Join us to celebrate the launch of Jennifer O’Leary’s new book, The Padre, published by Merrion Press.

About the book:

This startling new biography from award-winning BBC journalist Jennifer O’Leary tells the incredible true story of the Irish priest who raised millions and acquired explosives for the IRA during the height of the Troubles. 

For almost two decades, Father Patrick Ryan – described by Margaret Thatcher as a ‘very dangerous man’ – evaded intelligence agencies across Europe. The subject of two unsuccessful extradition requests, he was, for a time, one of the most wanted men in Britain.

About the author:

Jennifer O’Leary works for the BBC as a reporter for BBC NI’s flagship current affairs programme, Spotlight. In that role she has reported on a wide variety of ground-breaking investigations including money laundering by the powerful mafia group, the ‘Ndrangheta, a criminal conspiracy to export horses unfit for human consumption into the food chain, and the secret intelligence war between the state and the IRA.

She was also part of a Spotlight programme team awarded Royal Television Society recognition for the programme, ‘A Woman Alone With The IRA’, which investigated the republican movement’s handling of sexual abuse allegations against a suspected IRA member. In the programme, Maíria Cahill waived her right to anonymity to tell how the republican movement responded to her allegations. Jennifer is from Cork and began her career in journalism in Dublin, writing feature articles as a freelancer for The Irish Examiner and The Sunday Business Post. She then moved into broadcast media with Today FM as a weekend hourly news presenter. She worked in the BBC’s Dublin office as a reporter before moving to Belfast, where she is currently based.