Contents
Dervla Murphy
Writing Full Tilt after travelling overland from Ireland to India by bicycle.
Full Tilt · Eight Feet in the Andes
- Born
- 28 November 1931
- Birthplace
- Lismore, County Waterford, Ireland
- Died
- 22 May 2022
More people
Dervla Murphy
Irish travel writer whose independent journeys grew into accounts of everyday life, conflict and hospitality.
Early life
A bicycle and an atlas
Received both as a child and began imagining a journey to India.
Family responsibilities
Left school at fourteen to help care for her mother, delaying long-distance travel.
Career
- 1963–1960s
Long-distance journeys
Cycled to India and began publishing books about travel in Asia and Africa.
- 1970s–1980s
Travelling with Rachel
Made demanding journeys with her young daughter and wrote about their experiences.
- 1990s–2010s
Political travel writing
Explored places affected by division and conflict, including the Balkans and the Middle East.
Selected work
Full Tilt
Recounts her overland bicycle journey to India.
Eight Feet in the Andes
Describes travelling through Peru with her daughter and a mule.
Wheels Within Wheels
An autobiography of her upbringing and family life.
Beyond work
Motherhood
Raised her daughter Rachel as a single mother and later travelled with her grandchildren.
Refugee work
Volunteered with Tibetan refugees during her early Asian travels.
Sources & photo credit
Biography and references ↗Biography and contributions ↗Photo: Unknown photographer, © Dervla Murphy , Eland Books (Copyright Act 1963, Ireland). CC BY 4.0 · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
