MICHAEL's IRELAND
The
river Liffey at sundown.
The
historic GPO, O'Connell St., site of the Easter Rising in 1916, and key setting
for Celtic Tiger.
The
SFX Theatre, north Dublin. Here, Michael rehearsed Lord of the Dance in 1996 and
Celtic Tiger in 2004, before he moved to Sheperton Studios in the UK.
In
1997, the landmark Famine Statues beside the River Liffey, work of Dublin sculptor
Rowan Gillespie, were donated to the city by Norma Smurfitt, who set up a charitable
foundation around them for disadvantaged youth. Michael was Guest of Honour at
the inaugural lunch in March 1998 and donated 50,000 Irish pounds to the fund.
At the end of 1998, the first plaque at the foot of the statues acknowledging
contributors was unveiled, with Michael's name listed third, after the US and
Irish Presidents. To date, this is the only visible and permanent recognition
of Michael in Dublin. 
