“Leo Connolly” by Peter Mayne. South Shields Museum, England

Leo Connolly (born in Jarrow, 1929) was a carpenter at Hawthorn Leslies in Hebburn for 28 years. But he was also a talented singer of Irish ballads.

His introduction to public singing was at the age of about four, when he stood on a pub table, wearing green velvet trousers and a green bow tie, and sang “When Irish Eyes are Smiling” to a packed room. The location for this, one of Leo’s earliest memories, may have been the bar of the Commercial pub, which was mainly frequented by workers from the nearby Mercantile Dry Dock, and where Leo’s mam was the landlady.

Object description
Type: Easel painting
Location: South Shields Museum & Art Gallery, Tyne & Wear
Material: Oil on paper
Artist: Peter Mayne (b. 1952)
Date: Unknown

Image details
Date: 15 June 2022
Camera body: iPhone Xs
Lens: Wide Camera 26mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 26mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/50s
ISO: 320
Licence: Image of a North East Museums asset. This image cannot be licensed.