Behan learned to speak the Irish language at the home of the Nolan family in the Connemara Gaeltacht during the late 1940s. Drs. Sinéad and Maureen Nolan (daughters of the house) never heard a disrespectful word or a hint of profanity from him during that time. He was much loved and revered by their devoutly Roman Catholic parents, who recognized Behan's genius for language long before he became famous. The Nolans saw his theatrics for what they were: a device to conceal an exquisitely sensitive nature.