British Comedy Guide
Ardal O'Hanlon
Ardal O'Hanlon

Ardal O'Hanlon

  • 59 years old
  • Irish
  • Actor and stand-up comedian
Ardal O'Hanlon

Ardal O'Hanlon is an Irish actor and stand-up comedian best known for playing Father Dougal McGuire in the much-loved vicar sitcom Father Ted, and George Sunday in BBC One's My Hero, a sitcom about a superhero who, despite finding human beings' way of living a complete mystery, endeavours to lead a regular suburban existence.

Year Production Role
2025 Ardal O'Hanlon: Not Himself Coming Soon Self
2024 Bristol Comedy Garden Self
2024 Taskmaster - Taskmasterclass Self
2024 Mel Giedroyc: Unforgivable - Series 4
  1. E6 - Episode Six
Guest
2024 Just For Laughs London Self
2023 St Albans Comedy Garden Self
2023 Glasgow International Comedy Festival Self
2023 Extraordinary - Series 1
View episodes
Martin (Voice)
2023 Blackadder: A Cunning Story Self
2022 Cheltenham Literature Festival Self
2022 Corpse Talk
  1. Special - Halloween Special
Bram Stoker (Voice)
2022 Southport Comedy Festival Self
2022 St Albans Comedy Garden Self
2022 Brighton Comedy Garden Self
2022 Bristol Comedy Garden Self
2022 Hay Festival Self
2022 Derry Girls - The Agreement
  1. The Agreement
Eammon
2022 Taskmaster - Series 13
View episodes
Self
2022 Would I Lie To You? - Series 15
  1. Special - The Unseen Bits
Guest
2021 Would I Lie To You? - Would I Lie To You? At Christmas
  1. Would I Lie To You? At Christmas
Guest
2021 The Deirdre O'Kane Show
  1. E5 - Episode Five
Self
2021 Rosie Molloy Gives Up Everything
View episodes
Conall Molloy
2020 Live At The Apollo - The One About...
  1. Special - Transport
Guest
2019 Live At The Apollo - Series 15
  1. E5 - Ardal O'Hanlon, Mawaan Rizwan, Sara Barron
Host / Presenter
2019 Derry Girls - Series 2
  1. E4 - The Curse
Eammon
2019 Ardal O'Hanlon: The Showing Off Must Go On Self
2017 Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled - Series 5
  1. E4 - Episode Four
Guest
2016 The Berries Development Bruce
2015 The Football's On - Series 3
  1. E5 - Episode Five
Guest
2015 After Hours
View episodes
Peter Hannigan
2015 Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled - Series 2
  1. E9 - Episode Nine
  2. Special - Unseen
Guest
2015 The Best Laid Plans
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Smallbone
2014 Greatest Ever Sitcoms Self
2013 London Irish
View episodes
Da
2013 Ardal O'Hanlon Self
2013 Alexander Armstrong's Big Ask - Series 2
  1. E3 - Episode Three
Self
2013 The Matt Lucas Awards - Series 2
  1. E1 - Episode One
  2. Special - Highlights Special
Guest
2012 Channel 4's 30 Greatest Comedy Shows Self
2012 What's So Funny? - Series 3
  1. E6 - Episode Six
Guest
2012 That Sunday Night Show - Series 3
  1. E3 - Episode Three
Guest
2012 Argumental - Series 4
  1. E6 - Episode Six
  2. Special - The Best Of Argumental
Guest
2011 Dave's One Night Stand - Series 3 Host / Presenter
2011 Jennifer Saunders: Laughing At The 90s Self
2011 A League Of Their Own - Series 3
  1. Special - Unseen Extra
Guest
2011 Comedy Kings - Best Of Just For Laughs
  1. E1 - Episode One
Guest
2011 Small, Far Away - The World Of Father Ted Self
2010 Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow - Series 2
  1. E6 - Leeds
Self
2010 Ardal O'Hanlon Self
2010 A League Of Their Own - Series 1
  1. E9 - Episode Nine
  2. Special - The Best Of
  3. Special - Unseen
Guest
2010 I've Never Seen Star Wars - Series 3
  1. E4 - Ardal O'Hanlon
Guest
2009 Argumental - Series 2
  1. E2 - Episode Two
  2. Special - Highlights Special
Guest
2008 Alan Carr's Comedy Outings
  1. E2 - Carr-ly Valentine
Self (Archive Material)
2008 Spike's Lookalikes Spike
2007 The Graham Norton Show - Series 1
  1. E18 - Episode Eighteen
Guest
2007 The 100 Greatest Stand-Ups
  1. E1 - The 100 Greatest Stand-Ups 2007
  2. E2 - 100 Greatest Stand-Ups 2010
Self
2005 Blessed
View episodes
Gary Chandler
2005 My Hero - Series 5 George Sunday
2004 Live At The Apollo - Jack Dee Live At The Apollo Series 1
  1. E2 - Ardal O'Hanlon
Guest
2004 Comedy Connections - Series 2
  1. E3 - Father Ted
Self
2004 Britain's Best Sitcom
  1. E1 - The Launch
Guest
2003 My Hero - Series 4 George Sunday
2002 My Hero - Series 3
View episodes
George Sunday
2001 Comedian's Goons Self
2001 My Hero - Series 2
View episodes
  1. E1 - Parents
  2. E2 - Girlfriend
  3. E3 - Car
  4. E4 - Nemesis
  5. E5 - Pregnant
  6. E6 - Wedding
George Sunday
2000 My Hero - Series 1
View episodes
George Sunday
1998 The Stand Up Show - Series 5
View episodes
  1. E3 - Episode Three
Host / Presenter
1998 Father Ted - Series 3
View episodes
Father Dougal McGuire
1998 The Stand Up Show - Series 4 Host / Presenter
1996 The Stand Up Show - Series 3 Host / Presenter
1996 Shooting Stars - Series 2
  1. E9 - Episode Nine
Guest
1996 Father Ted - Series 2
View episodes
Father Dougal McGuire
1995 Father Ted - Series 1
View episodes
Father Dougal McGuire

