The man in the gap

The last time the Celt wrote about Seamus O'Rourke we noted he was “one of the hardest working actors in Ireland”. In fairness we did him a bit of a disservice.

Seamus is also an award-winning writer and director. It's the first of those talents he's exercising in his latest output. 'Standing In Gaps' is a memoir the Carrigallen former carpenter, former county footballer, pandemic survivor and astute observer of all human life has put together when the world stopped.

In the prologue he describes how his plans to compile the review of life in Leitrim “when things moved slowly” were accelerated when everything stopped. It's full of the quirky, rude (in the abrupt meaning of the word), healthy humour that saw him clock up a million hits on YouTube and Social Media with his collection of short stories, recitations and sketches.

The Lad From Leitrim is an added sobriquet on the last publication he committed to ink 'A Lock of Poems, Recitations and Good Ones’ and in 'Standing in Gaps' he delves further into why he identifies as such.

“I wanted to tell a story of – mystery and mayhem - courage and corruption - triumph and failure... and loads of drunken sex,” he says at one point in the prologue, only to amend with, “Well I'm not one of The Rolling Stones,” and explain why such excesses are not the fodder for this literary escapade.

“I’ve had a very positive response to the early drafts,” he says of the early returns on the book. So if you want to hear the story of “a bunch of mad country people trying to make all their ends meet” filled with longing and want then 'Standing in Gaps' might just be for you.

'Standing In Gaps' will be available in paperback and a limited hardback edition on October 1 and an audio book version of the read will be available voiced by the man himself.