Flann O'Brien

Flann O'Brien
Born	Brian O'Nolan (1911-10-05)5 October 1911 Strabane, County Tyrone, Ireland
Died	1 April 1966(1966-04-01) (aged 54) Dublin, Ireland
Resting place	Dean's Grange Cemetery
Pen name	Flann O'Brien Myles na Gopaleen Brother Barnabas George Knowall
Occupation	Civil servant, writer
Alma mater	University College Dublin
Genre	Metafiction, satire
Notable works	At Swim-Two-Birds The Third Policeman An Béal Bocht The Dalkey Archive "Cruiskeen Lawn" column
Spouse	Evelyn McDonnell ​ (m. 1948)​
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Brian O'Nolan (Irish: Brian Ó Nualláin; 5 October 1911 – 1 April 1966), his pen name being Flann O'Brien, was an Irish civil service official, novelist, playwright and satirist, who is now considered a major figure in twentieth-century Irish literature. Born in Strabane, County Tyrone, he is regarded as a key figure in modernist^[1] and postmodern literature.^[2] His English language novels, such as At Swim-Two-Birds and The Third Policeman, were written under the O'Brien pen name. His many satirical columns in The Irish Times and an Irish-language novel, An Béal Bocht, were written under the name Myles na gCopaleen.

O'Brien's novels have attracted a wide following both for their unconventional humour and as prominent examples of modernist metafiction. As a novelist, O'Brien was influenced by James Joyce. He was nonetheless skeptical of the "cult" of Joyce, saying "I declare to God if I hear that name Joyce one more time I will surely froth at the gob."^[3]