We all know about the rise of Michael Fassbender and Saoirse Ronan, but Irish actors are also taking over the small screen, too. From Hollyoaks to Merlin and to hot new US shows, it seems that fast-rising Irish stars are everywhere. Alan Corr reports
Dominique McElligott
From a grubby GAA pitch to the gleaming kitchen of a busy Dublin eatery to the construction of America’s first transcontinental railway in the 1860s . . . That’s been the voyage of fast-rising Dubliner Dominique McElligott from On Home Ground to Raw, and most recently her role as steely widow Lily Bell opposite Colm Meaney in new western drama Hell on Wheels. You may already know her from Duncan Jones’ fine directorial debut Moon, in which she played the wife of an anguished Sam Rockwell; and as Aoife O'Carroll in The Guard with Brendan Gleeson, but if Hell on Wheels is as good as the advance write-ups are suggesting, who knows what the next port of call will be for blonde beauty McElligott?
Edward MacLiam
Is lamented cop drama The Bill the real school of acting for aspiring British and Irish thespians? A very young Keira Knightly appeared on the show and so did Mallow man Edward MacLiam. The 35-year moved from gritty police drama to the world of medicine and is now best-known as registrar Greg Douglas on the Beeb’s long-running Holby City. He’s also appeared in Doctors, did the grind of EastEnders (playing yet another doctor) and also acted on Waking the Dead and Heartbeat. The square-jawed Corkonian is due to make his exit from Holby very soon so it will be interesting to see where he turns up next.
Katie McGrath
Dublin-born Katie McGrath never wanted to be an actress. She studied history at Trinity College and upon graduating; she became interested in fashion journalism and ended up at lifestyle and fashion magazine, Image. However, when she was working as wardrobe assistant to Oscar-winning Joan Bergin on The Tudors, a member of the production crew suggested she try acting. McGrath made her debut in the TV film Damage in 2007 and she also won a small role in The Tudors itself. However, her big break came when she was cast as the evil Morgana in the hit BBC series Merlin. Look out for her in Madonna’s W.E. and McGrath’s unconventional good looks make her perfect for her next TV role in new drama Labyrinth, an adventure story set in both medieval and modern-day France, centred on two women bound together by the secret of the Holy Grail.
Colin Morgan
The ears have it. Funny how in the fabled world of noble English heraldry and knightly derring-do, it’s a pointy-eared Irish bloke who magicks up the good stuff. Colin Morgan is the titular wizard in The Beeb’s Merlin, playing the future mystic seer of Arthurian legend in his younger days. It’s a plum role on a much-watched early evening slot which is occupied later in the year by a doctor named Who and it’s rocketed Armagh-native Morgan's profile considerably. Although, his acting career began well when he was cast in the title role of the stage adaptation of DBC Pierre's Booker Prize-winner Vernon God Little at the Young Vic in 2007 and the 26-year-old has also appeared alongside Colm Meaney in Parked (playing a very convincing Dub) and the very well received Island.
Jason O’Mara
Even if pre-historical drama Terra Nova goes the way of the dinosaurs, Jason O’Mara can rest easy. The Dublin-born actor is already lined up for Appomattox, a TV mini-series in which he plays one of the great generals of the American Civil War. As time-travelling frontiersman Jim Shannon, O’Mara was the best thing about Terra Nova, a show that quickly Lost its way (pun intended). Before that, he was also the best thing about the American version of Life on Mars. After graduating from Trinity College with a BA in drama and theatre, he moved to London and spent time in British repertory theatre, leading to major roles with the Royal Shakespeare Company and at the Gate Theatre in Dublin. He’s been around the block on American TV and is well used to series development hell but with his clean-cut good looks and fine acting chops, O’Mara is sure to be around for a long time to come.
Emmett Scanlan
“My aim was to make Brendan Brady the most hated man in England”, said Dublin-born actor Emmet Scanlan of his role in Channel 4’s Hollyoaks. However, despite his best attempts to become the Dirty Den of yoof soap, the 32-year-old’s mischievous nature meant the complete opposite happened. “Funnily enough, the more wacky I make Brendan, the more people love him.” He’s become a fixture on the long-running teen drama, and while some may sniff at his soapy station in life, it means incredible exposure for an actor on the up. He’s appeared in the Justin Timberlake-produced MTV series The Phone, featured in RTÉ Two’s fly on-the-wall documentary series, Hollywood Trials, and his film roles include Colour From The Dark, Studs and Freakdog. He won the 2011 European Independent Film Festival Award for Best Actor for his role as the title character in Charlie Casanova. You may also have spotted him in Mattie and The Clinic and while soaps are not always the best springboard for greater things, Scanlan could be the man to break the mould.
Jack Gleeson
Remember that scene in 2005’s Batman Begins when our caped avenger is standing on a fire escape starring meaningfully out into another bleak Gotham night? A little boy pokes his head out a nearby window and whispers in awe, “You’re him . . .” That little boy was Jack Gleeson and while that scene was hardly Golden Globe material, it was some way to make a big screen debut. The Trinity student has gone on to play a stormer as King Joffrey in the first series of Game of Thrones. He previously appeared in feel-good flick A Shine of Rainbows and in Paddy Breathnach’s feel-kinda-weird comedy horror Shrooms. Last year, industry bible Variety described him as ‘the pic’s big discovery’ in the movie, All Good Children.
Kevin J Ryan
With a smoulder that can stun at 20 paces, this Dublin lad is another in a long line of Irish hotties that have blazed a trail on American television. A stonecutter by trade (stop swooning at the back there), his long-harboured love of Shakespeare inspired him to try his hand at acting. In 2007, he moved to Los Angeles to pursue his dream. Over the past few years, the 27-year-old has appeared in a number of acclaimed indie productions (some of which he penned himself) and closer to home, you might have seen him recently in Raw. However, the big news for Ryan is his casting in new BBC drama Coppers. The series is centred on 19th-Century New York Irish police and he plays Detective Francis Maguire. You can bet your bottom dollar it will be better than Blue Bloods.
