Researching Tom Murphy

Murphy's first successful play, A Whistle in the Dark, was performed at the Theatre Royal Stratford East in London in 1961 and caused considerable controversy both there and in Dublin when it was later given its Irish premiere at the Abbey having initially been rejected by its artistic director.

Murphy grew up in North Carolina, where he played briefly in scholastic tournaments. In the 1980s, he lived with his grandmother in Philadelphia, worked for the City of Philadelphia, and hustled in the skittles room (a place for casual noncompetitive chess, see skittles as a metaphor) of major tournaments like the World Open and National Chess Congress, while during the year he would play mostly in Love Park, Clark Park, and the homes and offices of other strong area players, plus area university chess clubs. After his grandmother died in 1997, he moved to Washington, DC, where he worked for the National Archives for a time.

In 1989, after a patron sponsored his entry into the World Open Blitz, he split matches with four-time US Champion Robert Byrne and IM Anthony Saidy, on his way to capturing the u2200 class prize of $300. He placed 15th overall in the 2005 World Blitz Chess Championship. In 1998, he won the Arlington Chess Club's annual championship, beating two International Masters in the process.

Murphy plays on chess.com as Totofish11, where his rating fluctuates between 2200-2300.

Murphy is a self-taught artist, starting his artistic career initially as a hobby and moved quickly to an intense period of self-study, mastering a range of techniques in many art disciplines.

Previously he worked in a number of occupations which included; a seaman, salesman, musician and impressionist in a pop group.

Later he graduated as a teacher at Liverpool John Moores University and taught art at the Liverpool Community College. He also worked at a Centre for People with Learning Difficulties. His differing careers and interest in the characteristics of people have both acted as a rich source of inspiration in both his paintings and sculptures.

His early experimenting in painting was finally appreciated when he won first prize in the BBC 'North West Art 88' competition. His big success in sculpture came in 1996 when his sculpture of John Lennon was seen by a representative of major Liverpool Company, Littlewoods. He was commissioned to sculpt two monumental size bronzes of the Moores brothers for Liverpool's premier shopping area Church Street.

His work is all over the city of Liverpool as well as in Chorley, Lancashire, Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, Merseyside, Germany and New York City. He has also sold many smaller works around the world.

In 2003, he was voted by Radio Merseyside listeners and Liverpool Echo readers as the 76th Greatest Merseysider.

Now his work is known all over the world since creating the iconic statue of John Lennon at Liverpool John Lennon Airport which was unveiled jointly on 15 March 2002, by Cherie Blair and Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono. His sculptures of Ken Dodd and Bessie Braddock, commissioned by Merseytravel are sited at Liverpool Lime Street railway station. Though best known for his large sculptures, he has always maintained his interest in a wide range of art disciplines and sectors. An accomplished painter, he has been commissioned to paint many key Merseyside figures including the official retirement portrait of Mr John Moores.

In 2015 his bronze sculpture of Trooper Potts VC and Trooper Andrews, of the Berkshire Yeomanry was unveiled by Chris Tarrant and the Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire. The Grandchildren of both Fred Potts and Arthur Andrews and many other descendants attended the unveiling ceremony along with Mayors and Chairs of Councils from across "Old Berkshire". Sited just outside Forbury Gardens, Reading Tom developed the design to appeal to children, young people and the military historian. Cast by the Morris Singer Foundry it has a high degree of finish and much historical detail, including items lying on the Gallipoli Battlefield.

The son of Richard Murphy, he was born in St. John's and was educated at Saint Mary's University. In 1981, Murphy married Gloria Grimes. Murphy was president of the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering.

Murphy was elected to the Newfoundland assembly in 1989, winning by only two votes; he was reelected in 1993. He was defeated by Tom Osborne when he ran for reelection in 1996.