‘That’s only for kids, isn’t it?’ Derry Girls star Siobhán on landing Disney+ show role
Actress features in series created by NI woman
DERRY Girls star Siobhán Mcsweeney has recalled how she thought her new show Extraordinary was a children’s programme when first offered the part because it streams on Disney+.
Appearing as a guest on Dish, the food podcast hosted by Nick Grimshaw and Angela Hartnett, the Cork actress said: “When we got the call, myself and my agent, I was like, that’s only kids shows, isn’t it? Am I going to be a puppet or something?
“Then I read the scripts and I was like, these are really good, and totally not for kids.”
Extraordinary, created by Emma Moran from Killadeas, Co Fermanagh, is set in a world where everyone gains a superpower at the age of 18.
The plot centres on Jen, played by Máiréad Tyers, also from Cork, who still hasn’t developed any powers at the age of 25.
The show, which debuted in January last year, released its second season this month to positive reviews.
Mcsweeney (44) plays Jen’s mother Mary. She said: “My daughter’s superpower hasn’t kicked in.
“So it’s that wonderful framework where you get to explore the idea of being in your early 20s and feeling like a loser because all your friends have got it sorted and you’re the loser who can’t do anything.”
Mcsweeney is best known for her role as Sister Michael in Derry Girls, which won her a Bafta last year.
She added: “I went home early from the Baftas. People were still partying. I just felt overwhelmed and deeply, deeply tired. I sort of wanted to go home and have a cry, not because I was sad, but just the sort of build-up of stuff. The emotional aspect of it all.”
She also spoke about the casting process for the much-loved Channel 4 comedy which ended in 2022.
“It took them ages to cast it because they had to get the right combo of kids. I believe that they were auditioning for each other’s parts and they were just trying to get, a bit like the Spice Girls, but you know, less Tories… sorry Geri,” she said.
Mcsweeney has also hosted the Great Pottery Throw Down on Channel 4 since 2021.
The show pits a group of home potters against each other, with the weakest contestant knocked out each week until a winner is crowned.
Mcsweeney said: “It’s a very special show to work on. I will kill for my potters.
“It’s a really weird bond I almost immediately get when I see them, I just want to protect these people. I want to really make sure they’re okay.”
Even Brad Pitt is a massive fan of the show.
“Ugh, he’s my stalker,” Mcsweeney said. “It’s embarrassing, I’m like Brad, please.
“There was some red carpet event or whatever and he was like, ‘Oh yeah, The Great Pottery Throw Down, I really like it.’
“We were like, what? Why? “Imagine Brad Pitt sitting down watching The Great Pottery Throwdown and we’re like, ‘Staffordshire Flatbacks’, and he’s like, ‘yeah, I love that’.”
Dish, which stands at number one on the Apple Food Podcast Charts, sees a different celebrity guest each week trying a different dish cooked by Angela Harnett.
Hartnett, a Michelin star chef and restaurateur, hosts alongside Nick Grimshaw, formerly of the BBC Radio 1 Breakfast Show, as they talk to their guests about food, their careers and everything else.
‘You get to explore the idea of being in your 20s’