Frank McManus is both a political and legal legend.
He has come through some turbulent times, but has stayed steadfast in sunshine and shadow and never lost the common touch.
And he has also led a rich and varied life.
‘Versatile’ and ‘varied’ do not even begin to describe the life of the Kinawley native solicitor.
For he is a legend on many levels, although his eloquent but very matter of fact delivery does not quite disguise a man with all the gravitas of a born leader, raconteur and organiser.
In truth, the sprightly 81-year-old Lisnaskea-based solicitor has lived several lives in his long and interesting career, and is the second-oldest solicitor practicing in Fermanagh, with the great Tony McGettigan a few years older.
Frank was also a teacher, a feisty politician, a bus conductor, a bouncer, a farmer, a bus driver, and a railway man.
And he did not begin his legal career until the ripe old age of 32 in 1974, after serving the people of Fermanagh/South Tyrone as an MP for four years.
It was not until 1980 that he opened his practice in Lisnaskea following qualifying in 1978 after joining up with the famous Baldwin Murphy, who qualified in 1915, and could practice on both sides of the Border.
Frank was very instrumental in getting the Civil Rights Movement off the ground in Fermanagh and became the first Catholic from Kinawley to graduate from a northern university.
He became a charismatic speaker at rallies at various venues.
This was a time of great change and Fermanagh became quite a focal point for protesting against gerrymandering, campaigning for one-man-one-vote, and various other systems of the then ruling Unionists.
This was a very turbulent period in politics, and sitting in his office in Lisnaskea, Frank recalls the raw anger he and many others felt towards the British government after the Paras killed 14 innocent Derry people in January, 1972.
Frank was determined to make his point forcibly to the then Prime Minister Ted Heath, but at the last minute he acted as back-up to the fiery Bernadette Devlin, who launched a fierce attack on the then Home Secretary Reginald Maudling.
“She was making for Heath, but Maudling happened to have his feet up on one of the dispatch boxes,” said Frank.
His involvement with Civil Rights brought some early brushes with the authorities, and he once asked Mr. Maudling to disband Fermanagh County Council, but got short shrift from that particular Tory.
He recalls occupying Fermanagh County Council office and various other protests and matters that resulted in his spending six months in Crumlin Road Prison in Belfast for his beliefs.
In 1973, things got even more serious when an attempt was made on his life in Enniskillen as he was coming back from a political meeting.
Luckily, Frank survived, but there is no self-pity as he tells of dark days when Northern Ireland was really a very dangerous place.
He deals with these traumatic ties with some dark humour, wry observations and some colourful anecdotes about some of those he met along the way.
Politics apart, Frank has been a Trojan for his native Kinawley, and also Fermanagh GAA for many years.
In the mid-1990s, he was very active in a very successful selling of £100 tickets to raise funds for a second field for the club.
He has the somewhat unique distinction of playing county Minor football for the Erne County for three years.
Frank also served as club Secretary and Treasurer for many years, was a club Referee, and worked very hard for the Brian Borus behind the scenes.
And his home pitch in Kinawley is named after his older brother, Pat McManus, also a fine footballer.
Mr. McManus, who was a member of the IRA, died after a bomb that he was transporting exploded prematurely near Swanlinbar on July 15, 1958.
That happened on the same day that a 16-year-old Frank was at his sister Celia’s wedding.
“The wedding reception was held in Bundoran, because there was an expectation that he [Pat] would show up at the wedding.
“He did not show up, but nobody paid any attention, and the next morning the local curate, Fr. Gilmartin, arrived down to tell us the terrible news.”
The family was aware of Patrick’s particular beliefs.
But despite life’s tribulations, there is a tremendous resilience in this man, who certainly does not look his years.
Frank is one of the longest-serving legal practitioners in the county and still helps out his sons, Ronan and Myles, who have followed his footsteps.
He was born in the townland of Clonliffe in Macken, about eight miles from Enniskillen, in 1942, as one of ten children to Patrick and Celia McManus.
His oldest brother was Patrick, who had a twin called Terence, who sadly passed away at two and a half.
He lost another brother, Arthur, around 1950.
“My mother had 15 pregnancies altogether. She was Celia McMullan, who lived on the top of Carn Mountain, and she was very fit and healthy.
“She was a twin, and there were six children under five years of age in her family.”
