‘It’s a kind of a classic sitcom format, structured with an Irish sensibility’
The Gleeson brothers talk to Danielle de Wolfe about their comedy, Frank Of Ireland
Standing at a church altar, the Gleeson brothers find themselves in character, contorted into a peculiar kind of stranglehold which also involves fingers in mouths, two MMA enthusiasts and a guitar.
It’s a peculiar set-up to be sure.
And yet it perfectly captures the physical, somewhat slapstick nature of the duo’s latest black comedy, Frank Of Ireland, which will air on Channel 4.
Written by Peaky Blinders actor Brian Gleeson and his brother, Ex Machina and About Time star Domhnall Gleeson, alongside Your Bad Self creator Michael Moloney, Frank Of Ireland is a curious blend of physical comedy underpinned by delightfully dark humour.
“It is a physical, slapstick and … we were talking references earlier – if you grew up watching Jim Carrey in Dumb And Dumber, I think that element of it is important to us and is definitely there,” says Brian, 33.
“But I suppose it’s a kind of a classic sitcom format, really, but you know, structured with an Irish sensibility, I suppose.”
As the name would suggest, Frank Of Ireland centres around Irish 32-yearold “manchild” Frank, who still lives at home with his parents in Dublin – a failed musician, narcissist and fantasist, played by Brian.
According to his brother and co-writer Domhnall, 37, the character of Frank can only be described as a “kind of 13-year-old personality that’s never grown up because he’s too comfortable in life and has a temper and expects the world to do him favours”.
“And then we have Doofus,” continues Domhnall with a grin, “who is more like a nine-year-old, who’s younger and looks up to Frank and [is] more naive and more stupid and doesn’t know as much.
Depicting the at-times codependent relationship of the on-screen brothers, the series follows the unconventional pair as they face all manner of misadventures in the wake of Frank’s ex-girlfriend moving on with a new partner.
Normal People actress Sarah Greene plays Frank’s ex-girlfriend Aine, who becomes something of an obsession for Frank, who hasn’t written or played a song in seven years and five months – the precise length of time since their break-up.
However, that’s merely a coincidence, as Frank assures anyone who will listen.
Desperate to win her affections once again, he embarks on a mission to compete against her new lover, which marks the start of the pair’s journey down a long and comical road.
A production years in the making, the series was brought to life with the help of Catastrophe star Sharon Horgan and producer Clelia Mountford’s company, Merman, prior to being commissioned.
“It was new for us, this format, and even getting this far with a project, it was kind of crazy,” says Brian. “And then Channel 4 got involved.
“I think they helped us through that whole process because there was this idea that it could be stylistically different.”
● Frank Of Ireland arrives on Channel 4 on Thursday