Christina Hendricks to star in Chris O’Dowd show set in Ireland

By Charlotte McLaughlin, PA Senior Entertainment Reporter

Christina Hendricks and Paddy Considine are set to star in an upcoming show from Chris O’Dowd.

Small Town, Big Story – created by The IT Crowd star O’Dowd – will focus on what happens when a Hollywood production arrives in a small rural Irish town.

The six-part Sky series is set in the fictional Drumban, where the arrival of a film crew puts a “spotlight on a secret that’s been kept hidden since the eve of the Millennium”.

Mad Men star Hendricks, an American actress who also serves as an executive producer, plays television producer Wendy Patterson.

In the comedy drama, Wendy returns to her hometown from Los Angeles with a US production crew.

British actor Considine, known for playing Viserys Targaryen in House Of The Dragon, will take on the role of local doctor and pillar of the community Seamus Proctor.

Seamus has a wife, Catherine (Eileen Walsh), a local schoolteacher and siblings Joanne and Sonny Proctor are portrayed by Fair City star Leia Murphy and O’Dowd’s Moone Boy co-star David Rawle, respectively.

The new Sky Original series, from production company Playground and independent studio FilmNation Entertainment, has started filming on location in Ireland.

Liz Gill, who has worked on Dangerous Liaisons and Vikings, is a series producer and Lockwood & Co’s Catherine Morshead, O’Dowd and Extra Ordinary writers Mike Ahern and Enda Loughman are also among the directors.

Irish actor O’Dowd, also known for 2011’s Bridesmaids, previously created the semi-autobiographical coming of age story Moone Boy.

The comedy drama, set in the west of Ireland – where O’Dowd was raised in County Roscommon, was nominated for a Bafta in 2015.

Small Town, Big Story is expected to air on Sky and Now in the UK and Ireland next year.

Sky also clarified that as the stars are under Equity contracts, the production is not affected by the Hollywood actors strike.