Devoted mother of Thin Lizzy’s Phil Lynott has died aged 88

Philomena Lynott, the devoted mother of Thin Lizzy’s frontman Phil Lynott, has died aged 88, having battled cancer for a number of years

Hot Press confirmed the well-known Dublin figure’s sad death. Niall Stokes, the Editor of Hot Press, said: “She was a formidable and brilliant woman.”

"I am really proud that we were able to participate in telling her remarkable story,” he said referring to Philomena’s book about Phil, My Boy.

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“She was indeed a remarkable woman.

"She was hugely determined and courageous – and absolutely committed to the campaign to ensure that Philip’s memory was kept alive and his legacy celebrated."

Her book, My Boy, written with Jackie Hayden, was a two-time number one best-seller and told her own extraordinary life story.

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A statue of Phil Lynott and Philomena on Grafton Street.

After school, Philomena moved from Dublin to England to work. It was there she met Phil’s father, Cecil Parris, from Guyana, and she fell pregnant aged 18. Phil came home to Ireland when he was still a young boy and became one of the most revered songwriters and musicians in Irish history.

One of Philomena’s proudest moments was to have a statue dedicated to her son erected off Grafton Street, in Dublin’s city center.

Philomena died at her home in Sutton, north Dublin where Phil is buried and whose graveside she visited every day.

Here is a 2017 RTE interview Philomena Lynott speaks about her life:

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