Who Am I?
Canadian Radio Interview - Paddy
Following his death, John Murphy left Paddy a number of photographs including one of him as a young boy in a pushchair with his mother.
by Maria Pepper, The Wexford People
Tragic childhood of a native Wexford man.
Rare condition could hold proof to Paddy's real identity.
Paddy Doyle is a native Wexford man born at the County Hospital in 1951 who lived for the first four years of his life in a small cottage in Ballymore, Killinick which still stands and is occupied by new owners.
A black and white photograph from the early 1950's shows him being wheeled in a pushchair by his mother. It is the kind of picture you'll see in every Irish family album.
The small Wexford boy's life was to take a tragic turn less than two years later when his mother, Lil, died of breast cancer. Six weeks later, his 'father' Paddy, hung himself in the haggard at the back of the house.
It is likely that the boy witnessed the hanging and was found several hours after the estimated time of death, wandering around in a distressed state.
During his childhood, Paddy Doyle was haunted by dreams and images of a man hanging but didn't know why. He was 35 years old and married with children himself when, through his own exhaustive research, he discovered who his parents were.
Now he believes his conclusions were incorrect and that Paddy Doyle, the man who committed suicide, was not, in fact, his biological father. He is appealing for anyone who may have information about his true origins to come forward and help him.
When he was four years and three months old he was brought to court in Wexford following his father's death and charged with 'not being in possession of a proper guardian'.
He was sentenced to be detained for eleven years in an Industrial School, served four years, and spent the remaining time in hospital after developing an extreme form of a rare genetic condition which he now knows to be 'Dystonia' and which began with a painful twisting of his foot when he was about seven.
Paddy, aged six on his first communion day - (circled)
It was following his marriage to a paediatric nurse and some years after the birth of his third son, that he received a diagnosis, although, unknown to him there was a much earlier reference to the illness on his childhood medical records, most of which were destroyed.
By the age of ten he was permanently disabled. During his time in hospital, in the constant company of old and dying men, he underwent at least eight brain surgery operations as doctors attempted to diagnose and correct the condition.
No consent seemed to be required or sought since he was a ward of the State.
He and his wife, Eileen, have carried out their own research into 'Dystonia' over several years and in a fascinating twist of fate, it is this rare condition which may now hold the proof to Paddy Doyle's true identity.
Author and disability activist, Paddy Doyle retains an affinity for Wexford despite the bad memories of his childhood.
He has visited the area many times over the years searching for information about his family and has not rule out the possibility off one day buying a property locally.
During holiday visits from the Industrial School to an 'aunt' in Spafield Avenue in Wexford town he served mass in all the local churches.
To his knowledge, he has no living relatives in the area, the last of his mother's family, John Murphy, having died in St. John's Hospital, Enniscorthy a few years ago.
He visited him in St. John's in the 1980's but was unable to get much information out of him about the circumstances surrounding his parents' deaths or his own early life.
Paddy and his wife attended Mr. Murphy's funeral and at the burial in Ballymore cemetery made further enquiries about the resting place of his 'father', Paddy Doyle, who is believed to be buried in the same graveyard.
Following his death, John Murphy left Paddy a number of photographs including one of him as a young boy in a pushchair with his mother.
After Publication of The God Squad
Writing a book involves a lot of research. The author has to be certain that all of the materials he or she intends to include in their work is accurate and true in so far as that is possible. Once all the research work is done, particularly on legal documentation, it is relatively easy to transcribe. All of the transcribed information involved carries the signature of solicitors/lawyers and the Gardai (Irish Police force) as well as the names and stamp of the local clergyman. These people are regarded as "pillars of society". Surely they wouldn't put their names to anything they knew to be less than true - would they?
"The God Squad" was published in 1988 and immediately became a best-seller. People wrote to me offering congratulations while others resorted to that most sinister of all things - the anonymous letters. Unsigned letters as copied below accompanied by pictures of the Virgin Mary, Jesus Christ and even God!
(1) they were never signed and
(2) they said that "what I had written was wrong".
