Randal Plunkett, 21st Baron of Dunsany

{{Short description|Irish film director, aristocrat, landowner and rewilding advocate}}

{{Infobox person

| honorific_prefix = The Right Honourable

| name = The Lord Dunsany

| image = Randal Plunkett, 21st Baron Dunsany (Lord Dunsany), summer 2021 (cropped).jpg

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| alt = Informal photograph of Plunkett holding a dog

| caption = Plunkett in 2021

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| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1983|03|09|df=y}}

| birth_place = New York City, U.S.

| nationality = Irish

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| education = {{plainlist|

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| alma_mater = Kingston University

| occupation = Film director, property owner, rewilding advocate

| years_active = 2009–present

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| title = 21st Baron of Dunsany

| term =

| predecessor = Edward Plunkett, 20th Baron of Dunsany

| successor =

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| partner = Laura Dillon (fiance)

| children = 1 daughter, 1 stepdaughter{{cite web |title=Unfolding Life podcast with guest Randal Plunkett |url=https://open.spotify.com/episode/1upEhsgpwQ1nSyiUwq3NwN |website=Unfolding Life - Podcast on Spotify 25:43min |access-date=13 October 2024 |date=13 October 2024}}

| parents = {{plainlist|

Edward J. C. Plunkett, 20th Baron of Dunsany
Maria Alice de Marsillac{{cite news |title=Lady Dunsany obituary: Colourful, stylish Brazilian architect |work=Irish Times, The |publisher=Irish Times Trust, The |date=18 April 2020 |quote=Maria Alice de Marsillac Plunkett, Lady Dunsany. The Brazilian architect and designer . . . widow of the late Edward Plunkett, 20th Lord Dunsany . . . parents from two distinguished Brazilian families – the Villela and the Bandeiro de Mello}} (née Villela de Carvalho)

}}

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}}

Randal Plunkett, 21st Baron of Dunsany (born 9 March 1983){{cite book |title=Dunsany, 21st Baron of (cr 1439) |publisher=A. & C. Black / Oxford University Press |location=Oxford and London |doi=10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U254797 |isbn=978-0-19-954088-4 |url=https://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/10.1093/ww/9780199540884.001.0001/ww-9780199540884-e-254797 |accessdate=24 August 2020}} is an Irish filmmaker, landowner and rewilding advocate.{{cite web |author= |date= |title=Dunsany Productions |url=http://www.dunsanyproductions.com/ |accessdate=25 January 2019 |website=www.dunsanyproductions.com}} Plunkett is the holder of a peerage title, and holds Dunsany Castle, one of the longest-inhabited houses in Ireland, and its remaining estate.

Plunkett succeeded to the Dunsany title upon the death of his father in 2011. In his professional life, he has directed a range of film shorts, worked on several dozen other film projects, and provided location and post-production services from his demesne. He produced his first feature film, The Green Sea, in 2018–2019 and released it in 2021. Plunkett became an advocate for rewilding in 2014 and has dedicated around half of the ancestral estate in County Meath as Ireland's largest private nature reserve.

Early life and education

Plunkett was born on 8 March 1983 in New York City, where his parents were living at the time operating an architectural and design studio. He is the elder of the two children (both sons) of the 20th Baron of Dunsany, the painter, sculptor and designer Eddie Plunkett, and his Brazilian wife, architect Maria Alice de Marsillac Plunkett (née Villela de Carvalho). Aside from his younger brother Oliver, he has a half-sister Joana and a half-brother Daniel, both older,Meath Chronicle, Sat. 4 Jun. 2011, p.21: Edward Plunkett, Lord Dunsany and the four children grew up together.{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/8575899/Lord-Dunsany.html |title=Obituary of the 20th Lord Dunsany |location=London |work=The Daily Telegraph |date=14 June 2011 |accessdate=24 August 2020}} On the paternal side, he is the great-grandson of the 18th Baron of Dunsany (usually known as Lord Dunsany) and grandson of his half-Brazilian namesake, British Indian Army Lieutenant Colonel Randal Plunkett. He is descended from the Earls of Jersey, and the family of explorer Sir Richard Francis Burton. On the maternal side, his grandfather was a colonel turned architect.

