Tom Hickey
Encyclopedia
Tom Hickey is an Irish
actor who has appeared in stage plays, films, and TV series.
Born in Kildare
, Hickey began his career in 1963 at Deirdre O'Connell
's Stanislavski Studio in Dublin where he trained in Stanislavski's 'system' of acting. In 1965 he joined the cast of RTÉ television
's new rural drama series, The Riordans
. Hickey went on to play the part of Benjy Riordan in the successful soap opera
for the next 16 years.
On stage, Hickey has favoured parts in the work of modern Irish playwrights such as Tom Murphy
, Frank McGuinness
, Bernard Farrell
, and Marina Carr
. In the early 1980s, the playwright Tom Mac Intyre asked Hickey to play the lead role in his adaptation of Patrick Kavanagh
's poem The Great Hunger. Following the success of that collaboration, Hickey has become an acclaimed interpreter of Mac Intyre's work, in such plays as Rise Up Lovely Sweeney, The Gallant John Joe and What Happened Bridgie Cleary.
As a character actor
, Hickey has appeared in numerous films, including My Left Foot
, Inside I'm Dancing
, and Breakfast on Pluto
,
Hickey has said that he sees his choice of profession as a "vocation", having decided to become an actor when he was five or six.
In 2001, Hickey made a rare venture into the world of television advertising
with his appearances in a series of commercials for Club Orange
, a soft drink
. The first of these was directed by Declan Lowney
, the director of Father Ted
.
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,...
actor who has appeared in stage plays, films, and TV series.
Born in Kildare
Kildare
-External links:*******...
, Hickey began his career in 1963 at Deirdre O'Connell
Deirdre O'Connell
Eleanore Deirdre O'Connell was an Irish actress, singer, and theatre director who founded Dublin's Focus Theatre.-Biography:...
's Stanislavski Studio in Dublin where he trained in Stanislavski's 'system' of acting. In 1965 he joined the cast of RTÉ television
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...
's new rural drama series, The Riordans
The Riordans
The Riordans was the second Irish soap opera made by Raidio Telefís Éireann . It ran from 1965 to 1979 and was set in the fictional townland of Leestown in County Kilkenny...
. Hickey went on to play the part of Benjy Riordan in the successful soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
for the next 16 years.
On stage, Hickey has favoured parts in the work of modern Irish playwrights such as Tom Murphy
Tom Murphy (playwright)
Tom Murphy is an Irish dramatist who has worked closely with the Abbey Theatre in Dublin and with Druid Theatre, Galway. He was born in Tuam, County Galway, Ireland...
, Frank McGuinness
Frank McGuinness
Professor Frank McGuinness is an award-winning Irish playwright and poet. As well as his own works, which include Observe the Sons of Ulster Marching Towards the Somme, he is recognised for a "strong record of adapting literary classics, having translated the plays of Racine, Sophocles, Ibsen and...
, Bernard Farrell
Bernard Farrell
Bernard Farrell is an Irish dramatist, best known for his play I Do Not Like Thee, Doctor Fell, which parodies American psychobabble and the Irish reaction thereto....
, and Marina Carr
Marina Carr
Marina Carr is an Irish playwright.Born in Tullamore, County Offaly, Carr attended University College Dublin before holding posts as writer-in-residence at the Abbey Theatre and Trinity College Dublin. She served as Heimbold Professor of Irish Studies at Villanova University in 2003...
. In the early 1980s, the playwright Tom Mac Intyre asked Hickey to play the lead role in his adaptation of Patrick Kavanagh
Patrick Kavanagh
Patrick Kavanagh was an Irish poet and novelist. Regarded as one of the foremost poets of the 20th century, his best known works include the novel Tarry Flynn and the poems Raglan Road and The Great Hunger...
's poem The Great Hunger. Following the success of that collaboration, Hickey has become an acclaimed interpreter of Mac Intyre's work, in such plays as Rise Up Lovely Sweeney, The Gallant John Joe and What Happened Bridgie Cleary.
As a character actor
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
, Hickey has appeared in numerous films, including My Left Foot
My Left Foot (film)
My Left Foot: The Story of Christy Brown is a 1989 drama film directed by Jim Sheridan and starring Daniel Day-Lewis. It tells the true story of Christy Brown, an Irishman born with cerebral palsy, who could control only his left foot. Christy Brown grew up in a poor, working class family, and...
, Inside I'm Dancing
Inside I'm Dancing
Inside I'm Dancing, also released under the title Rory O'Shea Was Here, is a 2004 Irish film directed by Damien O'Donnell and starring James McAvoy, Steven Robertson, Romola Garai, and Brenda Fricker...
, and Breakfast on Pluto
Breakfast on Pluto (film)
Breakfast on Pluto is a 2005 comedy-drama film directed by Neil Jordan and based on the novel of the same name by Patrick McCabe, as adapted by Jordan and McCabe...
,
Hickey has said that he sees his choice of profession as a "vocation", having decided to become an actor when he was five or six.
In 2001, Hickey made a rare venture into the world of television advertising
Television advertisement
A television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
with his appearances in a series of commercials for Club Orange
Club Orange
Club is a popular Irish carbonated soft drink produced in Ireland by Britvic Ireland and previously by Cantrell & Cochrane and bottled at their plant in Dublin....
, a soft drink
Soft drink
A soft drink is a non-alcoholic beverage that typically contains water , a sweetener, and a flavoring agent...
. The first of these was directed by Declan Lowney
Declan Lowney
Declan Lowney is an Irish television and film director. After directing a short film in 1980, Lowney worked for Radio Telefís Éireann, and directed musical events such as the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, and The Velvet Underground's Live MCMXCIII...
, the director of Father Ted
Father Ted
Father Ted is a comedy series set in Ireland that was produced by Hat Trick Productions for British broadcaster Channel 4. Written jointly by Irish writers Arthur Mathews and Graham Linehan and starring a predominantly Irish cast, it originally aired over three series from 21 April 1995 until 1 May...
.