‘Remember James with pride, recall his personality and his achievements’
Hundreds of family, friends and corporate figures gathered to celebrate the life of James Osborne, writes Liam Collins
JAMES Osborne packed much into his 68 years on earth and it was this zest for life and laughter, his devilmay-care attitude and his charming smile and laser blue eyes that were celebrated at a memorial service in the Examination Hall of Trinity College Dublin on Friday.
Although a prominent lawyer and corporate figure, he always maintained that the practice of law “should be fun” and was often quoted as saying that when it came to big decisions he “jumped off the cliff and hoped the parachute opened”.
These self-deprecating remarks belied a steely temperament and determination, a sharp intellect and a Protestant work ethic that led to him becoming a senior figure in the corporate world and chairman and director of a succession of companies at home and abroad.
Hundreds of family, friends and corporate figures packed the Examination Hall and a marquee erected in the grounds of Trinity for the memorial service, which was presided over by Madeleine Taylor-Quinn, the former Fine Gael TD for Clare and family friend, and addressed by friends and family members.
“I am so proud of my dad. Every time I smoke a Carrolls cigarette he is there, every time I order a Murphy’s stout and every time a Ryanair flight passes over he is with me, he will remain with us forever,” said his son Patch, referring to a number of companies of which his father was a director. “By wearing his shoes today we will walk together. My one regret is that I never told him how much I loved him: so Dad, I love you and thanks for everything you did for me.” His daughter Lucy spoke of their shared love of sailing and read from the book The Wind in the Willows.
His friend Martin Knight recalled “long evenings in the Phoenix Park racecourse, where he was always at the centre of things” and their sailing exploits to Scotland and beyond. During his lifetime Osborne, referred to as JRO at the firm A&L Goodbody and nicknamed ‘Clearly’ by friends, owned three yachts and among other trips sailed the Atlantic three times.
His friend Professor Frank Keane recalled “extended trips, cocktail parties” and their “infamous” golf outings to Lahinch “Catholics versus Protestants”. Prof Keane added: “He interspersed this sporting life with a very successful business career.
“All of us were touched by James’s magic dust,” he said, recalling that after Osborne failed to appear back in college for several weeks after term started he was called before their lecturer, Kader Asmal, later a minister in Nelson Mandela’s South African government. After hearing his excuses, Asmal replied: “I see you have a nice tan, Mr Osborne, the only difference between you and me is that I will still have mine in six weeks’ time.” He concluded: “Remember James with pride, recall his courage, his personality and his achievements.”
Another friend, Charlie Murless, recalled how he became a director of Punchestown at a vital point in the development of the Kildare racecourse and “he was one of the best friends Punchestown ever had”.
Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary said he was “the kind of man it would be easy to dislike — when God was handing out the talents James was in the front row” and recalled his “easy, raffish charm and his great good looks... damn it, he was so good at anything he turned his hand to”.
“I don’t think he was particularly suited to the legal professions — after all, James had personality, James had common sense, James was good with people, which makes you a very wonderful human being, but a crap lawyer,” he added, tongue in cheek, referring to the talents that drew him away from the “dark side” of the legal profession and into the world of the boardroom.
“In 1996, he joined the board of Ryanair, a brave decision — nobody wanted to join the board of Ryanair. He tried to talk sense to Tony Ryan and me, but one thing both of us agreed on, you could trust his advice and judgment... we turned a small Irish crisis into the world’s largest airline and that wouldn’t have happened without him.”
The nicest thing about his friend and fellow director was that he was “never boastful or proud” except when talking about his children, Lucy, Patch and Pia — “his child prodigy” — and granddaughter Maya.
An emotional Mr O’Leary then adapted the poem Walk a Little Slower Daddy to read a “walk a little slower James.”
In his last ‘Letter of Wish- es’’, James Osborne asked that another friend, the comedian Oliver Callan, should conclude the service, which he did to much laughter and merriment, being suitably irreverent about his friend’s delight in an €8 haircut, his 15-year-old Audi car, his “ordinary, easily recognisable Donegal accent” and how his friend Tommy O’Connor introduced him “to the delights of Burger King”.
He then mimicked a series of tributes from various luminaries, concluding: “I saw his dazzling eyes, I know he was brilliant and wise, but I will miss him as a friend” before telling his children “you can be so proud of him, he was a gentleman to his fingertips”.
James Reginald Osborne was born on April 28, 1949, in Devon, England, where his father was stationed with the Royal Navy. He was educated locally in Tavistock and at the age of eight went with his parents to Hong Kong, when his father was posted there.
The family returned to his ancestral home in Milford, Co Donegal. He was educated in Belfast and Trinity College, Dublin where he read law, qualifying in 1972. He then joined the firm of A&L Goodbody, established its New York office and was made partner after just eight years, before becoming managing partner, a post he held until his retirement at the age of 45, when he continued as a consultant and member of numerous corporate boards.
Perhaps an obituary of his great-grandfather, James Allan Osborne, a Donegal doctor who died in 1899 and quoted by Oliver Callan, summed up his many qualities: ‘‘Altogether he was a highly-cultured man, but of so retiring disposition that only those who knew him intimately could be fully aware of his great qualities of heart and head.’’
James Osborne was cremated in Mount Jerome after a funeral service conducted by the Rev Leslie Foster and attended by close family and friends last Wednesday. His partner Patricia Devine read WH Auden’s poem Funeral Blues (Stop all the clocks), their daughter Pia thanked the congregation for the solace afforded by friends, while his wife, Heather Osborne, thanked mourners for their help and support during a very difficult time for the family. Mr Osborne is survived by his partner and their daughter and his wife, his daughter Lucy, his son Patch and his brother Henry.
The attendance at the memorial service included many friends from various aspects of his life. They included Sean Barrett of Trinity College, Trevor White, Ann Strain and her husband Mick, Vincent Crowley, chairman of NewsBrands Ireland, Robert Pitt, chief executive officer INM, Dearbhail McDonald, group business editor Independent News & Media, Campbell Spray, Sunday Independent, businessman Paschal Taggart, Eamon Dunphy and Jane Gogan, builder Thomas Bailey, banker Richard Bourke, Alan Dukes, Sean FitzPatrick former chairman of Anglo Irish Bank, Brian O’Gorman of Arthur Cox, rugby player Rob Kearney, Rhona Blake, Des McEvaddy, Matt Dempsey of the Farmers Journal, developer Paddy Kelly, Sean Boylan and his son Sean, who sang the sailing song Southerly, solicitor Tony Hanahoe, entertainment figure Louis Walsh, model Marie Staunton, Owen Dennis, Ken Murphy of the Law Society and many other friends and associates.
‘When God was giving out the talents, James was in the front row’