David Rawle

All too soon, the time has come to bid farewell to David Rawle and Chris O'Dowd as young Martin Moone and his imaginary friend Sean.

We've reached the end of their season-two adventures but hold back the tears - there's a third series of O'Dowd's semi-autobiographical comedy tales already in the pipeline. So just go with the flow as Fidelma, Dessie and their imminent bairn head down the aisle to holy matrimony on St Patrick's Day. No room for any unplanned surprises there, then.

Money's too tight to mention in the Moone household. Which means Martin (David Rawle) has to get a job if he's ever going to own a Sega Mega Drive, 'the single greatest thing my little eyes have ever witnessed.' So he heads to the golf club, where Chris O'Dowd's charming comedy drives us into the heart of a green-eyed rivalry between Martin's dad Liam (Peter McDonald) and his nemesis, the devious local bank manager, which stretches back decades. Cue flashbacks with very tight shorts.

Following in the wake of children's classic Swallows And Amazons, this comedy gem sails the action 60 years on, to a small-town backwater in Ireland, where young Martin (David Rawle) and his best flesh-and-blood buddy Padraic (Ian O'Reilly) are lashing together a tatty raft for some aquatic Halloween adventures. Of course imaginary best friends Sean Murphy (Chris O'Dowd) and Crunchie Haystacks (Johnny Vegas) jump aboard and when they see land ahoy, things really get rollicking...

Going back a few years to 1990 was the second series of Sky One's Moone Boy which catapulted us right into the time that Ireland was gripped by World Cup fever. Both Martin Moone (David Rawle) and his imaginary friend Sean (Chris O'Dowd) are obsessed with the tournament and want to stay in and watch every minute of the match. Even Martin's mother (Deirdre O'Kane) is gripped with the action and only his father (Peter McDonald) remains unconvinced by the joy of the beautiful game. So the Moones remain dejected when they are forced to go on holiday by Mr Moone. Martin is so frustrated that he aims to hitch all the way back to Boyle, but ends up being taken in by a Romanian family. The only problem is that Martin has to watch the clash between Romania and Ireland at the house of said family meaning he finds it hard to show any joy when his team wins the match.

The first series of Moone Boy was a glorious treat that Sky One gave to us back in 2012 and I was worried that this second run couldn't live up to it. Thankfully, I was wrong and by the time we saw Mrs Moone screaming at her TV, I knew we were back in safe territory. Incredibly funny, Moone Boy also rings true primarily when it deals with the dynamics of the Moone family and the characteristics of Martin's three sisters. O'Dowd employs the period setting to maximum effect as he focuses on an event that we all remember and then creates as many comic scenarios as he possibly can. Young David Rawle is perfect as Martin, combining the wide-eyed innocence of a young lad with superb comic delivery. O'Dowd himself is better used as a writer than star with Sean's presence becoming seemingly unnecessary in every episode. Alongside Rawle, it is some of the other younger cast members who really shine namely Aoife Duffin as Martin's sister Trisha and Ian O'Reilly as his extremely enthusiastic friend Padriac. Ultimately Moone Boy is a joy to watch as it's a comedy that's actually funny and one that presents realistic characters in an identifiable situation.

In Moone Boy, David Rawle's Martin Moone took us back to the painful days of the school disco with a Dirty Dancing routine that managed to be funny and touching and sweetly embarrassing all at the same time. You don't get that on Strictly...

It's only two episodes in but Chris O'Dowd's memoirs-of-an-adolescence sitcom set in a rural Ireland backwater at the end of the 1980s is already shaping up as one of the comedies of the year.

It's a long time since I had a crush on a teacher but it's a blush you never quite lose and, as Moone got caught up in the wafting skirts of his dreamy new art teacher (not literally, that would be pervy), I was right back there in second-year geography, puzzling over the miracle of how terminal moraine could be so darn horny. No names, not even now, my cheeks are burning up.

Can romance do the impossible - literally, impossible - and drive a wedge between young Martin Moone and his imaginary best friend, Sean? They've both got a crush on hippychick art teacher (Amy Huberman) and their shared passion comes to a head at the school dance. But nobody's going to put Sean or Martin in the corner when there's a Dirty Dancing lift to be pulled off... David Rawle and Chris O'Dowd charm the socks off us in this peerless comedy.

Sporting their matching knitted bobble hats, Martin Moone (David Rawle) and his imaginary friend, Sean Murphy (Chris O'Dowd), make a welcome return for a second series of O'Dowd's enchantingly bonkers semi-autobiographical tales of growing up in small-town Ireland. It's summer 1990 and Ireland is gripped by World Cup fever - all except Martin's dad (Peter McDonald), who packs his clan into a van to head across the county border for a holiday filled with football-free adventure. At least, that's his plan...

Radio Times review

One of the hinterland hits of 2012, this delectably crackers rites-of-passage sitcom set in 1989 Ireland darted about like a toddler on sweets. Contemporary hits, cartoons and cutaways are all employed to unique effect.

As series two opens, 12-year-old Martin (fantastic find David Rawle) is still talking to his grown-up imaginary friend (co-writer Chris O'Dowd). That may sound weird but not only is it an endearing conceit; it's also very funny.

Now it's summer 1990, the Moones plan to go on holiday - just as the Republic of Ireland begin their group games at the World Cup finals. Cue some sweet trope-trampling as Dad Liam tries to stir couch-potato wife Debra into action.

The holiday-mobile is soon on its way, with Martin's oddball pal Padraic and Fidelma's boyfriend Dessie along for the ride, although Trisha is plunged into mourning over the Talking Heads splitting up. Can a family activity cheer her up?

Moone Boy simply has to be seen by more people. It's a beaming-ear-to-ear delight. Where else would Johnny Vegas dress as Doc Brown from Back to the Future Part II? Well, I'll tell you. Nowhere.

Moone Boy preview

Whilst Chris O'Dowd may be the big star, David Rawle steals most scenes with his wit and charm.