The son of a bank manager, he was educated at St Eunan's College in Letterkenny where he wrote, produced and staged a musical called Madame Screwball at the age of 16.

On television he was a familiar face, often in glossy thriller series like The Avengers, Man in a Suitcase and Strange Report.

[2] McAnally regularly acted in the Abbey Theatre and at Irish festivals, but in the last decade of life he achieved award-winning notice on TV and films.

[3] Then in 1989 he won the 1988 BAFTA for Best Actor for his performance in A Very British Coup,[4] a role that also brought him a Jacob's Award, and just three months before his sudden death.

McAnally died suddenly of a heart attack on 15 June 1989, aged 63,[5] at his home, which he shared with Irish actress Britta Smith.

McAnally had also been cast in the lead role of First and Last, a drama about a man who walked from Land's End to John o' Groats.