M ostwriters agree it’s harder to write your second novel than your first. For Ardal O’Hanlon, however, best known as Father Dougal McGuire from the beloved Channel 4 sitcom Father Ted and – more recently – as DI Jack Mooney on BBC One’s Death in Paradise, producing a follow-up to his first, well-received novel The Talk of The Town took 25 years.
How long? ‘I’m easily sidetracked,’ shrugs Ardal, 56. ‘I’m in the privileged position of having this other life where you end up doing TV shows, stand-up comedy, theatre, documentaries. It’s all very seductive.’ After The Talk of The Town came out in 1998, he had a contract for a follow-up book, but was too busy to honour it. ‘Ultimately, I had to give back my advance [fee from the publishers], which was humiliating, especially since I’d just built a new kitchen with that money.’