by Rose Rushe
IT’s apt that one of Mrs Brown’s boys is director of the Richard Harris International Film Festival. The comedy series, written by Brendan O’Carroll and directed by Ben Kellett, has won BAFTA, Scottish BAFTA and IFTA awards. Big? O’Carroll’s touring stage show of the series is sold out across Australia until 2017, playing to huge venues.
“They took two months off to film the movie,” reports one who was there, Zebedee Moore of Magic Roundabout Theatre Company, Limerick based/ Richard Harris Festival. He shares screen credits with Sorcha Cusack, June Rodgers, Simon Delaney, RTE’s Joe Duffy and boyband-turned-actor, Keith Duffy. More Limerick? Perhaps Jon Kenny qualifies.
“One of the assistant directors, Fiona Gibney, had seen my showreel [actor’s CV on film] and showed it to one of the casting directors. I was flown over to the live performance of ‘Mrs Brown’s Boys’ in Birmingham”.
Zeb landed a part in ‘Mrs Brown’s Boys D’Movie’ on a Monday, and promptly snapped his Achilles’ heel. O’Carroll insisted he persevere with the role, that of security guard with Boyzone’s Duffy. “He facilitated the injury by sitting me behind a desk. It’s only two minutes of screen time but it is pivotal to the story that follows”.
He pulls a face remembering the pain, leg in plaster, “but Keith was a gentleman. We became good friends. Our filming was the wrap shot, the last on the film set when cast and crew are around for the closing party. The director Ben said to us, ‘Keith and Zeb, no pressure now, there’s a couple of hundred people watching you’,” he grins. He swears they did it in two takes.
The premier was last night, Wednesday June 25 in Dublin’s Savoy, Zeb on the red carpet with his wife Sylvia Moore with whom he runs Magic Roundabout, Richard Harris International Film Festival – and their plastics engineering company.
Both avid supporters of theatre and live performance, he has worked with Impact Theatre, Torch Players, Orchard Theatre, Quarry Players “and Bottom Dog, bringing me into professional theatre for the first time”.
Film? His feature ‘Upgrade’ screened this month at Motion Pictures at the Mezz, the programme curated by actor/ writer Kevin Kiely at The Red Hen on Patrick Street. The short ‘Vanner’, produced by Limerick based Sídhe Films, screened in Chicago and Galway’s film festivals.
Photo: Ian Collins
Back to Brendan O’Carroll, the Borstal boy made good. “It is interesting that the UK and now Australia have accepted him more than the Irish, playing to venues of up to 15,000 per show, twice a day in Australia”.
“[On set] Brendan has a lovely attitude, makes everyone feel comfortable, sets a family orientated, friendly environment. He’s very much in a positive frame of mind”.
Get the vibe at a cinema near you.
