Born and raised in Limerick City, where as a member of a Irish speaking drama
group - “Buíon Phádraig” - she achieved twelve Best Actress awards.

Is married with four grown-up children and has lived in Skerries, County Dublin, since 1977.

1982. Participated in the Dublin Grapevine Arts Centre Writers’ Workshops
moderated, among others, by the late acclaimed Maurice Scully - (Aosdana member,
RIP 2023.)

1984. Attended one of the “Write On” Arlen House Workshops moderated by Poet
and Author, Eavan Boland RIP.

1985. Founded, with the financial support of the Irish Writers’ Centre and the initial
involvement of the Poet/Writer John F Deane, “Skerries Womens’ Writing Group”
which ran successfully for 25 years.

1986. Was selected as one of the 10 participants in the National Writers’
Workshop organised by The Arts Council which entailed attending a total of three
sessions. Two in Galway (UCG) and one at the Tyrone Guthrie Centre. These were
moderated by the playwright Tom Murphy (RIP). Since then has had had five
residencies at the Tyrone Guthrie Centre.

1987. Devised and directed a Community event called “A Sense of Skerries”
which was a collaboration between The Skerries Historical Society and The Marian
Musical and Dramatic Society, Skerries.

Early 1990’s. Was awarded a Bursary by Fingal Co. Council Arts Office to work
on my full-length play “Ladies’ Do” mentored by Director David Byrne.

Also during this time over several years I have had nine contributions to Sunday
Miscellany accepted by RTE and have been published in The Salmon, a literary
magazine, and also Voicefree magazine and was second Prizewinner in one of the
George Moore Convention Short Story Competitions.

1995. Was placed second in the O.Z. Whitehead/Society of Irish Playwrights Play
Competition for my one act play “JUST GOOD FRIENDS”. As part of the prize
the play got a professional rehearsed reading in the Irish Writers Centre. Soon after
this it got a full professional production which ran over four days as part of
Spotlight on Skerries Arts Week which was largely supported by Fingal County
Council

In mid 1990’s. Maries play for children “ School Friends” was produced by the
Director of Skerries Youth Theatre, the late Anne O’Sullivan, and had a run of four evenings in the Carnegie Library building in Skerries.

2000. Marie received an M.A. (Hons.) in Women’s Studies from University College
Dublin, her Thesis being on the life and work of the Dublin writer Annie M.P.
Smithson called “Annie M.P. Smithson, Romantic Novelist/Revolutionary Nurse.

Arlen House publishers subsequently commissioned a first Biography
on Annie Smithson. The completed manuscript, which entailed a great deal of
research and writing over a four year period, is currently with the editor.

2001-2004. “Ireland’s Own” magazine serialized the “LIZZIE BAROLLI
TRILOGY” of historical novels by Marie Bashford Synnott. These are “Marble Halls”, “The Hope and the Pride” and “Still the Same”.

2004. Wrote a children’s play in rhyming couplets for Loughshinny National
School which won first prize in the Litter Awareness Competition organized by
Fingal Co. Council. This was called “FLAG DAY”.

2006. Brought out a collection of poetry with photographs by her Artist son
Diarmuid Synnott called “Skerries Mills - a Poetry Collection”. This was commissioned by
the then Director of the Skerries Mills complex and funded by Fingal County
Council.

2007. Under the auspices of Soundwaves Arts Group, which was funded by
Fingal County Council, collected and translated and published a book of Nursery
Rhymes from twenty-three nationalities living in Skerries called “Sharing our
Rhymes” . The book was illustrated with drawings by the young students of
Skerries Arts School.

2011. A short story “Carrot Head” was shortlisted for the RTE Guide/
Penguin Short Story Competition.

2016. As part of the Skerries Soundwaves Festival Marie collaborated as researcher/
writer/narrator in a three person show “Salvage” - Voices from the wreck of the
Tayleur based on the poetry of local poet Enda Coyle Green and with music by
Skerries Uileann Piper Bill Haneman.

Maries poetry has been published in recent years in five editions of the Belfast based
magazine “A New Ulster”.

2023. Marie took part in an initiative by Arlen House publishers to bring women’s
poetry more widely to the public under the title “Washing Windows”.
Maries poem “ In the Weigh-Room an ancient ladder” was included
in “Washing Windows 111” in that year and one of her poems was selected for inclusion in each of Volumes IV and V in 2024 and 2025 respectively.

2023. A Development Day of Maries full length play “Ladies Do”, which included a
tabletop reading by ten local amateur actors, was hosted by the Millbank Theatre,
Rush, under the direction of playwright/writer Declan Gorman and supported by
Fingal County Council Arts Office.

2025. The Play “ Ladies Do” was brought to full amateur production under the auspices of the newly established Drama organisation for the Lusk, Rush and Skerries area of Fingal - called “Fedelm Creativity” .

“Ladies’ Do” had an extremely successful three night run in June 2025, with full houses, at the Millbank Theatre in Rush, County Dublin. The audience reaction was enthusiastic and ranged from sadness to great hilarity and back as the play progressed to standing ovations at its conclusion each night.

2026. At present Marie is working on a full length play “No Place” which deals
with a sensitive contemporary issue but is placed in a Irish Victorian setting.

An Arts Act Grant has been approved by Fingal Arts Office for a Development Workshop on this play, with a professional mentor, during 2026, under the auspices of Fedelm Creativity.