Brolly full of praise for O’Dowd ahead of ‘Small Town, Big Story’ release

Joe Brolly has heaped praise on Boyle actor, Chris O’Dowd, whose new TV series Small Town, Big Story will air this evening (Thursday, February 27th) on Sky Atlantic.

Speaking on his Free State podcast with Dion Fanning, Brolly felt that O’Dowd understood what made the town tick.

“Chris O’Dowd is a great fun. Since the first time he emerged onto the scene, he has made us laugh. He was brilliant in the IT Crowd. He has been a huge success in America. Who can forget Moone Boy?

“It’s a brilliant cast. Really, it’s based on Roscommon. I saw him being interviewed on Graham Norton and he said it was a fictional town because I’ve already burned most of my bridges in Boyle.”

Brolly went on to recall a night spent in Boyle, adding that O’Dowd — being native to the town — knew what made it tick.

“I’ve been in the old cinema in Boyle to a do a night. It was raucous, and the audience was totally involved and full of craic. Then we got full afterwards in Dodd’s.

“That’s the beauty of Chris’ stuff — it’s very natural, it’s very in tune with what we know about communities like that. I’m immensely looking forward to it.”