The son of business tycoon Ben Dunne has revealed his late father’s 1981 kidnapping had a “hugely traumatic” effect on his life, but said his father held “no ill feeling towards his captors” as he was described as a “brilliant and loving father” at his funeral mass.

The retail giant was kidnapped by the IRA in 1981 and held hostage for a week before the Government paid out a reported £1M ransom for his release.

Mr Dunne died suddenly while on holiday in Dubai on November 18, while staying at the Le Royal Meridien Beach Resort & Spa Dubai.

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Speaking to mourners at his funeral mass this morning at St Mochta’s Church in Porterstown, Clonsilla, Mr Dunne’s heartbroken son Mark described his father as “ambitious and driven” who loved helping others without wanting public recognition.

He revealed his parents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary this year, and it was a “beautiful occasion to attend and a testament to two people who remained committed to their marriage through thick and thin.”

“No matter what life has thrown at us over the years, dad would be the first to say our mother had always been our rock. Dad loved her dearly and relied so much on her sensibility to navigate through any chaos."

He said that their holidays in Majorca were some of their “happiness times as a family."

“We’ve so many fond memories of the many years dad had his beloved yacht birthed in Puerto Portals.”

He said the 74-year-old was at “his happiness enjoying a drink and watching the sunset in the port.”

Mark described him as a “brilliant and loving father and grandfather who would do anything to ensure the happiness of his children and grandchildren.”

Mr Dunne was an iconic figure in business and ran Dunnes Stores as managing director and executive chairman for almost a decade.

Mark said his father had a “passion for business and was razor-sharp with numbers."

“I’m sure many of you know just how difficult running a business can be, and being part of the family business is even more difficult, as you can well imagine.”

Mark also told mourners about the close relationship between Mr Dunne and his sister Margaret Heffernan had, despite a bitter legal battle that engulfed their family years ago.

The pair had a high-profile falling-out as a result of the businessman becoming embroiled in a headline-making cocaine-fuelled binge with a prostitute at a Florida hotel.

Margaret subsequently replaced her brother as head of the family supermarket business, Dunnes Stores. But after a bitter legal battle, the siblings eventually reconciled and resolved their differences.

He said: “My father endured many things with his siblings, some private and some unfortunately every public. However, the core of a family business is that word 'family', and family always finds a way of coming back to its roots.

“I want to acknowledge as well that today is a particular difficult day for my aunt Margaret. Margaret and dad spoke to each other almost daily about many things. Whilst they were both different people with different opinions, they loved each other dearly and they have been a great source of strength to each other over the years.

“They both dedicated so much of their time in recent years to caring for their sister Anne in Cork, and I hope Margaret can find comfort in knowing that her dear brother is now in the company of their siblings Frank, Liz, and Therese.”

Mark also opened up about his father’s kidnapping, telling the congregation that it had a profound effect on him personally.

He said: “His kidnapping in 1981 was hugely traumatic on him, and it was the source of much of his personal troubles throughout the years that followed.

“But time is a great healer, and he held no ill feeling towards his captors. He did the Christian thing and forgave.” Mark said that his late father recreated his working life and entered the fitness industry, which he couldn’t do without the help of his close friend ‘Denis’. He said: “Dad loved the fitness industry."

“Dad and Denis remained the closest of friends right to the very end. I know today is particularly hard for Denis as he bids farewell to his best friend.”

Mark said it was no secret Mr Dunne loved a drink, with Bombay Sapphire being his choice of tipple. “Ever the retailer, his preferred measure was known as a family pack. A measure of wholesale proportions. In fact, I remember him saying to me once, it mightn’t be better value, but every little helps.”

He said his late father was “always worrying about his health” and would go to the doctors with a “sore thumb.” Mark told mourners his father "never liked going to funerals" but wanted a "full report" from the ones his son had attended.

"This is one funeral that, sadly, he must attend," he told the congregation, adding he would be pleased to see so many people in attendance.”

Mark thanked the first responders to his father at the Le Royal Meridien Hotel, the paramedics, medical team, and nurses at the Al Zahra Hospital in Dubai who “worked so hard to save dad."
He thanked Ambassador Alician Milton and “all the staff at the Irish embassy in Abu Dhabi for their consular assistance,” as well as Emirates Airlines for “getting us home with dad."

He emotionally thanked his father’s friends Bill and Hilda, “who had just arrived in Dubai and provided huge support to me in the immediate wake of dad’s passing,” as well as his wife Gabby and his children.

Large crowds have gathered to pay their respects as the funeral for businessman Ben Dunne takes place in west Dublin.
Among the mourners are family and friends, along with well-known figures across business and politics, including businessman Larry Goodman, Bobby Kerr, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald, and TD Michael Lowry.

The Taoiseach was represented by his Aide de Camp.
Staff from Ben Dunne Gyms formed a guard of honour at the entrance to St Mochta's Church in Clonsilla ahead of the arrival of the funeral cortège.

The cortège was led by Mr Dunne's wife, Mary, and his four children, Caroline, Robert, Mark, and Nicholas.

Father Damien McNiece told mourners that “Ben would always want the last word,” as he said his death has “cast a great sadness in our lives."

Mr Dunne left the church in a wicker casket as the book of gospels was placed on top of his coffin. He was buried in Castleknock Churchyard.

Mr Dunne is survived by his heartbroken wife Mary, his sons Mark, Robert, and Nicholas, his daughter Caroline, his beloved grandfathers Ben, Katie, Pearl, and Joseph, his sisters Margaret and Ann, his extended family, relatives, and a large circle of friends.

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