Single-Handed (2007 drama)
Encyclopedia
Single-Handed is an Irish
television drama
series broadcast on RTÉ Television
. Set and filmed in the west of Ireland, it focuses on the life of a member of the , Sergeant Jack Driscoll (played by Owen McDonnell). Three two-episode, single-story series aired, one each on consecutive nights in 2007, 2008 and 2009. Series 4, consisting of three stories told over six episodes, began in RTÉ One
November 2010.
The series is partially inspired by garda corruption in County Donegal
.
In 2009, all three series were broadcast in the United Kingdom
on the ITV1
network, as double-length, two-hour episodes on three consecutive Sundays, from 2–16 August.
Series 4 began broadcasting on RTÉ One
on Sunday, 7 November 2010. It was shown in the UK on ITV1
from Thursday, 14 July 2011.
in the Town Hall, Galway
at the time, McDonnell, alongside two other cast members, left for Dublin to read a script for the original Single-Handed director Colm McCarthy. He was given the lead role one day later.
.
Gavin Corbett, writing in the Sunday Tribune
, dismissed the original series as "an uninspired piece of writing brought to some sort of lugubrious half-life, superficially engaging for a while, but growing more and more ponderous and pofaced the longer it went on over its two nights". Patrick Freyne, also writing in the Sunday Tribune, called Single-Handed 3 "all puffed up with a melodramatic 'I-can't-believe-it's-not-drama' form of drama in which people glare at one another, shout, are unhelpfully abrasive for no reason, and give each other symbolic bullets". John Boland, writing in the Irish Independent
, praised the original Single-Handed for its "taut and suggestive" screenplay. Heralding it as "the real deal" and "that rare oddity—an RTE drama that works" and drawing comparisons to the Roman Polanski
film Chinatown, he said "it didn't lose its nerve by resorting to far-fetched plot twists or ludicrous melodrama". Boland's report on the sequel indicated his view that it "wasn't as arresting as its predecessor but it was a superior drama all the same". Boland viewed Single-Handed: The Drowning Man as also being a "superior drama" whilst "a sense of place was arrestingly captured, too". When Single-Handed eventually aired in the UK in 2009, he noted the reactions of the British newspaper critics, remarking satirically on how "The Guardian
s Sam Wollaston and The Independent
s Tom Sutcliffe
couldn't contain their surprise that dark doings lurked behind the 'stunning scenery' of this Irish Hoirtbeat. Faith and begorrah, lads, shure we're even in the EU
".
The UK debut of Single-Handed received 4 million viewers.
The Daily Telegraph
, a broadsheet in the UK, said Single-Handed was "distinctly classy" and "not soft-centred. In fact it’s more like biting into an apple only to find there’s a worm in it". The regional newspaper, Leicester Mercury
, remarked that it "confounds expectations from the very beginning", saying "it was dark, not dreary. And slow, not stupid. There wasn't even a hint of Irish whimsy about it. No-one's eyes twinkled, humorously. No fiddly jigs and reels drifted from the pub. And no-one—praise be—mentioned the damned craic".
in 2008. It was nominated in the Drama Series/Soap category but lost to The Tudors
.
|-
| 2008
|| Single-Handed || Drama Series/Soap ||
|-
|-
| 2009 || Anthony Byrne || Best Director ||
|-
| 2009 || Barry Simner || Best Writer ||
|-
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
television drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
series broadcast on RTÉ Television
RTÉ Television
RTÉ Television is a department of Ireland's state broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann.The first channel to broadcast was Telefís Éireann which began broadcasting on 31 December 1961...
. Set and filmed in the west of Ireland, it focuses on the life of a member of the , Sergeant Jack Driscoll (played by Owen McDonnell). Three two-episode, single-story series aired, one each on consecutive nights in 2007, 2008 and 2009. Series 4, consisting of three stories told over six episodes, began in RTÉ One
RTÉ One
RTÉ One is the flagship television channel of Raidió Teilifís Éireann , and it is the most popular and most watched television channel in Ireland. It was launched as Telefís Éireann on 31 December 1961, it was renamed RTÉ Television in 1966, and it was renamed as RTÉ One upon the launch of RTÉ...
November 2010.
The series is partially inspired by garda corruption in County Donegal
County Donegal
County Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...
.
Production
The first series was shot in October 2006. It was directed by Colm McCarthy; the second and third by Antony Byrne. Barry Simner was behind the screenplay. It is co-produced by Touchpaper Television Productions and Element Pictures. Clare Alan also produced the third series.In 2009, all three series were broadcast in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on the ITV1
ITV1
ITV1 is a generic brand that is used by twelve franchises of the British ITV Network in the English regions, Wales, southern Scotland , the Isle of Man and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. The ITV1 brand was introduced by Carlton and Granada in 2001, alongside the regional identities of their...
network, as double-length, two-hour episodes on three consecutive Sundays, from 2–16 August.
Series 4 began broadcasting on RTÉ One
RTÉ One
RTÉ One is the flagship television channel of Raidió Teilifís Éireann , and it is the most popular and most watched television channel in Ireland. It was launched as Telefís Éireann on 31 December 1961, it was renamed RTÉ Television in 1966, and it was renamed as RTÉ One upon the launch of RTÉ...
on Sunday, 7 November 2010. It was shown in the UK on ITV1
ITV1
ITV1 is a generic brand that is used by twelve franchises of the British ITV Network in the English regions, Wales, southern Scotland , the Isle of Man and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. The ITV1 brand was introduced by Carlton and Granada in 2001, alongside the regional identities of their...
from Thursday, 14 July 2011.