Frank’s father was Patrick McManus, a small farmer, and a strong work ethic was quickly instilled.
“Patrick and Terence, the twins, were next, and Celia, Thomas – a pretty good footballer – Alice, Terence, Fr. Jim, Frank, Fr. Sean and Myles.”
Frank went to Drumbroughas Primary School, about three and a half miles away from his home.
“From St. Patrick’s Day to the end of September we went bare-footed.
‘We always went out with shoes on, but stuffed them into the hedge at some point, because if you appeared at school after St. Patrick’s Day with shoes on you, you were called ‘tenderfoot’.”
Frank passed the 11 Plus and went to St. Michael’s, and his earliest memories are of having to deal with some ‘townies’ that made some uncalled for remark.
One of Frank’s greatest and oldest friends from this period was Peter Quinn from Teemore, “one of the smartest men that I ever met in my life”.
Frank’s memories of St. Michael’s are happy ones, and then it was off to Queen’s, where he studied his passion for history that he later taught.
“I love history, and I was the first in my family to go through the entire educational system.”
He then got a scholarship to Queen’s in 1961, and Eoin McBarron, grandfather of ex-Fermanagh GAA star Liam McBarron, told Frank’s mother that he was the first Catholic from Kinawley to be a graduate of a northern university.
Frank did History, English and Economic History in an Arts Degree at Queen’s.
One of his vivid memories of the Debating Society at Queen’s is of sitting at the back on a table, and Austin Currie was involved.
“The next thing, this wee fella beside me started talking one hundred to the dozen, and boy, could he speak, and he had wee, curly hair.
“And who was it but only Eamon McCann, who is around my own age; Nell McCaffrey was there, Bernadette Devlin was too young.
“A lot of those people went on from Queen’s to become quite notable.”
Frank then taught in St. Pat’s Secondary School in Omagh, and also for three years in St. Joseph’s Enniskillen after graduating from Queen’s.
This was the mid-1960s, and Frank became very much involved in the emerging Civil Rights Movement, and became Vice-Chairman of the Fermanagh South Tyrone branch. “This was around 1967/68.”
He was later elected as Unity MP for Fermanagh South Tyrone in 1970. So, how did he become involved in Civil Rights?
“I began to observe things and the Civil Rights Movement had started in the US, and that inspired the Civil Rights Movement here.
“I started hearing about protests and building a campaign, and I thought that Fermanagh should do something.”
It was the 1916 Commemoration in 1966 that sparked quite a number of renewed Civil Rights activity.
“Brendan Corrigan was also very active; Colm Gillespie, and there was a renewed wave of interest.”
A series of meetings were organised all over Fermanagh/South Tyrone and Frank was selected to run in the Westminster Elections for the constituency.
Austin Currie was also an interested party, and Frank was elected.
“A lot of teachers were involved in the Civil Rights [movement] initially, people like Tom Fee from Derrygonnelly, Malachy Mahon of Irvinestown, Val Cassidy from Derrylin, and Jim Donnelly from Enniskillen were all involved.”
Frank and his Civil Rights colleagues occupied houses and occupied the Fermanagh County Council offices in East Bridge Street.
“We also had several marches and we got fined, and those who did, did not pay the fines. Somebody paid my fine, for having a banned march.
“I got a suspended sentence, and when I marched again, the Resident Magistrate had no option but to send me to jail – I was an MP at this time.”
Frank spent six months in Crumlin Road, and it was “full of young rioters at the time”, as rioting was in full swing in Belfast.
Frank was elected MP on June 18, 1970. “I was a Unity candidate, and I won by about 1,400 or 1,500 votes, and I defeated the Marquis of Hamilton.”
This was one of the highest turn-outs in any election anywhere in these islands.
Frank was just 27. It was a frenetic campaign and he made a pledge that he would campaign in every town in Fermanagh and South Tyrone.
He was the sole Nationalist candidate, and that was a good help in his campaign.
Frank went over on the plane for his first day in Parliament in Westminster along with Gerry Fitt, and shared a hotel with him. “Gerry showed me around the place.”
But the 18th date of the month is a very significant date in Frank’s remarkable story.
“I was elected on the 18th, I was sent to jail on the 18th, I was released and I was shot on the 18th.”
It was 1973, and Frank was coming from a political meeting towards his home in Enniskillen when a gunman followed him and fired a shot through the door.
