Lynn C. Doyle

Leslie Alexander Montgomery (5 October 1873 - 13 August 1961), better known by his pen name Lynn C. Doyle, was an Irish humourist and playwright.[1][2]

Montgomery was born in Downpatrick, Co. Down. He wrote about his early rural life in An Ulster Childhood (1921).[3] He was sent away to boarding school in Dundalk, Co. Louth.[3] He left school at 16 to work at the Northern Banking Company in Belfast and transferred as manager to Skerries, Co. Dublin, where he worked for 28 years.[3]

Montgomery took his pen name ‘Lynn C. Doyle’ from a bottle of linseed oil he saw in a grocer's shop.[1] His first volume of stories, Ballygullion, a humorous caricature of Ulster life set in a fictional town, was published in 1908.[3][2] This proved popular and ran into several volumes.[4]

Montgomery was also a playwright. His comedy, Love and Land was produced in London and other plays were performed by the Ulster Literary Theatre.[4]

A sculpture group on Scotch Street, Downpatrick, contains a dog which represents The Silent Dog, one of Montgomery's short stories.[5]

Sculpture group on Scotch Street

References

  1. ^ a b "Montgomery, Leslie Alexander". Dictionary of Irish Biography. Royal Irish Academy. doi:10.3318/dib.005905.v1.
  2. ^ a b "Lynn Doyle". PLAYOGRAPHYIreland. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d O'Kane, William (2016). "Skimmin' it wi' a Spoon". Lecale Review (14).
  4. ^ a b Newmann, Kate. "Leslie Alexander Montgomery". Dictionary of Ulster Biography. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  5. ^ "The Silent Dog In Downpatrick's Scotch Street Is Named". Down News. 12 August 2011. Retrieved 21 May 2023.