Joe Lynch

Who was Joe Lynch?

Joseph Laurence 'Joe' Lynch was an Irish actor who enjoyed a long career in both serious drama and light comedy. He also did voice work for children's animated series, in particular Chorlton and the Wheelies for which he performed the theme tune. He had a fine singing voice and composed songs, such as for the movie Johnny Nobody. He also recorded the work of other songwriters, including Leo Maguire's "The Whistling Gypsy" and Dick Farrelly's "Cottage by the Lee", one of Joe's biggest 1950s recordings.

Joe Lynch attended the North Monastery CBS and first came to fame in Ireland in the 1950s when his radio show Living with Lynch was broadcast on Sunday nights on Radio Éireann. He was also a founding member of the Radio Éireann Players. Lynch appeared in the ABC/Thames TV sitcom Never Mind the Quality, Feel the Width between 1968 and 1970. Later in the 1970s Lynch made regular guest appearances as Elsie Tanner's boyfriend in the long-running Granada TV soap Coronation Street.

In 1962, and again in 1977, Lynch won a Jacob's Award for his acting on RTÉ television.

By 1979 Lynch was back in Ireland and made his first appearances as Dinny Byrne in the RTÉ soap Bracken. Later the Dinny Byrne character would feature in the long-running RTÉ soap Glenroe – along with his catchphrase "Is there an'thin' stirrin?". Lynch quit Glenroe after being "shamefully treated" and offered "small potatoes" when he asked for a pay rise and by Mick Lally opted to split his schedule between RTÉ and the BBC show, Ballykissangel. Lynch criticised RTÉ for preventing him from doing other acting work alongside Glenroe.