Hardy bucks kevin mcgahern back on screens in autumn

Paul Neilan

Comedy series Hardy Bucks has finished its third series but despite new actors from the likes of Love/Hate and Fair City and a shift back to the original, more improvisational approach Gowna man Kevin McGahern says there’s “no development!” for his hapless, loveable character, 'Sim Card’.
The madcap troupe, headed by actor-writers Martin Maloney (Eddie Durkan) and Chris Tordoff (Francis 'The Viper’ Higgins) recently finished filming on their third series in Swinford, Co Mayo and the Gowna native says work never seemed so much like play.
“They’ve gone back to a more improvisational thing this time around where you might have three hours edited down into twenty minutes, for example, there’s a lot more control for Martin and Chris, it’s more natural, I suppose. We used to be in the drama department but now we’re in with the new comedy department, which gives them [main creators Tordoff and Maloney] a lot more power, so the humour is so much better.
“The cast is the same core element, pretty much everyone is still there. It’s organised chaos but the best craic to work on - you’re laughing from morning to night. There’s 
no job quite like it and 
hopefully that’ll come out on 
screen.”
The series follows the escapades of loveable losers Eddie Durkan, Buzz, The Boo and French Toast O’Toole and their various scrapes with local drug-dealer The Viper Higgins. 
The series started out as a webisode cult smash before migrating to RTÉ for the series and even made it to the big screen with the 
Hardy Bucks movie of 2013. The “organised chaos” of the set is evident on-screen. Drunkeness, questionable philosophising, boredom and the search for women and money dominate proceedings and the boys are returning to their original style to unleash a bit more madness on their loyal fans.
“For example, Martin, last time out, his character, Eddie, was cast more in a baby-sitting role. He was kinda walking into rooms going 'ah, shite, lads, what are ye at?’ whereas this time out he’s got a lot more room to be himself,” says Kevin, who elaborates on Durkan’s “himself” using language that, while accurate, is too ripe for these pages.
“Martin himself would be the kinda guy who walks into a room and takes it over but you want to give him your attention, he’s naturally funny... and wild.
“Martin is from Liverpool and Chris is Leeds, they moved to lovely Mayo as kids - they still have the accents - but coming from the outside, it gives them a hell of a lot of perspective,” says the stand-up for whom Sim Card has become a much-loved minor, recurring character.

Has Maloney gone legit?
“There’s no development for 'Sim Card’! I think the whole point of a sit-com is that they don’t develop. I think the country has moved on and they’re still stuck in the recession, which, I think, they find quite comfortable, in avoiding work but there’s loads of stuff I didn’t see. I did see one episode where Maloney went legit and was tackling protesters in a hard-hat. You wouldn’t have to know the entire six-episode story arc...”
McGahern himself is kept busy writing, performing and filming and has an unusual project up his sleeve to add to his hosting duties on the Republic of Telly show, which starts up again in October.
“At the moment I’m doing a documentary on boy-racers... oh, yeah, I’ll be throwing hand gestures and the like,” he says before being asked if it is an outright comedy. 
“I’ll record it first and see after but I don’t want to take the piss outta the boys but it is an interesting half-funny sub-culture. They’re a big part of Ireland that remain in the shadows. I’m convinced there’s a load of sound ones but they’re interesting and I want to see what they’re like and hopefully they’ll be good.
“Republic of Telly is back in autumn, I don’t have [co-hosts] Bernard [O’Shea] and Jen [Maguire], back in October and I start writing around the start of September. They’re doing their own spin-off show - they just can’t do the it at the same time.”

Fame
The Celt wonders what life is like now for the comedian whose schedule will also include festivals like Electric Picnic - he promises to leave passes for the Celt “under a stone in the car park” - as well as touring venues and if he comes to the attention of the public in his daily life these days: “How has life changed for you with Republic of Telly?”
“I’ve to answer questions like that!” he laughs. “Some people want to take photos of me in pubs, strangers talk to me at weddings, taxi drivers sometimes know who I am. It’s just weird, not a problem at all, people know who you are before you know them. There’s no difficulty with it... I am trying to think of the perks [of fame] but there’s been no hassle... well, maybe not til I get home.”