Plunkett subsequently lived with his family in London and at Dunsany Castle. For primary school, Randal Plunkett attended a local school and the private Headfort School outside Kells. He took his Junior Certificate at The King's Hospital on the outskirts of Dublin. He pursued senior secondary studies at Institut Le Rosey, a boarding school in Rolle and Gstaad, Switzerland, and at a pre-college centre in Oxford, where he studied the classics, English literature and sociology; he credited some of his inspiration around film to one of his teachers there, Louise Longson.{{cite news |last1=O'Riordan |first1=Alison |title=Perfectly cast for success |url=https://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/perfectly-cast-for-success-26894095.html |accessdate=24 August 2020 |work=Irish Independent |date=2 September 2019}}

Plunkett studied for a degree in Film Studies at Kingston University in southern London. After graduation, he worked on a potential career in sports science, considering opening a gym, or working as a personal trainer.{{cite web |last1=Neilson |first1=Bob |title=Lord of Film – an interview with Randal Plunkett |url=https://bobneilson.org/2012/12/13/lord-of-film-an-interview-with-randal-plunkett/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130823032843/http://bobneilson.org/2012/12/13/lord-of-film-an-interview-with-randal-plunkett/ |url-status=usurped |archive-date=23 August 2013 |access-date=30 November 2021 |date=13 December 2012}} However, encouraged by his parents, he later returned to the idea of working in film, and pursued an intensive course in Digital Video with an emphasis on practical skills, at the SAE Institute, from the Amsterdam campus of which he graduated with a diploma. He later studied further at the SAE branch in London, where he met a future collaborator, cinematographer Stefano Battarola.Meath Chronicle, 20 February 2010, p. 17 : Donohoe, John "Movie cameras roll at Dunsany estate again"

=Peerage succession=

Plunkett succeeded to the title of Baron of Dunsany on 24 May 2011, upon the death of his father. He continues to live at Dunsany Castle, on its estate of over {{convert|1500|acres}}, near Dunshaughlin and Kilmessan, about {{cvt|30|km}} north of Dublin. While the estate was reduced in size under the Irish Land Acts, with much farmland transferred to tenants, it remains a substantial landholding, between Dunshaughlin and the Hill of Tara. The current heir to his title is his younger brother, Oliver, a games designer and programmer who lives in the US.{{citation needed|date=November 2022}}

Career

Plunkett began his filmmaking career around 2009, producing and directing a range of short films, which have been shown at various film festivals. His directorial debut was the thriller Kiss Kiss (2010), set in London, and shown at the Leicester Square Odeon. He then returned to Ireland, producing Guerrilla, directed by Blaine Rennicks and starring Jack Lowe and Darren Killeen, on the Dunsany lands from winter 2009.Meath Chronicle, Sat. 25 Aug. 2012, p.19: 'Guerrilla picks up movie award'{{cite web |last1=Bat |title=Randal Plunkett Wraps Horror Film Short OUT THERE |url=https://horrorcultfilms.co.uk/2012/06/randal-plunkett-wraps-horror-film-short-out-there/ |website=Horror Cult Films |access-date=30 November 2021 |date=11 June 2012}} The low-budget film, with a crew of 40, was based on a concept of Ireland under martial law after social collapse in Europe in 2013, and was released in 2010. This was followed by the horror film Prey (2011). Plunkett's 4th short film, written with some autobiographical elements, was Walt (2011). Plunkett has used his estate lands and buildings, some partly ruinous, as locations for much of his filming after Guerrilla, including for Prey and Walt.

=''Out There'' and production work=

Plunkett received external private funding for his next film, a post-apocalyptic horror movie titled Out There, co-writing the script with his brother Oliver. Out There was awarded Best Industry Short at the Limerick Film Festival as well as Best Short Movie at a festival in Germany.{{Cite web|url=https://horrorcultfilms.co.uk/2013/04/randal-plunketts-horror-out-there-wins-best-short-film-award-in-germany/|title=Randal Plunkett's Horror OUT THERE Wins Best Short Film Award in Germany|date=8 April 2013}} Subsequently, it was selected to play Cannes Film Festival.{{Cite web|url=https://filmireland.net/2013/04/29/out-there-at-cannes/ |title='Out There' at Cannes |date=29 April 2013}}

In 2010, Plunkett established Dunsany Productions, a film production company, at Dunsany Castle. He worked on more than 40 film projects in Ireland, in various production roles, and in post-production at his facilities at Dunsany, while looking to produce longer work of his own.

