up until the 1940s when he sold it.

Saoirse ended up in Jamaica where the boat was destroyed in a hurricane. It has since been rebuilt in Hegarty’s boatyard in Old Court and is currently afloat in Baltimore harbour. Vincent said he was inspired to share Conor’s story in an accessible way.

‘I wanted it to be something that somebody could pick up and read through in a short space of time and know all about Conor O’Brien,’ he told The Southern Star.

In 2019 Vincent and his wife went on a cruise to the Antarctic. A friend of his told him about Conor’s boat Ilen which was in the Falklands for 60 years and was now back in Ireland being refurbished. Liam Hegarty invited Vincent to watch the Ilen being rebuilt at the Skibbereen boatyard and when he learned of Saoirse’s trip around the world, he felt inspired to share this fascinating story.

‘I just felt there’s a story here, I wanted to find out more about it,’ said Vincent.

Vincent designed his book from cover to cover, hand-drawing maps and incorporating photos from his own travels. He has now researched Conor’s life extensively and he even republished one of Conor’s books, From Three Yachts, in which Conor detailed his excursions on the Kelpie, Ilen and Saoirse.

From a chance encounter with Saoirse to delving into the boat’s adventure around the world, Vincent says the culmination of his work would be to one day have a trip on the boat.

‘I have my fingers crossed that I might get the chance to get a spin on it sometime,’ he said.

Vincent’s book can be purchased at flaglane.ie. The talk is at Schull Harbour Hotel on August 9th at 7.30pm.