Non-comedy TV and film credits may be found here:
Ardal O'Hanlon on IMDb

Born
Friday 8th October 1965 (59 years-old)
Nationality
Irish

O'Hanlon was born and raised in Carrickmacross, County Monaghan, the son of politician and doctor Rory O'Hanlon and Teresa Ward. He was educated at Blackrock College in Dublin and graduated in 1987 from the National Institute for Higher Education, Dublin (now Dublin City University) with a degree in Communications Studies.

After leaving university, O'Hanlon decided to set up the International Comedy Cellar in Dublin, because at the time the city had no comedy scene to speak of. This was located in the upstairs portion of the International Bar on Dublin's South Wicklow Street, and O'Hanlon soon achieved considerable success, winning the Hackney Empire New Act of the Year competition in 1994 and hosting The Stand Up Show for a time.

As his stock continued to rise, he was spotted by comedy writer Graham Linehan, who later cast him as Father Dougal McGuire in Father Ted (1995-1998), the role for which, to this day, he is best known. In 1995 he was awarded the Top TV Comedy Newcomer at the British Comedy Awards for this role, and also appeared in the award-winning short comedy film Flying Saucer Rock'n'Roll.

After moving into dramatic acting in the ITV comedy-drama Big Bad World, O'Hanlon starred in an episode of the original Whose Line Is It Anyway? and, in the year 2000, starred as the main character in comedy series My Hero, in which he played a superhero from the planet Ultron. He would remain in this role until 2006, where he was replaced mid-episode by James Dreyfus.

In 2005 he played main protagonist Gary Chandler in the BBC One sitcom Blessed, written by Ben Elton, about a young couple struggling to raise two small children.

Moving into the 2010s, O'Hanlon has appeared on several television panel shows such as That Sunday Night Show, Dave's One Night Stand, and Alexander Armstrong's Big Ask, and also played Eammon in one episode of the sitcom Derry Girls. In 2015 he also began playing the role of Peter the Milkman in the Sky One sitcom After Hours, and in that same year he officially launched the 2015 Sky Cat Laughs Comedy Festival, which takes place in Kilkenny from 28 May - 1 June.

Alongside these positions in the comedy world, O'Hanlon has also featured in the Doctor Who episode "Gridlock", in 2007, and in series 3 of the TV show Skins, playing a politics teacher named Kieran

O'Hanlon was the subject of an episode of the BBC's Who Do You Think You Are?, which aired on 6 October 2008. The investigation revealed interesting facts about his paternal grandfather, Michael O'Hanlon, who had joined the IRA during the Irish War of Independence, and also discovered that he is a close relative on his mother's side of Peter Fenelon Collier.

Olivier Awards 2014
Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Nominee)
BAFTA Television Awards 1999
Best Comedy Performance (Nominee)
British Comedy Awards 1998
Best TV Comedy Actor (Nominee)
British Comedy Awards 1996
Best TV Comedy Actor (Nominee)
Best Comedy Entertainment Personality (Nominee)
British Comedy Awards 1995
Best Comedy Breakthrough Artist (Winner)
NATYS: New Acts of the Year Show 1994
Top of the Bill (Winner)

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