One of the bullets went between Frank’s leg and the seat of the car, and he still bears a scar.
That was very frightening for Frank, his wife and young family, and the gunman was never caught.
So, what were the highlights of Frank’s Westminster career?
He was not into abstention – but went to Westminster when matters of “Irish interest” were being debated.
These were very traumatic times.
“On the day of Bloody Sunday, a number of us went to Belfast to a lecture given by barristers telling us how to carry out civil disobedience without getting thrown in jail.
“We were coming home when we heard the terrible news.
“I decided that the only response was to go over to Westminster and confront the then Prime Minister, Ted Heath.”
But when Frank landed in Westminster, the first person he saw was Bernadette Devlin and Ivan Cooper.
So, he told Bernadette that it would be better if Bernadette confronted Mr. Heath in the Chamber, as she had a much greater profile, and would consequently make a much greater impact.
“She went for Heath, but Maudling happened to have his legs up on the dispatch box, and she could not get at Heath.
“So she leaned over him, and my job was to protect Bernadette.”
Frank was also in the House of Commons when Belleek native Bowes Egan smuggled in CS gas and threw it into the Chamber.
“I was not in the Chamber at the time.”
Frank made a speech after Bloody Sunday, and he got a “growl from the Tories”.
He described the Paras as “trained killers” who went in on the orders of the British government and murdered innocent people.
Frank’s overall view of the House of Commons is that it was a “grand place for English men, but no place for Irish men”.
He also unsuccessfully asked Reginald Maudling to suspend Fermanagh County Council, but the latter said the House of Commons would not be suspending the Council, as the Commons had absolute authority.
In those years, Frank listened to Tony Benn, and John McIntosh, and Enoch Powell was a “compelling speaker”.
“Gerry Fitt was certainly larger than life”.
In February, 1974, Denis Haughey of the SDLP contested the seat and the vote was split, and Harry West of the Unionist Party was elected.
Later that year, Frank stood down in favour of Frank Maguire from Lisnaskea, who was elected and re-elected.
Frank said that politics was like a “drug that got into your system” and it took a while to readjust.
He was almost 33 at this stage, and was an ex-teacher and an ex-MP.
He added that he tried to resume his teaching career, but said he found it very difficult to get a post as he was considered “too controversial” by the Roman Catholic hierarchy.
But a new career in the law was beckoning. “I had to do something, and fortunately my wife Carmel was already a teacher.
“At that time, you could do one year at university, and two years’ part-time in the Law Society. So all I had to do was a full year in Queen’s as a mature student.
“It took me three years, because I had the initial degree which they accepted.”
This was a new lease of life for Frank. But he candidly admits that he had powerful motivation.
“Failing an exam at 18 is one thing – but failing an exam at 35 or 36 is a totally different thing. I was driven by a fear of failure, and I worked like a dog.”
But he had the history and political background that was a big help in his new career. “I was lucky enough to go over to Baldwin Murphy to work with him in Clones.
“I started with him in August, 1978, and moved to Lisnaskea in January, 1980. I was 18 months with him in Clones, and I became a partner for the northern area.”
Frank paid a warm to tribute to his old mentor and partner, and the practice is still known as Murphy and McManus.
As there was a bit of a practice built up already, this was a great help to Frank in his new career. “He was a very decent man.”
But in tandem with politics and legal affairs, Frank has a life-long passion and involvement with Kinawley Brian Boru’s.
His elder brother, Pat, was instrumental in reviving the club in the early 1950s.
“At that time, we were allowed to play Juvenile Football in Cavan and I played in Breffni Park and captained an U-16 team to a Cavan title in the late 1950s, and beat Mullahoran in the final.”
In those years, Frank played midfield. He also played County Minor for Fermanagh for three years and Kinawley/Derrylin/Teemore won a county championship in the late 1950s.
He also played in Queen’s, and lined out in the Sigerson as a sub against UCG in Galway. Peter Harte from Tyrone was on that Queen’s team.
But every summer, Frank went off to the Isle of Wight to work to pay his way through college. He lost a lot of football time in those summers.
A serious shoulder injury ended his career relatively early, but he contributed to his club by serving as Treasurer/Secretary and club Referee for many years later. He refereed for a long number of years for Kinawley.
