'He got bored of work, and made some bad choices' – Jared Harris on his father Richard's legacy
Actor Richard Harris's archive of career memorabilia and personal items will go on show for the first time in his hometown of Limerick next month. Here, his son talks about his father's career highs and lows, his relationship with his children, and with alcohol, and why he played the fame game
When the Limerick-born actor Richard Harris was in hospital being treated for advanced Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2002, he began writing his autobiography. It probably goes without saying that it would have made a hell of a read, for he was a man who had lived several lives, each one more colourful than the last.
'Unfortunately, there was some notepad [that he was writing in] that was wrapped up in all these newspapers, and one of the nurses came in and chucked the newspapers away,' Jared Harris, Richard's son, recalls. 'He was going to start again though, but… yeah. I think he definitely had an appetite for more [living].'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Irish Sun
3 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
‘It's been awful' – Dan Evans breaks down in tears during Wimbledon press conference and feared letting people down
DAN EVANS broke down in tears as he recalled the long and winding roads he has taken to reach Wimbledon. 4 Dan Evans says he wonders what long-term partner Aleah Evans thinks Credit: Alamy 4 Evans is set to play Novak Djokovic if he beats Jay Clarke in round one Credit: Getty This has meant playing several Challenger-level events in front of just a few fans to ensure he did not slump too low and into obscurity. Wildcard But he became emotional when he talked about his fear of potentially letting down his close family and friends and if he was no longer good enough to compete on a tennis court. Wiping away the tears, Evans said: 'It's not the matches. It's when you feel like you've let people down, that's the tougher thing about it. READ MORE IN TENNIS 'You're not used to losing, that's probably more of the thing. 'I don't worry about retirement but it's just different isn't it? "To start losing, it's scary at the end of the day, to know sometimes you're not good enough. 'It's not an easy thing in sport to not be good enough. I don't know why I'm so emotional about it. Most read in Sport 4 Aleah Evans will be watching Dan at Wimbledon Credit: Getty BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK 'I guess I'm pretty proud of the last four or five months and how they've been. 'They've been difficult and I'm happy to have come through the other side. Novak Djokovic gatecrashes Aryna Sabalenka's pre-Wimbledon press conference and awkwardly criticises her 'I don't ever struggle to go and play tennis. But I did wonder, 'Why are you doing this?' 'That's when you need good people around you. It's been awful basically, I played poor, but it's going in a better direction. 'I'm not scared of hard work. I'm more than happy to play the Challengers. 'It's just when you shut the door at night and you wonder what other people are thinking? What's your wife's thinking? 'Is she thinking, 'Come on, mate, give this up?' Or your dad, your parents? It's not a conversation you have very often. 'Is this the right thing?' 'The last few weeks have been good to see that I've still got it because it's easy to say you believe it. But it's got to happen otherwise you drop down the rankings.' In round one, Evans is up against Derby-born Jay Clarke on Tuesday in one of two all-British ties and the winner will likely play Novak Djokovic next. It is hard to ignore the shadow of the Serbian but Evans can draw on memories of losing in three sets to The former British No.1 said: 'About 9,000 people have messaged me about it. 'Do you think we don't have phones? It's a bit like when a boxer's got a big fight in front of them and he can't overlook it. 'Jay Clarke will be looking at it and I'll be looking at it. There's a nice match in the second round on a very big court. 'I want to win that match not just to play 'I'm really looking forward to Tuesday first but to get a chance to walk out probably on Centre against a guy who's hardly lost here. 'I've done it against Roger Federer. It would be a good little prize at the end of a good grass-court season.' 4 Evans, 35, insists he is not yet thinking of retiring Credit: PA
Irish Independent
6 hours ago
- Irish Independent
'He got bored of work, and made some bad choices' – Jared Harris on his father Richard's legacy
Actor Richard Harris's archive of career memorabilia and personal items will go on show for the first time in his hometown of Limerick next month. Here, his son talks about his father's career highs and lows, his relationship with his children, and with alcohol, and why he played the fame game When the Limerick-born actor Richard Harris was in hospital being treated for advanced Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2002, he began writing his autobiography. It probably goes without saying that it would have made a hell of a read, for he was a man who had lived several lives, each one more colourful than the last. 'Unfortunately, there was some notepad [that he was writing in] that was wrapped up in all these newspapers, and one of the nurses came in and chucked the newspapers away,' Jared Harris, Richard's son, recalls. 'He was going to start again though, but… yeah. I think he definitely had an appetite for more [living].'
