Beloved Father Ted star who brought laughter to millions dies aged 66
Irish actor and comedian Jon Kenny has died aged 66.
He was best known for playing multiple roles in the Channel 4 sitcom Father Ted, plus his parts in The Banshees of Inisherin, The Van, and Angela’s Ashes.
Kenny was also one half of the comedy duo D’Unbelievables with Pat Shortt.
His wife, Margie, confirmed to the Limerick Leader that he sadly died on Friday evening in Galway Clinic.
He had been receiving treatment for cancer and heart failure.
Paying tribute to the performer, Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Simon Harris described Kenny as someone who had an ‘ability, that very few people possess, to make his audiences crack up laughing with a glance or a single word’.
‘Behind that seemingly effortless talent to joke, there was a gifted performer and an extremely deep thinker,’ Harris added.
‘Jon was an interesting and thoughtful person; he had some stunning dramatic performances on stage and on screen and the country is still in stitches from the magic that was D’Unbelievables.’
Tánaiste (deputy Prime Minister) Micheál Martin also said: ‘Deeply saddened at the passing of Jon Kenny.
‘Through the D’Unbelievables and his appearances on stage and on screen, Jon made us smile. He was an entertainer to his core.’
He hailed Kenny as ‘one of our most iconic actors and comedians’.
Kenny previously spoke openly about his health problems, as he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (a type of cancer that begins in the lymphatic system) in his 40s but recovered.
In March last year, he shared that the cancer returned in 2020, but he had chosen to keep the news private as he underwent intense chemotherapy.
‘I’ve been very lucky,’ he said at the time. ‘I’m sure some people would say I’ve had bad luck, but I think when you come out the other end of anything, I think I’ve had a lot of good luck as well; everything has worked out for me.’
Kenny explained: ‘I had a double bypass, which kind of brilliantly mended me, fixed me up and got me back on the road and then, my cancer came back again about three years ago.
‘I was diagnosed with lung cancer, and they removed the lower part of my left lung.
‘That kept me going again for another while, but it came back again now last year, so I’m just on treatment for that at the moment.’
He said his treatment was working and was ‘going well’.
Powering through with his work schedule, he added: ‘Some shows I’m doing is just to see how my body is going to hold up doing some travel, some work and some live performances.’
Kenny was due to perform at The Schoolyard Theatre in Charleville this weekend, but the venue confirmed earlier in the week that the show had been cancelled.
The late star got his big break working as a comedy writer for Davis At Large on RTE between 1984 and 1996.
Over the following years, he developed his own solo shows.
He and Shortt also ran several successful live shows and best-selling videos in Ireland.
Fans will know Kenny and Shortt appeared as pubgoers named Gerry and Jonjo in the Oscar-nominated Banshees of Inisherin in 2022.
Kenny also starred in animated films including Wolfwalkers and Song of the Sea.
As well as his wife and wider family, Kenny is survived by his daughter Leah and son Aaron.
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