‘I lied, yes. It’s embarrassing’
A Walter Mitty f igure, who blagged his way onto the Oireachtas rugby team beside An Taoiseach, worked in quality assurance on high-prof ile building sites but admits to MoS he does not have the Trinity engineering qualif ications he claims
A ‘WALTER MITTY’ type character who lined out for the Oireachtas rugby team alongside Taoiseach Leo Varadkar falsely claimed he was a ‘senior adviser’ in his office.
Adrian Shanahan, 43, who has worked in several jobs in construction, also lied about having numerous academic engineering qualifications.
Mr Shanahan now works in a sales job in construction. But he previously worked in on-site construction jobs, including on Lansdowne Place – Ireland’s most expensive apartment complex.
The Irish Mail on Sunday can also reveal that Mr Shanahan does not have the Bachelor of Science in Civil and Structural Engineering, or the Master of Science in Applied Geomatics and Sub Structural Engineering – both from Trinity College Dublin – which he previously listed on his CV.
Images previously posted by Mr Shanahan online showed him working on various building sites across the capital.
In 2019, he worked on the exclusive Lansdowne Place apartment complexes in Dublin 4.
Singer Rod Stewart and former Irish soccer player Roy Keane have both bought apartments in the complex, which overlooks the Aviva Stadium.
A seventh-floor penthouse apartment at Lansdowne Place, which is on the site of the former Jurys and Berkeley Court Hotel in Dublin 4, reportedly sold for €6.5m.
In one message, Mr Shanahan claimed to have recently installed downdraft extractors as part of a ‘super super high end fit out’ at Lansdowne Place while working for building contractors JJ Rhatigan. Mr Shanahan claimed to ‘head up Quality Control and Quality Assurance’ with the firm. Such a role would be key to ensuring the safety of the final building. JJ Rhatigan did not respond to emails or phone calls this week querying Mr Shanahan’s employment.
When approached by the MoS this week, Mr Shanahan insisted he did not use false credentials when he applied for this job and said it did not require a third-level qualification. He also said he received a Construction Skills Certificate Scheme from Solas.
Mr Shanahan now works in sales. But prior to this, he worked for project management and construction consultancy firm Duke McCaffrey from 2019 to 2023 as a senior project manager, data centre and technology lead.
A section of the company’s website features a Q&A about the qualities of a ‘technically excellent project manager’. The post on the company’s website reads: ‘Adrian’s particular skillset includes leading the design and construction teams to deliver projects on time and within programme.
‘As project managers we are hardworking and honest, these are fundamental components of integrity. We need to be consistent in our actions and behaviours with all team members.’
Duke McCaffrey did not respond to questions asking if it had checked Mr Shanahan’s qualifications prior to his employment.
A previous CV of Mr Shanahan’s from 2012, seen by the MoS, lists other construction jobs such as ‘consultant engineer and project manager’, ‘senior consultant engineer and contracts manager’, ‘site engineer’ and ‘project engineer/site manager’.
Approached at his south Dublin home this week, Mr Shanahan, a married father, admitted lying about his engineering qualifications. But he insisted he never purported to be a ‘chartered engineer’, a role he noted is a ‘protected title’ that the Council of Engineers Ireland prosecutes for misuse of.
In late 2018, an email – seen by this newspaper – containing screenshots of private conversations Mr Shanahan had online claiming to work for the Government was sent to the Department of the Taoiseach by a concerned member of the public.
The email reads: ‘Please find attached screengrabs/evidence that Mr Adrian Shanahan has been falsely presenting himself as a member of staff at Leinster House. He had been presenting himself, it seems, in many guises, but as working at Leinster House in the past few months…’
One of the attached messages from Mr Shanahan reads: ‘Risk of sounding like d***, I work in the Dept of the Taoiseach as senior advisor (d***head) we can make this happen.’ This message was sent during Leo Varadkar’s first term as leader of the country. He also claimed to be able to arrange visits to Leinster House.
Speaking this week, Mr Shanahan admitted to lying about working at the centre of Government and about his engineering qualifications. He had initially denied claiming to work for the Department of the Taoiseach until the MoS told him we had documentary evidence.
‘I had lied. I shouldn’t have. It’s embarrassing,’ he replied. Mr Shanahan said he made the false claims during a difficult point in his life, and added: ‘I’ve since gotten myself together.’
Separately, Mr Shanahan lined out for the Dáil and Seanad XV – colloquially known as the Oireachtas rugby team – at least three times between 2017
‘He had been presenting himself in many guises’
and 2018. He did so at the invitation of John Paul Phelan, retiring Fine Gael TD for Carlow-Kilkenny, who also previously lined out for the team. Mr Shanahan said he told Mr Phelan that if the team ever needed players, he would like to play, and that he was subsequently invited.
Mr Shanahan is originally from Kilkenny and has been previously involved in politics. In 2015, he worked as a campaign manager during the by-election in Carlow Kilkenny for former Renua councillor Patrick McKee – although the pair later fell out.
The Dáil and Seanad XV consists of members of both houses of the Oireachtas and staff working in Leinster House, but in order to field a team, friends of teammates are frequently drafted in.
Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise Neale Richmond, then a senator, was captain at the time when Mr Phelan invited Mr Shanahan to play.
The role is now held by Fine Gael senator John McGahon, who told the MoS: ‘This team has been going on since the mid-90s. The vast majority of players are Oireachtas members and Oireachtas staff, but it would be impossible to field a team of 15 plus four or five subs over the years without having to take friends or friends of friends into the team every now and then.’
It is understood that, after concerns were raised about Mr Shanahan, he was removed from the communications channels used to organise matches.
Some of those players who lined out alongside Mr Shanahan described him as a ‘Walter Mitty’ character who was ‘friendly’, but ‘acted as if he was your best friend’ after an initial meeting, ‘especially on social media’.
The Department of the Taoiseach did not reply to queries asking about what actions were taken on foot of its being alerted to Mr Shanahan’s claims.
‘I’ve since gotten myself together’