Casting
Owen McDonnell was given the lead role of Garda Sergeant Jack Driscoll after receiving a call from casting director Maureen Hughes. Appearing onstage in The Lieutenant of InishmoreThe Lieutenant of Inishmore
The Lieutenant of Inishmore is a black comedy by playwright Martin McDonagh, first produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company in London in 2001.-Plot:...
in the Town Hall, Galway
Galway
Galway or City of Galway is a city in County Galway, Republic of Ireland. It is the sixth largest and the fastest-growing city in Ireland. It is also the third largest city within the Republic and the only city in the Province of Connacht. Located on the west coast of Ireland, it sits on the...
at the time, McDonnell, alongside two other cast members, left for Dublin to read a script for the original Single-Handed director Colm McCarthy. He was given the lead role one day later.
Reception
The series has been consistently popular in Ireland since its first broadcast, with the first series receiving a 40% audience share. However, leading actor Owen McDonnell has been able to escape a significant increase in recognition by the general public as, according to him, "once you’re out of the uniform you’re fairly anonymous". He has, however, been criticised for suggesting that alcoholism and depression are widespread in ConnemaraConnemara
Connemara is a district in the west of Ireland consisting of a broad peninsula between Killary Harbour and Kilkieran Bay in the west of County Galway.-Overview:...
.
Gavin Corbett, writing in the Sunday Tribune
Sunday Tribune
The Sunday Tribune was an Irish Sunday broadsheet newspaper published by Tribune Newspapers plc. It was edited in its final years by Nóirín Hegarty, who changed both the tone and the physical format of the newspaper from broadsheet to tabloid. Former editors include Conor Brady, Vincent Browne,...
, dismissed the original series as "an uninspired piece of writing brought to some sort of lugubrious half-life, superficially engaging for a while, but growing more and more ponderous and pofaced the longer it went on over its two nights". Patrick Freyne, also writing in the Sunday Tribune, called Single-Handed 3 "all puffed up with a melodramatic 'I-can't-believe-it's-not-drama' form of drama in which people glare at one another, shout, are unhelpfully abrasive for no reason, and give each other symbolic bullets". John Boland, writing in the Irish Independent
Irish Independent
The Irish Independent is Ireland's largest-selling daily newspaper that is published in both compact and broadsheet formats. It is the flagship publication of Independent News & Media.-History:...
, praised the original Single-Handed for its "taut and suggestive" screenplay. Heralding it as "the real deal" and "that rare oddity—an RTE drama that works" and drawing comparisons to the Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski is a French-Polish film director, producer, writer and actor. Having made films in Poland, Britain, France and the USA, he is considered one of the few "truly international filmmakers."...
film Chinatown, he said "it didn't lose its nerve by resorting to far-fetched plot twists or ludicrous melodrama". Boland's report on the sequel indicated his view that it "wasn't as arresting as its predecessor but it was a superior drama all the same". Boland viewed Single-Handed: The Drowning Man as also being a "superior drama" whilst "a sense of place was arrestingly captured, too". When Single-Handed eventually aired in the UK in 2009, he noted the reactions of the British newspaper critics, remarking satirically on how "The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
s Sam Wollaston and The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
s Tom Sutcliffe
Tom Sutcliffe (broadcaster)
Thomas Sutcliffe is a British journalist and arts broadcaster.Sutcliffe studied English at Emmanuel College, Cambridge...
couldn't contain their surprise that dark doings lurked behind the 'stunning scenery' of this Irish Hoirtbeat. Faith and begorrah, lads, shure we're even in the EU
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
".
The UK debut of Single-Handed received 4 million viewers.
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, a broadsheet in the UK, said Single-Handed was "distinctly classy" and "not soft-centred. In fact it’s more like biting into an apple only to find there’s a worm in it". The regional newspaper, Leicester Mercury
Leicester Mercury
The Leicester Mercury is a British regional newspaper, owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust, for the city of Leicester and the counties of Leicestershire and Rutland...
, remarked that it "confounds expectations from the very beginning", saying "it was dark, not dreary. And slow, not stupid. There wasn't even a hint of Irish whimsy about it. No-one's eyes twinkled, humorously. No fiddly jigs and reels drifted from the pub. And no-one—praise be—mentioned the damned craic".
Irish Film and Television Awards
Single-Handed received one nomination at the Irish Film and Television AwardsThe 5th Annual Irish Film & Television Awards 2008
The Fifth Annual Irish Film and Television Awards took place on February 17, 2008 at the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin.-Film:Film* Garage** Becoming Jane** Closing the Ring** Kings** ShroomsInternational Film...
in 2008. It was nominated in the Drama Series/Soap category but lost to The Tudors
The Tudors
The Tudors is a Canadian produced historical fiction television series filmed in Ireland, created by Michael Hirst and produced for the American premium cable television channel Showtime...
.
|-
| 2008
The 5th Annual Irish Film & Television Awards 2008
The Fifth Annual Irish Film and Television Awards took place on February 17, 2008 at the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin.-Film:Film* Garage** Becoming Jane** Closing the Ring** Kings** ShroomsInternational Film...
|| Single-Handed || Drama Series/Soap ||
|-
Seoul International Drama Awards
Single Handed 3: The Drowning Man received two nominations at the Seoul International Drama Awards. Anthony Byrne was nominated in the Best Director category and Barry Simner was nominated in the Best Writer category.|-
| 2009 || Anthony Byrne || Best Director ||
|-
| 2009 || Barry Simner || Best Writer ||
|-
Episodes
| Episodes | Title | Director | Writer |
|---|