Freedom
McKeown completed a bachelor's degree in social science from the Open University while in prison before being released in 1992, and subsequently obtained a Ph.D. from Queen's University Belfast. In the mid-1990s he co-founded the Belfast Film Festival, and has written two books about republican prisoners in the Maze Prison–Nor Meekly Serve My Time: The H-Block Struggle 1976-1981 (co-written with Brian Campbell and Felim O'Hagan) was published in 1994, and Out Of Time: Irish Republican Prisoners, Long Kesh, 1972-2000 was published in 2001. McKeown and Campbell co-wrote a film about the 1981 hunger strike called H3 which was directed by Les Blair, and premiered in cinemas on 28 September 2001. Before the death of Campbell in 2005, he and McKeown also wrote two plays together, The Laughter of Our Children which debuted in 2001, and A Cold House which debuted in 2003. McKeown's first solo play, The Official Version, debuted on 18 September 2006. In 2006 he appeared in a two-part documentary titled Hunger Strike, which was shown on RTÉ to mark the 25th anniversary of the 1981 hunger strike. McKeown also works as a Development Officer for Coiste na n-Iarchimí, an umbrella organisation of republican ex-prisoners groups.
Read more about this topic: Laurence Mc Keown
Famous quotes containing the word freedom:
“None who have always been free can understand the terrible fascinating power of the hope of freedom to those who are not free.”
—Pearl S. Buck (1892–1973)
“Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)
“Thus I alone, where all my freedom grew,
In prison pine with bondage and restraint;
And with remembrance of the greater grief
To banish the less, I find my chief relief.”
—Henry Howard, Earl Of Surrey (1517?–1547)