As a matter of clarification to the debate of who wrote The Auld Triangle, I can confirm that it was indeed Dicky Shannon who penned the song for Behan. Brendan and Dicky were very close pals, aswell as drinking mates. The song refers to the joy (Mountjoy) jail in Dublin. It was very common in those days for men to get themselves locked up, as it would guarantee bed and board for a few nights. Strange I know, but that's wha poverty does I suppose? I have many stories of their escapades together, including a visit they made to the BBC, in which Brendan promised to record a series of short stories. This was of course dependant on him being paid up front for his services. Sadly he never recorded the stories, but was given a small retainer, so the drink flowed for a while. Brendan always credited Dicky for the song because they were great pals, however, I can verify that Dicky never received a penny in royalties and neither did his family, but Brendan did give Dicky's eldest son Michael (Mickser) Shannon the boat fare to come to England in 1955. A gesture that Mickser has never forgotten. I know this to be true because I am Dicky's grandson, and he would relate his story to keep us entertained as kids. Having read Sullivans book on Behan ican see why they were such good friends. They appear to have had very similar outlooks to life.