The Irish Sun
8 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Meet Ilia Topuria, the son of refugees and high school dropout set to replace Conor McGregor as the face of the UFC
THE Ultimate Fighting Championship is potentially just days away from having a new poster boy. And it's somewhat fitting that the potential coronation of mixed martial arts' premier promotion's new king will take place nearly four years to the day that Conor McGregor - the face of the sport for several years - had what looked to be his final outing. Advertisement 9 Ilia Topuria is on the cusp of making UFC history Credit: AP 9 The Georgian-born Spaniard will look to claim the vacant UFC lightweight title Credit: GETTY 9 Standing between Topuria and yet more history is former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira Credit: GETTY 9 Topuria and his family come from incredibly humble beginnings Credit: INSTGRAM@ILIATOPURIA Many have long thought the heir apparent to McGregor's throne was 'Suga' Sean O'Malley, although back-to-back championship defeats to Merab Dvalishvili have seen the former bantamweight king's sweetness fade. The man poised to succeed 'The Notorious' is a Georgian-born Spaniard who made a statement on the prelims of what with increasing certainty looks to be the last McGregor card in UFC history. The man in question is former featherweight champion Ilia Topuria, who will bid to further write his name into the history books early on Sunday morning in the Las Vegas . Undefeated Topuria will do battle with fellow fan favourite and former lightweight champion Islam Makhachev left aside. Advertisement READ MORE ON TOPURIA Becoming the TENTH two-weight champion in UFC history in the fashion he claimed and defended the featherweight title will catapult Topuria into a new stratosphere, one he always believed he'd reach. Topuria, 28, was born in 1997 in Halle, Germany , where his parents were granted refuge during the ethnic cleansing of Georgians in Abkhazia in the '90s. It was in Germany that Topuria would discover the sport of Greco-Roman wrestling , which he practised along with his younger brother, Aleksandre. The Topuria family would eventually return to Georgia , where the brothers would continue their education in Greco-Roman wrestling, in 2003. Advertisement Most read in MMA JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS 9 Ilia Topuria and his siblings are the sons of refugees who fled the ethnic cleansing of Georgians in Abkhazia in the '90s Credit: INSTGRAM@ILIATOPURIA 9 Topuria and his younger brother, Aleksandre, dropped out of school in their mid-teens to pursue MMA Credit: INSTGRAM@ILIATOPURIA 9 Topuria tore through the regional and European scene before being signed by the UFC Credit: INSTGRAM@ILIATOPURIA Advertisement 9 He rewarded his dad's trust in him by winning UFC gold in February 2024 Credit: INSTGRAM@ILIATOPURIA Eager to provide a better life for their children, Topuria's parents, Zaza and Inga, moved the family to Alicante, Spain , in 2012. Not long after their arrival, Topuria's mother spotted a man sporting cauliflower ears and asked him if he knew where her sons could continue their training. Watch jacked Ilia Topuria complete epic UFC 317 body transformation after ditching crash diet to lose over 40lbs That chance encounter paved the way for Topuria to start his mixed martial arts journey under the tutelage of the Climent brothers, Agustin and Jorge. Advertisement The Topuria brothers' passion for MMA was so fervent that they both asked their dad if they could DROP OUT of school to pursue their dreams of fighting in the UFC. In 2022, Ilia said of his early teenage years in Spain: 'Yes [it was hard to communicate], but I left school when I was like 15 years old. 'When I was 15 years old, I went with my brother to talk with my father to tell him, 'Hey, dad. ''We don't want to go to school any more, but we really want to train. Advertisement 'And we're going to the gym all day, every day, and we're going to train.' 'Because my dream was to fight in the UFC. And he told me, 'If you're really going to train all the time like you tell me, then you have my approval. 'That's one of the reasons why I made my debut so young in the UFC, because it's very tough to get into the UFC from Spain. 'Because I wasn't living in the United States and I wasn't born here, because it's easier.' Advertisement I left school when I was like 15 years old." Ilia Topuria Three years after beginning his training with the Climent brothers, Topuria made his professional debut at the tender age of 18. He'd rip through the competition on the regional and European circuits with eight straight finishes, seven of which came via submission. The UFC came calling in October 2022 and Topuria hasn't looked back since, stopping all comers bar Youssef Zalal and Josh Emmett - both of whom were battered from pillar to post - on his way to claiming and defending the featherweight crown. His coronation as featherweight king came last February with a sensational second-round knockout of fan favourite Alexander Volkanovski. Advertisement And his final outing in the division last October saw him achieve the previously unthinkable and knock out iron-chinned former featherweight champion Max Holloway. Topuria's exploits - in particular his championship victories - have seen him become a superstar in Georgia, Spain and the rest of the Spanish-speaking world. He has a whopping 7.7million Instagram followers, has been recognised by boyhood footie team Real Madrid - who presented him in front of a capacity crowd at the Bernabeu after his KO of Volk - and is pals with Los Blancos legends Iker Casillas and Sergio Ramos. His global following will explode and the celebs in his orbit will only become bigger, even though he doesn't crave the limelight, should he become a two-weight champion in a similar fashion to his featherweight coronation. Advertisement The title of 'biggest star in the UFC' is right there for the taking for Topuria. All that remains now is for him to make it his own in devastating fashion. 9 Ilia Topuria is already a superstar in Spain and can become a global name with a win over Charles Oliveira Credit: GETTY