=''The Green Sea''=

Plunkett's first feature-length film, the drama The Green Sea, was filmed in Mullingar in County Westmeath, as well as in Dublin, at Brittas Bay in County Wicklow, and at Dunsany, where one lodge was painted black for the production; about half the scenes were from Mullingar.{{cite news |last1=Ryan |first1=Eilis |title='I'll be back' vows director of The Green Sea as made-in-Mullingar film launches |work=Westmeath Examiner, The |date=10 July 2011 |page=12}} It was filmed and produced 2018–2019 but only released, after Covid-related delays, mid-2021. Plunkett was director, scriptwriter and executive producer. Plunkett performed the editing himself, alongside Chris Gill.{{citation needed|date=November 2022}} Plunkett has described the film as having semi-autobiographical influences.{{cite web |last1=Bat |last2=Williams |first2=Gavin |title=HCF Exclusive Interview with Director Randal Plunkett |url=https://horrorcultfilms.co.uk/2014/02/hcf-exclusive-interview-with-director-randal-plunkett/ |website=Horror Cult Films (online magazine) |date=26 February 2014 |accessdate=24 August 2020}} The film received a fairly positive review in The Guardian.{{cite news |last1=McCahill |first1=Mike |date=16 August 2021 |title=The Green Sea review – smart casting for flawed but intriguing literary chiller |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/aug/16/the-green-sea-review |access-date=1 December 2021 |work=The Guardian}} Plunkett's work and the film itself were awarded as Best Feature Film at the Paris Play Film Festival, April 2021,{{cite news |title=Plunkett film's French award |work=The Meath Chronicle |date=8 May 2021 |page=56}} Best Indie Feature Film and Best Feature Script at the Florence Film Awards, April 2021,{{cite web |title=Florence Film Awards: Winners 2021 |url=https://florencefilmawards.com/april-2021-1 |website=Florence Film Awards |access-date=22 July 2022}} and Best Production and Best Editing at the New York Movie Awards, April 2021.{{cite web |title=New York Movie Awards: Winners 2021 |url=https://newyorkmovieawards.com/april-2021-1 |website=New York Film Awards |access-date=22 July 2022}}

