Ballykissangel (1996–2001)

An English priest is transferred to a small Irish village.

Creator:

Kieran Prendiville

Stars:

Frankie McCafferty, Joe Savino, Deirdre Donnelly

6 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Frankie McCafferty	...	Donal Docherty (58 episodes, 1996-2001)
Joe Savino	...	Liam Coghlan (58 episodes, 1996-2001)
Deirdre Donnelly	...	Siobhan Mehigan (56 episodes, 1996-2001)
Gary Whelan	...	Brendan Kearney (55 episodes, 1996-2001)
Aine Ni Mhuiri	...	Kathleen Hendley (53 episodes, 1996-2001)
Niall Toibin	...	Father MacAnally (52 episodes, 1996-2001)
Tina Kellegher	...	Niamh Egan (49 episodes, 1996-2001)
Tony Doyle	...	Brian Quigley (46 episodes, 1996-1999)
Peter Hanly	...	Ambrose Egan (38 episodes, 1996-1999)
Bosco Hogan	...	Dr. Michael Ryan (38 episodes, 1996-2001)
Birdy Sweeney	...	Eamon Byrne (34 episodes, 1996-1999)
Peter Caffrey	...	Padraig O'Kelly (33 episodes, 1996-1998)
Lorcan Cranitch	...	Sean Dillon (24 episodes, 1998-1999)
Don Wycherley	...	Father Aidan O'Connell (24 episodes, 1998-1999)
Victoria Smurfit	...	Orla O'Connell (24 episodes, 1998-1999)

Storyline

Peter Clifford, a young Catholic priest from Manchester, is transferred to the village of Ballykissangel, Ireland, and is taken by the dry-humored publican Assumpta Fitzgerald who has almost the exact opposite of his good nature and dislikes the organized church. He has to deal with occasional battles against his hateful superior, Father MacAnally, and the day-to-day problems of the people: Brian Quigley, whose constant search for money often leads him to immorality, his daughter Niamh and her lover straight-arrow garda Ambrose Egan, uptight and inquisitive shopkeeper Kathleen Hendley, gruff vet Siobhan Mehigan, cheery mechanic Padraig O'Kelly, comical schoolteacher Brendan Kearney, and elderly farmer Eamon Byrne. Later arrivals to the town include former monk Father Aidan O'Connell, pariah Sean Dillon and his daughter Emma, Eamon's nephew Danny, female Garda Frankie Sullivan, Australian Father Vincent Sheahan, and horse-trainer Avril Burke.

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Plot Keywords:

priest | schoolteacher | catholic priest | farmer | ireland | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

BBC Northern Ireland World Productions

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 February 1996 (UK)

Also Known As:

Ballykissangelin pappi

Filming Locations:

Avoca, County Wicklow, Ireland

Company Credits

Production Co:

BBC Northern Ireland, Ballykea, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

50 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

'Owen Roe (I)''s character who appeared once each in the first and third seasons was originally named Sean Dooley, but when he returned as a regular character late in the fifth season, his name was switched to Paul Dooley because Lorcan Cranitch's character Sean Dillon had been introduced in the third season.

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Connections

Remade as Hope Island (1999)

User Reviews

I can't wait for the next episode to arrive from Netflix today

In 1998, I toured Ireland with a group of Aussies. We stopped in Avoca only because Ballykissangel was filmed there. All the Aussies were excited to see the church, the store, and Fitzgerald's just as seen on their BBC back home. I remembered the cute name for the town (Ballykissangel) when I joined Netflix. The characters are so well developed. No U.S. TV series is ever this good. Only when PBS shows a series of BBC programs is there any quality, and this has never been shown where I have been. The quirky people of BallyK just keep on coming. Some better than others, but each disc always leaves me wanting more. This show could have continued longer that six seasons with Kieran Prendiville back in the helm, but alas, it didn't. I will be sorry when I watch the last disc. Should it ever appear on PBS, I will become an avid watcher again. It is worth seeing again and looking forward to each episode. Ballykissangel wins my highest praise as quality storytelling.