I wondered how or what could be wrong, all of the documentation relating to my Father and Mother was taken from legal documents and transcribed. If something was wrong then it had to be in the first four years of my life and involved my parents and whatever it was it must have happened in County Wexford - my county of birth. Despite the fact that letters were unsigned, I knew by the postmark that they came from Wexford. It seemed logical to me that the people who were writing these insensitive letters must have known me as a baby. If my hunch was right, they must also have known exactly who my parents were. One thing is certain, and that is, these people in a small rural community are trying to cover up something. Subsequent inquiries were to result in comments such as "You should never speak ill of the dead".
Imagine you have gone through your life and reached the age of 38. Your name is John or Mary Smith and your father and mother are Mary and John Smith! Everything is fine, until someone tells you that the man that you thought was your father was/is not your father and there is some doubt about your mother also. I was told during the course of writing "The God Squad" that my father - Paddy Doyle - had hanged himself, not just that, I also had official papers signed by witness, to support this. The truth turned out to be very different. My father did not commit suicide in June of 1955 and I can only presume that the documents relating to his death are bogus and false. The community that I had spent the first four years of my life in "brought down the shutters" and refused to "speak ill of the dead". The local priest told me that there "were a lot of good people in the parish and that they would be upset". As far as he was concerned I was just trying to cause trouble when in fact what I was genuinely trying to do was establish the truth about my parents. It now appears that I will never know the truth about who I really am? People say that I am still the same "Paddy that we all know and love", but I am not the "same Paddy" I am someone different.
The following are extracts from letters sent to me following the publication of "The God Squad".
Dear Paddy,
I suppose this letter will never get to you as I am not putting my name to it. But I want to tell you that I have known the story about your family for many years. I often heard my grand mother talk about it. She often talked about that terrible day that Paddy Doyle hanged himself.................the hanging took place in front of the cottage from a tree. The story goes that on that terrible day your father left bread and cheese so that the child wouldn't be hungry....... I feel that not many people will take up the pen and write to you. I would love to know if you will ever get this letter, maybe you will be on the Late Late (Show......the world's longest running chat show) and if you remember this letter at all you might say something about it.
And Paddy, we enjoyed you so much please come back on "The Late Late Show" again.
Signed
For obvious reasons it was not possible to reply to this letter - no name or address was given.
Another letters reads:
"You asked about information of photo's concerning Pat Doyle. Well I don't think there will be much of a chance of getting photos". ........There is a lot written in that book that's not right although I would say that Pat Doyle himself do not know about. It was me who went up to Ballycogley to get Mrs. O'Brien to phone for Father Byrne and to ring the Guards in Rosslare. I was coming home from Meadows of Ballyrane that evening when John Murphy asked me to get someone. He had just gone in the gate just as I was coming up. It was something I wont forget. The two children were in a terrible state. It seems they had gnawed away at a loaf of bread and all was left was the hard crusts. Poor Paddy was hanging from a little bit of a tree at the back of the road ditch his feet about six inches from the ground. Anyway, Fr. Byrne came down and took him down. In the meantime Martin Parle came down and he was right jarred up (Wexford dialect). Then another thing, Mammy kept the two children for that night and maybe the following night. Then they were brought into Wexford. Well from that on I don't know what went on.
In contrast to the letter above this one is signed, though the events surrounding the death of Paddy Doyle differ. The first letter makes a clear reference to "the child" while the second makes reference to "two children".
This Order of Detention served on me when I was Four Years old
Click to Enlarge
The document above is a legal document served on me when I was four years and three months old by a District Justice in a court of Law. I had not stolen anything, I had not robbed anyone, I had done nothing except be present when a man believed to be my father hanged himself.
This document sentenced me to be detained in a recognised Industrial School (a prison for children). Because I have a conviction under the 1908 - 1941 Children's Act I cannot serve on a Jury or hold political office.
It is important to point out that this Order of Detention is the original one served on me by the courts of this land and executed by a senior member of the Irish Police force - I was not alone - thousands of young Irish children were served similar orders.
It now transpires that my biological father only died a few years ago and that the man Paddy Doyle, who hanged himself in 1955 was not my father. If you should come across this page and know anything about these events perhaps you would be kind enough to contact me. There is a saying "that the truth will always out" I hope that those who know about my parents will show the moral courage to tell me the truth and stop covering up for whoever they are trying to protect.
