For a small country, Ireland has been blessed with some of the world’s best sports people and some of the world’s best sports stories.
But there are few greater than Mick O’Dwyer – a national treasure and the most successful manager in the history of Gaelic Football.
Harvesting previously untold tales, this natural storyteller brings the viewer on a unique journey through Irish history – from the War of Independence to a modern area of commercialised sport.
MICKO tells the story of the GAA’s most loved legend, through his eyes and with his voice.
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This documentary interweaves Mick O’Dwyer’s football career with a bank of rich, evocative period archive and social history insights; from growing up in Waterville during the Second World War to playing for the Kingdom in Croke Park and onwards to a stellar career in the dugout that brought unprecedented success to four different counties: Kerry, Kildare, Laois and Wicklow.
MICKO observes over seventy years of change in Irish society and sport. It’s a story rooted in place: from life in picturesque rural Kerry to dominating the sporting landscape in Dublin.
O’Dwyer spends time with his family off the coast of Scariff Island where his mother lived, travels to his old stomping ground to support Kerry in a crucial All Ireland semi-final replay against Mayo, and watches club matches alongside fellow legend Maurice Fitzgerald. This is wonderfully blended with rich archive of his time as a player and a manager, creating an evocative picture of a different era in Irish history and sport.
The documentary invites the viewer into the inner sanctum of one of the most talented group of players in the history of Irish sport. It’s a story of rivalries on the field, from Down, Galway and Offaly to the ferocious rivalry with Dublin that defined a generation of Kerry footballers and, indeed, O’Dwyer’s managerial career.
As a manager, he operated at the cutting edge of training methods to get the best out of his players on the field and his business savviness saw him set a new bar for commercialism in sport off the field. O’Dwyer was a leading light in many guises.
MICKO is a story of devotion to the GAA, to Kerry and to the family that supported him through the decades. This devotion extended beyond the gates of Kingdom to later successes in charge of Kildare, Laois and Wicklow. It brings to life the story of the greatest figure in Gaelic Games.
This programme is produced by Loosehorse, winners of four Sports IFTAs and the team behind hit programmes Giles, All Ireland Day, Blues Sisters, and The Rod Squad.