0
It’s hard to believe it, but it’s been almost 25 years since Father Ted graced our TV screens with it’s surrealist and irreverent take on life as a Catholic Priest and rural life in Ireland.
Making Craggy Island famous from the moment the brilliant Dermot Morgan first burst on to our screens on the 21st of April, 1995. Quotes from the show have become a part of our everyday vernacular. The cry of ‘drink, feck, girls’ or ‘that would be an ecumenical matter can be heard in the Purple Revolver office on a regular basis.
The show transcended the rules of standard sit com fodder and reverberated with the outlaw feeling on the alternative British comedy scene of the late 90s. it truly is a classic when it comes to UK comedy.
We all loved when Father Ted and Dougal went on their annual caravan holiday, those tiny cows or when Dougal and Ted go to bed.
The year 1995, it might be hard to remember what was happening then – Take That were number 1 in the UK charts with Back For Good and Toy Story made history as the first wholly computer generated movie.
The series had quite the impact on Irish pop culture, way up there with the likes of U2, the Late Late, Eurovision and more.
Even actors that only made brief appearances in Father Ted essentially became household names as it grew in popularity across it’s three series’ run.
Almost two and a half decades on, Father Ted is still as treasured as ever by fans.
Our good friends at VideOdyssey in Liverpool are hosting a Father Ted quiz this Sunday… and as it’s to celebrate St Patrick’s Day, classic episodes will be shown, with prizes to be won and Father Ted themed drinks at the bar will be available.
Tickets and more info are available on the Father Ted quiz event page
Here are some interesting bits of trivia and facts all about Father Ted to read up on in the meantime.
1) Despite years of stories claiming how RTE turned down Father Ted and missed out on one of the biggest TV opportunities ever, Graham Linehan has said several times that it was never pitched to RTE, and was only ever intended to be pitched for Channel 4.
2) In the episode The Mainland, Father Ted says Mrs Doyle’s first name, only for it to be bleeped out. It later emerged that the script had her name written as Joan.
3) The lingerie department in A Christmassy Ted is Dunnes Stores in Ennis, and the scene was shot just before the store opened to the public.
4) Despite many believing that Father Ted was ‘cut short’ by the death of Dermot Morgan, series three was always to be the last season. Creators Graham Linehan and Arthur Matthews wanted it to end because they had completed all they could with the set of characters, while Dermot Morgan had decided to leave the show because he wanted to explore his career options.
5) Mrs Doyle is based off writer Graham Linehan’s own mother.
Be sure to pop on down to VideOdyssey this St Patrick’s Day for a day filled with Father Ted classic episodes and a ‘really great’ quiz.