IT Crowd’s O’Dowd sees the big picture with ‘Tony 10’ book
The story of a gambling addict postal worker who stole €1.75m from a Wexford post office could be turned into a film, after The IT Crowd star Chris O’Dowd took an option on his book.
Carlowman Tony O’Reilly became front page news 10 years ago after stealing money from the An Post branch he ran in Gorey, Co Wexford, to fund his addiction. He was later sentenced to four years in prison.
His book Tony 10: The Astonishing Story of the Postman Who Gambled €10m and Lost it All, co-authored by Sunday Independent columnist Declan Lynch, recounts how O’Reilly racked up a €10m turnover in his Paddy Power online account.
O’Reilly, using ‘Tony10’ as his online gambling name, began with a €1 bet before his addiction grew out of control.
He used the stolen money to feed a habit that led to the loss of his family, home and job. The book was a best-seller and received huge plaudits for addressing gambling and addiction issues.
Roscommon actor Chris O’Dowd and Treasure Entertainment, with producers Rob Walpole and Rebecca O’Flanagan, have taken an option on the book, giving them rights to make a Tony 10 movie. Writer and director John Butler is also involved in the project.
Declan Lynch said the story was made for the big screen: “One of the strange things about writing the book was that so much of it felt like something out of a movie — so much drama in it, and yet it all really happened.
“It’s a movie I’d love to see myself. The story is completely Irish and also completely universal, so we couldn’t ask for more brilliant people than Chris, John, Rebecca and Rob to be doing it.”
Mr Lynch and Mr O’Reilly said they hope bringing the story to a greater audience will help highlight the dangers and toll of a gambling addiction.
Mr O’Reilly, who has qualified as an
addiction counsellor, said the issue had grown bigger in recent years. He hopes the book, and eventually a film, will make audiences aware of problem gambling.
“Chris O’Dowd said he wanted to bring it to a wider audience because it is an important story to tell. Declan had a similar view, and this will bring the story to a totally different audience and highlight what is a huge problem in Ireland and abroad,” he said.
“It was always my hope in telling the story through the book, that we could create awareness around how a €1 bet can end up with my story.
“Online gambling has become more prevalent because of the times we live in, and that was a huge part of my story.
Looking at America, sports betting is starting to be legalised in a lot of the states over there, so we are going to see far more people everywhere impacted by gambling addiction.”
Meanwhile, Mr O’Reilly is to appear on a BBC Radio 4 programme this week to tell broadcaster Jane Garvey his story. The Life Changing series she presents showcases people who have come through some earth-shattering event. It airs at 9am on Wednesday and is repeated on the same day at 8pm.