The mass was celebrated by Fr Michael Cleary and The Dubliners performed during the ceremony. Luke Kelly’s family and friends were joined by people from the worlds of television, theatre, radio, politics, sport and music. Guests included John Sheehan, Ciarán Bourke, Barney McKenna, Finbar Furey, Jim McCann, Charles Haughey, Albert Reynolds, Noel Pearson, Phil Coulter, and Ronnie Drew. The people of Dublin, as many as 3,000, also came in their thousands to bid farewell to one of their own.

Ronnie Drew had a tremble in his voice, Phil Coulter wept, and all the others who knew and loved him.

The town he loved so well said farewell to Luke. The funeral Mass ended with many people in tears as his coffin was wheeled from the church to the strains of ‘The Auld Triangle.’

Image: Luke Kelly’s mass card, courtesy of Derek Warfield & The Young Wolfe Tones