“A brilliant soul” - Martin Heaney obituary

He was much loved and respected by staff and students who have expressed deep sadness at his loss. Martin was an ally and friend to so many and his warmth, humour, fairness, generosity, and persistence are remembered with affection. An optimist, he faced any kind of adversity with dignity and diplomacy and had an acute sense of social justice. This was fortified by his strong Catholic faith, which brought him comfort through the stages of his illness. He was a proud gay man gently advocating for reform within his faith.

While living with a brain tumour, Martin explored his experiences of the condition, most notably in his podcast, Chatty Guy Talks Cancer, Care and Hope. This was delivered with spirit and determination, providing moving insights into his journey with cancer.

Martin joined UEL in 2016 as Senior Lecturer in Applied Theatre and in 2018 formed the research centre the Centre for Applied and Participatory Arts. He spearheaded student-led projects that brought to the forefront the university’s race equality priorities. Co-founder and facilitator for the anti-racist group in the University’s School of Arts and Creative Industries, he secured funding for student interns to collaborate with him on a decolonising curriculum project, greatly widening the diversity of subject texts with UEL’s library services team.

He had a special interest in representations of masculinity and young people, most recently publishing Between Past and Future, Edward Bond and the Representation of Adolescent 'Crisis’ (Routledge 2022). His PhD was awarded in 2017 from Royal Holloway, University of London with a thesis entitled, Reproducing Masculinities: Theatre and The ‘Crisis’ of the Adolescent. Professor Helen Nicholson said of his scholarly work,

Martin’s doctoral studies were motivated by his profound sense of social justice, fuelled by the riots in England in 2011. Historically informed, his research investigated how young male adolescents had been demonised and scarred by the wars and the cultural imaginary of Empire. It was characteristic of Martin’s care for the future that his scholarly work was also hopeful, re-imagining how young men might be more fairly represented.”

Martin’s devotion to education and his students at UEL was founded on 30 years of experience of using drama to educate in a wide variety of posts, including project manager, consultant, facilitator and performer. He worked with Y Touring (Theatre of Debate), the Albany, Herts Creation (Hertfordshire), and GetCreative (Barking and Dagenham). During the late 1990s and early 2000s, he led participatory projects at the Half Moon Young People’s Theatre. See a discussion of his work.

He had a lifelong commitment to theatre; firstly, studying for his undergraduate degree at the University of Bristol, training as an actor at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art and gaining an MA in Applied Theatre from London’s Central School of Speech and Drama. He contributed to New York University’s MA Educational Theatre Summer Abroad programmes and taught at Chichester University and the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, London.

He is survived by his three sisters, Fiona, Ann and Louise, his brother, Kevin, and eleven nephews and nieces.

A memorial event will be held in celebration of Martin’s life at UEL’s USS campus in Stratford on Friday 26 January 2024 from 4-6pm. Further details to follow.

His close colleagues,

Lynne McCarthy
Clare Qualmann
Liselle Terret