Simon Delaney is not afraid to say it like it is, that the life of an actor can be a "horrendous slog", but he wouldn’t have it any other way. He talks to Janice Butler about landing his dream role in Blue Moon, keeping the show on the road when times get tough and filling some big shoes of his friend Gay Byrne on his RTÉ lyric fm radio show.
The life of an actor may seem a glamorous one, especially when you’re rubbing shoulders with the likes of Vince Vaughan, Sean Penn and Francis McDormand on the big screen and garnering attention on the small screen in hit shows like The Good Wife and The Woman in the Wall, but Dublin actor, writer, presenter and general jack of all trades Simon Delaney, who is 25 years in the business is not afraid to say how difficult it can be, especially when you have a wife and four boys at home.
"It can be a horrendous slog. But getting something like this makes it all worthwhile," he says. And the something like this he’s referring to is his new big screen feature, Blue Moon, which the critics are loving.
Simon is fresh from the Cork Film Festival when we catch up, where the movie was screened, and his enthusiasm for the project is bubbling over. And why wouldn’t it be?
He takes on the role of the iconic Oscar Hammerstein in the Richard Linklater-directed movie that tells the story of legendary lyricist Lorenz Hart (Ethan Hawke) bravely facing the future as his professional and private life unravels at the opening night party for his former partner's (Richard Rodgers, played by Andrew Scott) hit show Oklahoma!
"It’s a beautiful film," gushes Simon. "We shot it last summer in Ardmore studios, and it was shot over 15 days, would you believe? It’s incredible for a feature film. We had two weeks of rehearsals before it, which was key because we only had 15 days to shoot and Ethan wanted to make sure that when the cameras turned on, we were all ready, including himself," he adds.
"It was kind of like doing a play; to get rehearsal time like that, you never get it on a feature film, so that was a real luxury. It was an incredible process watching Ethan Hawke and Richard Linklater together. They have a long relationship, and watching them was beautiful; I love watching people who know what the hell they’re doing," he laughs.
Simon started his career on stage and growing up with his father Billy in showbands, music and musical theatre has always been a love of his and a driving force for him getting into the business, so when this script came his way, he knew he had to get it.
"When I read the overview and the synopsis of what the movie was about, I rang my agent straight away and said this is so far up my street, it’s practically knocking at my hall door!" he laughs. "The second musical I ever worked on back in 1994 was Oklahoma! by Rodgers and Hammerstein, and I’ve been in love with them ever since. I love all of Hammerstein’s music and shows, and I’ve read a book about the man, so to get to play him and play him opposite Andrew Scott as Richard Rodgers and Ethan Hawke as Hart, I knew I had to get the part," he adds.
He has nothing but praise for his co-star Ethan Hawke, who he describes as "extremely welcoming and transformative in the role."
And as for his Irish co-star Andrew Scott? "Oh, he was a pain in the arse!" he jokes.
"I’d met Andrew a couple of times – we’d never worked together, but he was everything I expected him to be, he was an absolute gentleman, we had great fun together. He shines on the screen, he’s a phenomenal actor, and it was a pleasure to work with him, but don’t tell him I said that!" he laughs.
He remarks again that while it’s fantastic when roles and movies like this come along, they’re not all that frequent, and continuous work in the movie industry is hard. "It was one of those jobs that makes you glad that you do what you do for a living," he says.
"The object of this game is to work, but it’s very difficult to do that. There’s lots of obstacles in your way, but when you get a job like this, it makes you feel like everything is good in the world, if only we could do this 50 weeks a year," he says.
This time last year, his first book, Watching Over You, was published, and, again, it came out of making the work happen for himself. With many TV scripts written and pitched, he used one of his ideas for a book, and there’s more to come.
"I’m still writing away, I’ve another couple of books in the pipeline that I’m working on, and I’m writing a couple of scripts. That keeps me going, it’s kind of my creative outlet. I’d love to turn the first book into a feature film, but they’re all long-term plans."
Having been in the entertainment business for a quarter of a century, he’s done it all; from his breakout role in Bachelor’s Walk, to being a finalist in Celebrity Masterchef and going on to setting up a food truck, to hosting Ireland AM for six years, there’s no doubt that he’s not afraid of hard work. But he admits that it gets harder as his four boys, ranging in ages from 9 to 19, get older.
"When I started off, at the age of 25, if I wasn’t working, I didn’t give a sh*te, but when you have four kids and a mortgage and all that comes with that, the pressure is on a wee bit," he says honestly.
"There’s no doubt it’s getting harder – it’s a tough, tough way to make a living. That’s why I really appreciate having my gig on lyric fm on a Sunday, that’s gone from strength to strength and I adore that."
He took up hosting duties on a new afternoon show on lyric fm earlier last year, and so far, it has been a success with the listeners, playing songs he loves himself; "the Great American Songbook, opera and theatre," he says.
It’s the slot that his dear friend and mentor Gay Byrne once occupied, and he remarks that he reconognises the significance of that.
"Gay kind of hand his hand on my shoulder all through my career and it’s not lost on me that that’s the studio and the chair he sat in every Sunday on lyric. People text me probably every second week saying 'you’re doing Gay proud’ and that’s just another little tick for me that I’m doing the right thing."
He credits his wife Lisa, of 20 years, for supporting his dreams and never putting the pressure on to get a ‘real job’.
"My wife is incredible, she should be dipped in bronze and made into a statue!" he laughs.
"She was in the business; we met in a musical society, and she was a dancer, so she knows that world in terms of the schedule and inconsistency. But truly, I couldn’t have done any of it without her support and backing; she’s my biggest fan, biggest critic and biggest supporter, and she has to put up with an awful lot," he adds sweetly.
Have any of his boys shown an interest in showbiz, or would he deter them from the uncertainty of the industry?
"I wouldn’t deter them from anything," he answers. "My eldest fella has just gone to college, he’s studying music and media studies, and they all have a great appetite for theatre and musical theatre. My dad gave me my interest in music and put a guitar in my hand when I was eleven, so his hand was on my shoulder and I’m passing that on to the boys."
Twenty-five years down and "hopefully 25 more," he says. He has lots of interesting roles coming up: a part in Guy Ritchie’s Young Sherlock series for Amazon Prime, and next year he’ll appear in a Werner Herzog movie opposite Rooney Mara and Orlando Bloom. There’s lots left on the bucket, he says.
"I’d love to do Broadway, tour with a musical, I’d love the role of Max from The Producers – Mel Brooks is an idol of mine. Lots still on the wish list. I still think I can play in goal for United!" he laughs.
"Who knows what’s down the road? When that phone rings, it’s either going to be the credit union looking for a payment or Hollywood."
