Francie Brolly
Francis Brolly was an Irish musician, teacher and Irish republican politician from Dungiven, Northern Ireland. He was first elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly in 2003 and was re-elected in 2007 as a Sinn Féin member for the East Londonderry constituency. He resigned in 2010.
His wife, Anne Brolly was the first Sinn Féin Mayor and the first female Mayor of Limavady between 2003 and 2004, the council to which she was elected in 2001.
In 2005, he was arrested by the Police Service of Northern Ireland and questioned about a bombing incident in the village of Claudy in 1972. An official complaint was lodged with the Police Ombudsman regarding the lawfulness of the arrest and this investigation is ongoing. Brolly mounted a legal challenge in relation to the arrest against the PSNI, which settled out of court.
In February 2018, Brolly left the Sinn Féin Party over its support for abortion In March 2018 he and his wife joined Aontú, a new anti-abortion republican party founded by former Sinn Féin TD Peadar Tóibín.Interests
Brolly was an Irish culture enthusiast. A lyricist and musician, he wrote many well-known Irish republican songs, most famously The H-Block Song. His daughter, Nodlaig, is also a well-known singer and Celtic harpist. He served as the Assembly spokesperson for Sinn Féin on Culture, Arts and Leisure, sitting on that Department's oversight committee. He was also an Irish language enthusiast and a fluent speaker of the language.
He was a long-standing member of the GAA and played football for Derry. He was an Executive Committee Member of St Canice's GAC Dungiven. His son Joe Brolly was part of Derry's 1993 All-Ireland Championship winning side and has won two All Stars.Death
Francie Brolly died on 6 February 2020.
