Cork actor Cillian Murphy would be ideal man to unveil new Collins statue in Patrick St

ONE hundred years ago tomorrow, Michael Collins woke up in his bed in The Imperial Hotel in Cork city and made the short walk to Patrick Street.

Here, he met with the editor of the Cork Examiner and visited several banks, as he tried to plan for the post-Civil War era: He firmly believed the conflict was nearing its end.

Later that night, Collins made what would be the final entry in his diary, concluding, based on his impression of the Corkonians he had been meeting on his visit down from Dublin: “The people are splendid.”

By then, he had only hours to live.

The centenary of his death on Monday will be marked across the land - not least at the spot in his native West Cork where he was shot dead - Béal na mBláth.

There are big plans to develop that sight into a more accessible and meaningful experience for the many visitors who head there each year, while tomorrow the annual Collins commemoration speech there will be given by a Fianna Fáil Taoiseach and leader for the first time - a Corkman, Micheál Martin.

All of this is right and fitting.

However, for me the best and most enduring part of the Collins centenary commemorations will take a while longer to come to fruition - it is the plan to build a statue and erect it in Cork city, possibly on Pana itself, along which Collins walked the day before his untimely death.

Although a fine statue of Collins was unveiled in his home town of Clonakilty 20 years ago, a similar work of art in Cork city is long overdue.

This is not to diminish the iconic Seamus Murphy bust of the Big Fella unveiled at Fitzgerald’s Park in 1966 either, but a full size and more prominent spot is surely warranted for the city and county’s greatest son (with apologies to Christy Ring, whose airport statue really should be moved to a more suitable place, such as outside Páirc Uí Chaoimh).

A group of Collins enthusiasts, some of whom played key roles in the erection of the Clonakilty monument, have reportedly raised the funds required for the Cork city statue.

Rather than depicting The Big Fella in imposing military mode, as most of the photos of him show, the statue will be based on a photograph of the revolutionary leader where he is standing with the high nelly bicycle he cycled around Dublin during the War of Independence.

It sounds like a neat touch, and chimes with recent calls for the city to be more bicycle-friendly to enhance the environment. After all, if a bike was good enough for a tough guy like Collins, it’s surely good enough for anyone!

Other options for the statue design could have included depicting the famous image of Collins roaring to a crowd in Grand Parade in March, 1922, after signing the Treaty, or even the one of him throwing in the ball to start a hurling match in 1921, neatly encapsulating the county’s love of hurling too. But let’s not start anther Civil War - the bike option will do just fine!

In another neat touch, the people behind the statue want it to be on ground level, and not on a plinth, so it would be “amongst the people”, as Collins was.

The statue will be handed over to Cork City Council, who will decide on a fitting place for it.

Needless to say, such a monument to Cork’s most famous son deserves a prominent place, and Fine Gael councillor Shane O’Callaghan, who has submitted a motion to debate the issue, favours a spot on Patrick Street.

Perhaps the Taoiseach also needs to get involved with the debate on where the memorial should be located.

Pana strikes me as the best option too - but where exactly?

Certainly, Fr Mathew has become part of the street furniture at the Merchants Quay end of town, and there may be resistance to placing a competing or replacement statue there. Further down, surely nobody would dare remove the Echo Boy statue!

In my mind, the ideal place for it would be on Daunt Square, so Collins could be seen both from Patrick Street and along Grand Parade - scene of his most famous speech in Cork - while the National Monument would also fittingly be within view.

Once the statue is made and a location is decided, the biggest issue will be who will unveil it?

By then, Sinn Féin could well be in power, so would Taoiseach Mary Lou McDonald be invited to do the honours? Or should it be the Fine Gael leader, the party most commonly affiliated to Collins? Or would it require the leaders of all the parties to be there?

As we have seen in recent years, statues can be very political, and highly politicised, issues among the people. Surely it would be best to steer clear of inviting any politician of any hue to play a role in the unveiling.

The good people of Clonakilty were on the right lines when they asked Liam Neeson - who famously portrayed the Big Fella in the Michael Collins film a few years earlier - to unveil the statue there in 2002. It guaranteed a large crowd keen to see a Hollywood star, and meant the ceremony was never in danger of being hijacked.

Cork could do something similar, by asking one of our most famous actor sons to unveil the new Collins statue on Pana.

No, not Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, who played the role of Collins’ assassin in the 1996 movie!

I’m thinking more of another Cork acting hunk, who would bring dignity, pride and love of his city and its heritage to the occasion - Cillian Murphy.

The Douglas man famously played an Anti-Treaty soldier in hit film The Wind That Shakes The Barley, set in Cork, but we can overlook that!

The actor, although intensely private, has spoken before of his republican roots in Cork and the fact he lost a relative shot by the Black and Tans in 1920.

Murphy would attract vast crowds and bring a sense of pride and neutrality to the occasion which no politician could confer.

Cillian - the job’s yours!