“I used to tell the boys, ‘You have a broken-down old referee and you should get a new one’, but they never listened to me.”
An ankle injury ended his refereeing career.
“A GAA club is great and you make life-long friends. We had some great players in the 1960s, like Vincent Greene, Tony Cullen, Benny Murphy – father of Ollie Murphy from Meath – and Terry Greene.”
At a personal level, the McManus clan lined out in a Seven-A-Side in 1957 and that is a special memory for them.
Sean, Thomas and Frank all played underage for Fermanagh, as did Myles also.
In 1984, Kinawley Brian Boru’s launched a memorable history of the club for the opening of the Pat McManus Pitch on the Centenary of the GAA.
Frank wrote an article for this excellent publication that was away ahead of its time in terms of content and layout with some outstanding photographs.
Frank’s last big drive with Kinawley was in the mid-1990s when the club decided they would sell £100 tickets, and this proved to be very successful in getting Kinawley a second pitch.
At County level, Frank was Secretary of the Centenary of the founding of the GAA in Fermanagh in 2004 – the same year the Lissan Centre of Excellence was opened.
Frank also put a lot of work into this, and was deeply involved in the setting up of the first Club Fermanagh, that has the current equivalent of the successful Club Eirne.
Much of this work was done quietly without fuss, as befits this very grounded Kinawley man.
“Club Eirne has revived and is going very well and that is great to see.”
Frank still attends matches, but says that “modern Gaelic football is depressing where you have guys that are just 25 yards out from goal and won’t shoot, and instead, they pass it to someone who is often in a worse position”.
So what makes a good solicitor? “Hard work and attention to detail, particularly attention to detail, because the devil is in the detail.
“Do you know what the two most dangerous words in the English language are? ‘Not’ and ‘now’ – by changing the last letter, you can change the entire meaning of a sentence.
“For example, if you say your money is not in instead of now in, you change the entire meaning of the sentence. So, attention to detail is all-important”
Frank would have dearly loved to have taught history to advanced level, and is a great admirer of the late Professor Ronan Fanning’s ‘Fatal Path’, and Ernie O’Malley, who wrote the brilliant memoir, ‘On Another Man’s Wound’.
Since the Covid-19 pandemic, Frank has been working from home on the strong recommendation of his two sons, Ronan and Myles, who work with Frank in the practice.
“They were quite insistent and looking out for me, and it has worked out quite well, as I still operate a Dictaphone.
“It means that every day I have to concentrate on stuff, and it helps to keep the old brain active and stops me from looking out the window and forgetting my name,” he quipped.
One of Frank’s great loves is Fermanagh GAA, and he still attends matches.
“There is quite an amount of good, young players, but as usual in Fermanagh, there are just not enough of them.”
When asked about the health campaign for Save Our Acute Services, he said: “Reggie Ferguson is very involved, and I am glad to see some lawyers pulling their weight.”
But he has first-hand experience of a long drive to Altnagelvin with his wife, Carmel, who damaged her wrist. “It is a terrible hike, and that is just so crazy.
“But they [Stormont] don’t seem to have the money for anything, and it looks like they are going to press ahead with half a dozen specialists, and the rest are virtually ignored.
“And now, if you want any physiotherapy in the SWAH, you can’t get it, as you have to go to Omagh, and if you want an operation on your toe, you have to go to Omagh, and it’s a disgrace.”
Frank says it is a no-brainer for the South West Acute Hospital to have closer links with Sligo University Hospital.
“That is the logical and practical thing to do, and it is already working well between Letterkenny and Altnagelvin in Derry, and it saves duplication.”
Frank is happy that Stormont is up and running. “Everybody is being very nice to everybody at the moment, and long may it continue, but I fear it might not continue.
“I think that if the Unionists can get past Casement Park, I don’t think there is any other major stumbling block in the immediate future.
“I believe it will go ahead as the UEFA angle could be crucial in persuading the British government to fund it.
“But when it comes to all of Ireland, there is no generosity in Westminster – they always act far too late.
“They will set up an enquiry like Kenova that will take seven years, hoping by the time it comes out that everyone will have forgotten what it was about in the first place.
“As was said at the time of the Great Famine, if the Irish could have eaten paper, there was enough produced in Westminster to cure any famine.”
And that is the witty and wise Frank McManus – firing from the hip with telling accuracy.
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