Frank of Ireland: Gleeson brothers head to Channel 4
David Farnor | On 29, Feb 2020
The Gleeson brothers are heading to Channel 4 for new comedy Frank of Ireland.
The first comedy penned by brothers Brian and Domhnall Gleeson and Michael Moloney, it follows Frank Marron, played by Brian Gleeson (Peaky Blinders, The Bisexual), a 32-year-old catastrophe. A misanthropic, narcissistic, fantasist in arrested development who thinks the world owes him something, he is, nonetheless, our hero.
Frank lives in Dublin with his mother Mary (Pom Boyd, Rosie, Rialto,Snakes and Ladders), and that’s fine. He is single and his pocket money hasn’t increased in a decade or more, but that’s fine too. Frank is a musician/ He hasn’t written a song or played a gig in seven years and five months, but that is totally, 100% fine. His ex-girlfriend Aine (Sarah Greene, Dublin Murders, Rosie, Ransom) has a new boyfriend Peter-Brian (Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Dublin Murders, Rialto, Avengers: Endgame) for the first time since they split, and Frank may be finding that a tad difficult, but it’s all absolutely fine. Frank is fine.
Frank is also fine because of his wingman Doofus, played by Domhnall Gleeson (The Revenant, Ex-Machina, The Force Awakens). Doofus foolishly thinks they are best friends and it’s his job to blow smoke up, facilitate and attempt to fix the relentless debris in Frank’s wake.
The series hails from Sharon Horgan and Clelia Mountford’s Merman, with Mountford and Horgan exec-producing along with Brian Gleeson, Domhnall Gleeson and Michael Moloney. The series is produced by Rory Gilmartin and directed by MJ Delaney for Merman.
The show is a co-production for Channel 4 and Amazon Studios, with Channel 4 airing the show in the UK and Amazon Prime Video streaming it in the US, Canada and Australia.
Brian, Domhnall, and Michael Moloney said: “We’re so excited to work with MJ, Sharon, and Clelia on this, our first and (we’ve been told) last television series.”
Sharon Horgan, Merman Co-founder, added: “Working with the Gleeson Brothers has been like living in a very funny, existential dreamscape. I laughed so much making the pilot that it became annoying. So Clelia and I are very glad and relieved they still chose to make this series with us.”
Brad Beale, Vice President of Worldwide Content Licensing, Amazon Studios: “Frank of Ireland is smart, wholly original and incredibly funny. We’re thrilled to work with Brian and Domhnall to bring our Prime Video customers this terrific new comedy.”
Filming in Dublin and Belfast has just begun.