After several years shuttling in and out of prison, Behan was finally released in 1948 and set off for Paris, the beginning of a lifelong love affair with France. His triumph came in 1956, when his play The Quare Fellow debuted at the Pike Theatre in Dublin, causing quite a stir with its themes of sex, political intrigue, religiosity, and crime, subjects that continued to permeate Behan’s later work.

Ever a lover of drink, Behan’s battles with alcohol were to colour his public persona and shorten his life. This penchant for liquor aggravated his diabetes and helped to bring about his untimely death on March 20^th, 1964, at the Meath Hospital, leaving behind a wife and infant daughter. He was buried, at his request, with a full IRA honour guard at his funeral.