'The only time you get silence in a post-mortem room is when you're dealing with a case like that'- Dr Marie Cassidy on effects of career

"The former state pathologist is now a best-selling crime novelist and occasional reality TV star. She reflects on her newest chapters - and how she only cried once during a post-mortem Terry O'Brien, the main character in Deadly Evidence, the new crime novel by Dr Marie Cassidy, is "probably my ­alter-ego", admits the former state pathologist for Ireland. But who is Dr Marie ­Cassidy? At the end of a lively and engaging conversation in Dún Laoghaire last week, I was none the wiser."

"She certainly wasn't the person I was expecting. "I'm a conundrum," she says. "I'm not what people think. They think I'm somebody who is very confident and very self-assured. That's not me. There's a persona that I put on in the morning - high heels, lipstick and off I go. Join the Irish Independent WhatsApp channel Stay up to date with all the latest news"

Dr Marie Cassidy served as Ireland's state pathologist and later became a bestselling crime novelist and occasional reality-TV participant. Her novel Deadly Evidence features Terry O'Brien, a protagonist described as her probable alter-ego. Cassidy presents a polished public persona—high heels and lipstick—that conceals private insecurity and a lack of the outward confidence others assume. She labels herself a conundrum and emphasizes that public perception of self-assurance does not match her self-view. Cassidy reports crying only once during a post-mortem. Her public profile now spans forensic expertise, fiction writing, and television appearances.

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