The Granny

About Brendan O'Carroll

International star of multiple BAFTA-award-winning TV series Mrs Brown's Boys and Mrs Brown's Boys: d'Movie Brendan OCarroll's story begins very modestly. The youngest of eleven children Brendan OCarroll was born in Dublins inner-city in 1955. His mother Maureen was a Labour TD (MP) and a huge influence on his life. He left school at 12 and worked as a waiter trying many other occupations in his spare time - disco manager milkman pirate radio disc-jockey painter-decorator etc. For a time he ran his own bar and cabaret lounge before being persuaded to try the comedy circuit. The gigs were small at first and even included his own version of Blind Date but word soon got around about this original and outrageous funnyman: soon there was standing-room only. The real turning point in Brendans career was his first appearance on The Late Late Show Irelands longest-running chat show: the studio audience and viewers loved him. His first video Live at the Tivoli went straight to No 1 knocking U2 out of the top slot and pushing Garth Brooks to No 3. In 1994 he was voted Irelands No 1 Variety Entertainer at the National Entertainment Awards. He went on to make best-selling videos and a bestselling record as well as touring in Ireland the UK and the USA. The radio show Mrs Brownes Boys written by and starring Brendan had a phenomenal daily audience on 2FM and led to the creation of Agnes Browne as the central character in Brendans first novel The Mammy published in 1994. The book topped the bestseller charts in Ireland for months and the film rights were snapped up. The Mammy was followed by The Chisellers and The Granny: all three were huge bestsellers. Holywood came calling when Anjelica Huston read and loved Brendan's books: she made her directorial debut with Agnes Browne. Brendan toured several other stage shows with Agnes Browne as the central character before a BBC producer saw the show and felt there was television potential. Initially broadcast in a quiet late evening slot Mrs Brown's Boys quickly became a huge word-of-mouth hit and quickly moved to primetime including several Christmas Day specials. A huge success in Australia and other countries where it has been shown the enduring appeal of Agnes and her family is secure. Brendan continues to write and perform as Agnes Browne most recently in Mrs Brown's Boys: d'Movie (2014)