Rewilding

Plunkett is a practitioner of and advocate for rewilding.{{cite web |title=Randal Plunkett |url=https://www.farmingfornature.ie/nominees/randal-plunkett/ |access-date=30 November 2021 |website=Farming for Nature Awards |publisher=Farming for Nature}}{{cite news |date=17 October 2021 |title=Lord of the plants: death metal eco-baron rewilds Irish estate |url=https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20211017-lord-of-the-plants-death-metal-eco-baron-rewilds-irish-estate |access-date=30 November 2021 |work=France24 (Agence France Presse)}} He became a vegan in 2014, and discovered rewilding around the same time. Having initially moved Dunsany to organic farming, and discontinued chemical pesticide usage, he subsequently designated {{convert|750|acres}} of the Dunsany Estate (of at least 1,500 acres) as a nature preserve, with several hundred acres of forestry, and with farming on the remaining land limited to crops such as wheat, rapeseed and beans only.{{cite news |last1=Donohoe |first1=John |title=Interview: The Nature Lord, Dunsany's Randal Plunkett |url=https://www.meathchronicle.ie/2019/12/28/inspire-interview-the-nature-lord-dunsanys-randal-plunkett/ |accessdate=1 August 2020 |work=Meath Chronicle |date=28 December 2019}}{{cite news |last1=Carroll |first1=Rory |title='People think you're an idiot': death metal Irish baron rewilds his estate |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/aug/07/people-think-youre-an-idiot-death-metal-irish-baron-rewilds-his-estate |access-date=30 November 2021 |work=The Guardian |date=7 August 2021}} Dunsany Nature Reserve is Ireland's largest privately owned nature reserve, and as of 2022 is the only Irish rewilding project recognised by the European Rewilding Network.{{cite news |title=European Rewilding Network welcomes its first Irish rewilding initiative |url=https://rewildingeurope.com/news/european-rewilding-network-welcomes-its-first-irish-rewilding-initiative/ |accessdate=31 July 2021}} A number of animals have returned to the estate and it has grown in biological diversity.{{cite news |last1=Walsh |first1=Louise |date=26 December 2020 |title=How the baron of Dunsany carried out an ambitious rewilding project in Meath |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/how-the-baron-of-dunsany-carried-out-an-ambitious-rewilding-project-in-meath-1.4443054 |access-date=30 November 2021 |newspaper=The Irish Times}} Plunkett has also banned hunting on his lands, which he has said resulted in threats. Small groups are allowed a visit by arrangement but Plunkett has said he does not plan structured paths and signage, or visitor attraction facilities such as a café. The rewilding project receives no external funding, State or private, although around 14,000 euro was allocated in 2020 by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media for urgent works on the castle and walled garden, on which he and his family and staff have been working.{{cite web |title=€1m in funding for built heritage under the July Jobs Stimulus Package |url=https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/f2319-1m-in-funding-for-built-heritage-under-the-july-jobs-stimulus-package/ |website=Government of Ireland |access-date=30 November 2021 |date=22 September 2020 |quote=...heritage projects identified by local authorities as requiring urgent support... Meath County Council / Dunsany Castle & Walled Garden / €14,076.70}} The potential revival of a former railway line which used to pass through the estate near the River Skane has been noted as a concern.

Personal life

Plunkett's father died in 2011 after a long illness. His mother died in 2020; they are buried on the estate together.{{cite news |last1=Donohoe |first1=John |title=Lady Dunsany dies from Covid-19 as son pays tribute to frontline workers |work=Meath Chronicle |url=https://www.meathchronicle.ie/2020/04/09/lady-dunsany-dies-from-covid-19-as-son-pays-tribute-to-frontline-workers/ |date=9 April 2020}}

Having previously been in a relationship with Irish actress Emma Eliza Regan, Plunkett met his partner, occupational therapist Laura Dillon, in Mullingar. Plunkett and Dillon announced their engagement formally in November 2020.{{cite news |title=Dillon-Plunkett: Engagement Notice |url=https://notices.irishtimes.com/engagement/dillon-plunkett/57801529 |access-date=29 July 2021 |work=Irish Times, The |date=13 November 2020}} The heir to the castle and estate is their daughter. Plunkett has stated that his child will inherit the property, while as of 2022 the title would still pass elsewhere, due to what he has described as medieval provisions reserving inheritance of most titles to males, but he has expressed hope this situation may be changed.{{cite news |last1=Milton |first1=Stephen |title='There have been many death threats, but I'll never stop' – Randal Plunkett, Baron of Dunsany, on rewilding his family estate |url=https://www.independent.ie/life/there-have-been-many-death-threats-but-ill-never-stop-randal-plunkett-baron-of-dunsany-on-rewilding-his-family-estate-40672241.html |work=Sunday Independent |date=25 July 2021}}{{cite news |last1=Moorhead |first1=Joanna |title=Why Lord Dunsany is wild about nature |url=https://www.thetablet.co.uk/features/2/20853/why-lord-dunsany-is-wild-about-nature |access-date=30 November 2021 |work=The Tablet |date=21 October 2021}} Plunkett is Catholic.{{Cite web|title=Lord Dunsany|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/8575899/Lord-Dunsany.html|access-date=2021-08-05|website=www.telegraph.co.uk}}

In 2013, Plunkett appeared in the final episode of the second season of TLC's reality television series Secret Princes, in which his brother Oliver was appearing as a series regular.{{cite web |author= |date= |title=Secret Princes – Watch Full Episodes & More! |url=https://www.tlc.com/tv-shows/secret-princes/ |accessdate=25 January 2019 |website=TLC}}