About Sydney Bernard Smith
Lived 1936 – 2008 (aged 72). Sydney Bernard Smith was an Irish poet and writer.
Sydney Bernard Smith (4 August 1936 – 11 October 2008) was a Scots-Irish poet, dramatist, actor and novelist.
Biography He was born in Glasgow, his father was from Forfar, Angus and his mother from County Clare. He was brought up in Portstewart, County Londonderry in Northern Ireland.
He was educated at Clongowes Wood College, Queen's College, Oxford and the University of Iowa International Writer's programme. He later taught at Clongowes Wood College. He also worked as a teacher at Sandymount High School in Dublin, the University of Iowa and Ithaca College in Ithaca, New York. He also taught in Germany and Spain.
Smith was married to Cynthia (née Hoxie) and they had three sons (Daniel, Sydney George, Cormac) and a daughter (Emer). At the time of his death, he lived in Dundalk, County Louth in Ireland.
Awards 1982 elected a member of Aosdana
Publications Poetry Girl With Violin (The Dolmen Press [Poetry Ireland Editions 3], Dublin 1968) Priorities (Raven Arts Press, Dublin 1979) Sensualities (Raven, 1981) Scurrilities (Raven 1981) New and Selected Poems (Raven, 1984).
Plays Sherca (1976, published Newark, Del, Proscenium Press, 1979) Don Bosco, Grainne and the Dole (1977) The Impertinence of being Frank (1978) The Illaunapsppie Triangle (1978) Houseparty (1979) Swim Away Babies (1984) On Course for Brazil (1985) How to Roast a Strasbourg Goose ( Dublin Theatre Festival, 1985) Up for Bloomsday (1985) The 2nd Grand Confabulation of Drum Ceat (Dublin Theatre Festival, Andrews Lane Theatre, 1989) Reason not the Need (1992) The Shaming of the True (1995).
Novels Flannery (Dublin, Odell & Adair, 1991) The Book of Shannow (published in literary magazines)
Other His work was broadcast on RTÉ, BBC and Channel 4, and staged in Ireland; at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe; and in the United States.
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Important facts
People in Sydney Bernard Smith's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Sydney Bernard Smith's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Sydney Bernard Smith?
Irish poet (1936-2008)
When was Sydney Bernard Smith born?
Sydney Bernard Smith was born on 4 August 1936 in Glasgow.
When did Sydney Bernard Smith die?
Sydney Bernard Smith died on 11 October 2008 in Dundalk.
What was Sydney Bernard Smith's occupation?
Sydney Bernard Smith was a poet and writer.
What nationality was Sydney Bernard Smith?
Sydney Bernard Smith was Irish.
Sources & further reading
· Wikipedia: Sydney Bernard Smith
· DBpedia: Sydney Bernard Smith
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Sydney Bernard Smith. https://biography.guide/sydney-bernard-smith/
MLA: "Sydney Bernard Smith." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/sydney-bernard-smith/.
Chicago: "Sydney Bernard Smith." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/sydney-bernard-smith/.
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