Fr Ted duo says they feel more ‘grown up’ as they reunite for new comedy show

Sky’s Comedy’s Rosie Molloy Gives Up Everythingwill bring Pauline McLynn and Ardal O’Hanlon on screen together for the first time since they created comedic gold in their roles as eccentric tea-pusher Mrs Doyle and hilarious Father Dougal McGuire.

As Sunday World Magazine+ caught up with Pauline in London, the 60-year-old Sligo legend still has that wonderfully devious glint in her eye.

And when asked why she has not worked with Ardal in a quarter of a century, she puts all the blame at his feet.

“Why haven’t Ardal and I worked together since Father Ted? I don’t know,” she ponders.

“I’d like to say it’s because we were off doing other things, but maybe Ardal has a different answer to that question and he has been avoiding me!

“I suppose we should say we feel a little more grown up all these years on, but I don’t think we ever really grow up. I don’t think we should.

“Hopefully a few people watching this won’t be missing their childhood and can get used to the idea that Fr Dougal has grown up and is doing something else these days.

“The amazing thing is Father Ted is probably more popular now than it was when it was first aired.

“We have all these channels that show repeats of the old shows and it allows a whole new generation of people to watch the show, and that’s wonderful.”

Some actors shy away from reflecting on an enduring show that helped to define their careers, but Pauline insists she has no problem reminiscing about her time in Father Ted.

“All these years on, I still get shouted at in the street for a cup of tea,” she smiles.

“I don’t always have a kettle with me, but we work our way around that.

“It’s a compliment when people remember something you’ve done and enjoyed and it’s a pleasure when I’m flicking through the TV and it pops up.

“When I see it now, I don’t see myself or Ardal in it. I just see the characters and delight in how funny it was.”

Rosie Molloy Gives Up Everythingis the Sky Comedy original set to bring plenty of fun and drama onto our screens in the run-up to Christmas.

In the show, Rosie Molloy (Sheridan Smith) is addicted to everything: smoking, alcohol, Terry’s Chocolate Orange, Xanax, Adderall, caffeine… the list goes on.

Her parents, played by Pauline and Ardal, try to keep her in check in a show that taps into the trials and tribulations of life on a grand scale.

“This show is a comedy, but when I say that, you will also be crying by the end of it,” adds Pauline.

“You know how life is a mess, well this show captures that chaos in a lovely way.

“Hopefully you will spend most of your time laughing (because) we spend a lot of time having fun at some, how shall I say, inappropriate things.

“I like that. It’s kind of like when you get a fit of the giggles at a funeral. You know it’s wrong, but it’s also very right in another way.

“We keep being told we can’t laugh at these things, but do we have to listen to them? Of course not, we all do it.

“Hopefully people are going to be thrilled with this. It is a genuine story and when the funny bits come, they are hilarious and it feels like you have earned them.”

​- Rosie Molloy Gives Up Everything is coming to Sky Comedy and NOW from December 7