John MacKenna

Who is John MacKenna?

John MacKenna is an Irish playwright and novelist.

MacKenna taught for a number of years before working as a producer at RTÉ Radio in 1980. Between then and 2002, when he left the station to spend more time writing, and acting with Meeting Lane Theatre Company, he worked in a number of areas - including music, education, current affairs, documentaries, features and religion - as a senior producer and commissioning editor.

MacKenna produced several memorable radio series, including work on the Amish people of Pennsylvania; the Shaker Community of Sabbath Day Lake; a ground-breaking series called "Someone Has To Do It" and the highly regarded "Secret Gardens of the Heart," which followed a young woman through the last months of her life. His radio documentary series on Leonard Cohen, "How The Heart Approaches What It Yearns", won him a Jacob's Radio Award.