The secret son of the late rocker Phil Lynott came face-to-face with his half sisters for the first time yesterday.
Macdara Lambe, 50, who revealed he is related to the Thin Lizzy frontman more than a decade ago, attended the unveiling of a limited edition silver coin in honour of his father.
It has been produced by the Central Bank to mark what would have been the star’s 70th birthday.
Macdara, who was born to his then teenage parents and later adopted to the Lambe family in Co Galway, met Kathleen and Sarah Lynott, who live in the UK.
The half siblings attended their father’s former school, St Kevins in Crumlin, South Dublin, where the unveiling ceremony took place.
A source said: “It wasn’t easy for him to come forward into a room on his own where all of the Lynotts were.
“He didn’t have a great relationship with Philomena [Lynott’s mum] but he did meet her and she did accept he was Phil’s son.” Macdara didn’t have strong links with the Lynott family in the past but Philomena did accept him publicly in recent years.
Despite the meeting, Lynott’s three children posed separately with President Michael D Higgins in the school’s library, which has been named after its famous former pupil.
Macdara’s uncle Peter also attended the event and described Lynott as a “very shy guy who worked hard”.
He said: “He would be so humble about today, he really was a shy person but he was so talented. His mother idolised him and we miss her so much, she was a great laugh.
“I remember walking him to school on his first day and he got a bit teased. I wouldn’t say it was racism, I’d say it was more that no one saw anyone like him before, he had dark skin.”
- The €15 silver proof coins are limited to 3,000 pieces and are available to buy from today for €64.99 on www.collectorcoins.ie. There is a three-coin limit per transaction.
