Gardaí confused by Young Offenders star
YOUNG Offenders star Shane Casey says he now sees gardaí staring at him wondering he if is a real criminal.
The Cork actor, who plays lunatic hardman Billy Murphy in the hit RTÉ comedy show, said he regularly saw gardaí doing a double take when he walked past.
‘I get that a lot because I’m playing a criminal,’ he said. ‘There is a second look. They are genuinely going, “Is he a criminal I should know?”
‘But I also live in inner city Dublin and I get a great response from the young kids in that area. It’s not often you can walk comfortably through 15 15- or 16-year-olds and you get a little bit of respect because they don’t know how I am going to respond.’
His co-star Dominic MacHale, who plays Sergeant Healy, is often mistaken for Shane.
Dominic said: ‘People confuse me and Shane all the time. I will be walking down the street and someone will shout, “Hey Billy Murphy!’”
But he was also recognised by gardaí, who give him a friendly nod.
‘Cops on duty pass me and it’s like, we know who you are but we are not allowed to break character as a guard to go, “Oh my god we love the show.’
Instead they would give him a quick: ‘How you doing?’
The cast of the show, which has been commissioned for a second series by RTÉ, said they were bowled over by the public reaction.
Demi Isaac Ouiawe, who plays schoolgirl Linda, said: ‘I didn’t really think people were going to like us but the reaction has been unbelievable, fantastic.’