Cyril Cusack - Personal Life

Personal Life

Cusack was twice married:

• The actress Maureen Kiely (1920–18 December 1977) on 5 April 1945 with whom he had three daughters Sinéad, Sorcha and Niamh and two sons Paul and Padraig.
• Mary Rose Cunningham (1979–1993); one daughter (Catherine)

In his later life, Cusack became a campaigner for conservative causes in Ireland, notably in his opposition to abortion, where he became a frequent letter-writer into the main liberal Irish newspaper, The Irish Times. His conservative credentials came under scrutiny following his death and the revelation that he had not been faithful in his first marriage, with a long-term mistress, Mary Rose Cunningham, who bore him a daughter, Catherine. Cusack married Cunningham following his first wife's death.

Regarding his religious faith, Cusack commented "Religion promotes the divine discontent within oneself, so that one tries to make oneself a better person and draw oneself closer to God."

Cusack was a longtime friend of Irish attorney general, Chief Justice and President of Ireland Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh, whom he got to know in University College Dublin in the early 1930s.