Oscar-winning Irish actor Brenda Fricker dies at 81

Brenda Fricker, the Irish actor who became the first Irish actress to win an Academy Award and later reached a new generation as the Pigeon Lady in “Home Alone 2,” has died. She was 81.

Fricker died Thursday night in Dublin after “a period of ill health,” her agent, Phil Belfield, said in a statement confirmed to CBS News.

“We will never see her like again and the world is lesser for the lack of her,” Belfield said. “I was honoured to know, love and work with her and she will always have a place in my heart and in the heart of so many film and TV fans the world over.”

Fricker won the Oscar for best supporting actress in 1990 for playing the mother of Daniel Day-Lewis’s character in “My Left Foot.” The film told the true story of Christy Brown, an Irish man born with cerebral palsy who could control only his left foot. Day-Lewis also won an Academy Award for his starring role.

Born in Dublin, Fricker began her acting career in television and theater. Her early work included Ireland’s first soap opera, “Tolka Row,” in the 1960s; ITV’s “Coronation Street” in 1977; and “Licking Hitler,” a 1978 “Play for Today” written by David Hare.

She was part of the first episode of the BBC medical drama “Casualty” in 1986, playing nurse Megan Roach. She remained a fixture on the series until 1990 and returned regularly in later years, making her final appearance in 2010.

For many filmgoers, Fricker was also remembered as the homeless bird woman in Central Park who befriends Macaulay Culkin’s Kevin in the 1992 sequel “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York.” Her other film credits included “So I Married an Axe Murderer” in 1993, “Angels in the Outfield” in 1994, “A Time to Kill” in 1996 and “Veronica Guerin” in 2003.

Fricker later said her Oscar success had complicated her career. “What did happen was the old curse of the Oscars, as they call it,” she told The Times in 2024, according to the BBC. She said the award led to typecasting and caused her to be overlooked for some roles, including in theater. “So there’s a lot that’s not great about an Oscar. And you don’t get any money. They could give you a few bob with it, at least,” she joked.

Tributes in Ireland and beyond emphasized her standing in film and television. Ireland’s Tánaiste Simon Harris said he was “deeply saddened” by the death of “a national treasure,” calling Fricker “a consummate performer who graced our screens and stages with remarkable talent and authenticity.” He added: “She truly was among the greatest exports this country has ever produced and an ambassador for Irish talent on the world stage. Quite simply, we will never see the like of her ever again.”

Edward Walsh, the U.S. ambassador to Ireland, described Fricker on X as “a giant of Irish film” and praised her “unforgettable” performance in “My Left Foot.” He wrote: “From Dublin to Hollywood, her work brought Ireland’s stories to the world and inspired generations on both sides of the Atlantic.”

Earlier this year, Dublin Lord Mayor Ray McAdam proposed that Fricker receive the freedom of the city, describing her as “one of Dublin’s most distinguished cultural figures.” He said her work was “marked by honesty, depth and a rare ability to bring warmth and toughness in the same breath.”

In a memoir published last year, Fricker described an unstable and traumatic upbringing, including abuse by her mother, grooming at age 8, a two-year hospital stay after a bicycle accident at 14, and being raped at 17 and again later. She also recalled the freedom of her youth, saying, “When I was growing up, you could be wild and God bless the wild days.” Looking back on her career, she told The Times: “It’s all been luck… happy accidents.”