By Owen Ryan
NEXT month June Rodgers will be hitting the road for her first ever nationwide tour, while she has a part in Mrs Brown D’Movie, which will also be released during the month.
She will be at Glór on June 7 and she said that other commitments prevented her from going around the country up till now. “I’ve been asked for many years to do it, but with other commitments we just never got around to it. People have travelled to Dublin to see shows and they keep saying why don’t you come down. After the Christmas show at the Red Cow we decided we’d hit the road with this show and most of the cast were around which was great, because a lot of them go off and do other things and I may not see them until the following Christmas.”
She says that all of her best known characters will be included in the show and many people would still associate her with the notorious Jacinta O’Brien. “Jacinta has to show her face, I’d be shot I think if she didn’t. Jacinta is just one of those characters that everyone loves to hate and everyone can identify, because I think most people have a Jacinta in their life at one time or another. I’ve 20 different characters in the show and lots of new ones, Oliver Bond is one who’s coming up the charts, they love him as well. In the show this year we’ve got a big 80s opening and there’s a great nostalgia piece, people love looking back. The costumes are very important, they’re visually funny and the audience are laughing before you open your mouth.”
She says that her shows are never crude, are suitable for families and she feels that vulgarity isn’t required if the standard is high enough. “Because I change the show every year it takes a full year to plan it and to talk to the writer. Martin Higgins has been writing for me for the last 23 years and I couldn’t do it without him, he knows what I’ll do and what I won’t do, because I entertain families, there’s no vulgarity in the show. If the writing is good, the comedy doesn’t need it.”
Back in 1999 she was in Agnes Browne and was delighted to be asked back for the new film, which is sure to be a hit given the mass popularity of the TV show. “I had done the first Agnes Brown film with Brendan 15 years ago, and I played the part of Fat Annie.. I know you find that very hard to believe, of course I was wearing a suit! I’ve kept in contact with Brendan over the years and he’s been a great support. We were doing something for Joe Duffy and he said to keep September and October free, there is something coming up. I’m going back to play the same character I played in the first film. It’s going to be huge when it comes out, that’ll be at the end of June.”
While she has been a household name for over 20 years, June says she never had any real aspirations towards working in entertainment, and fell into it more than anything. “I never thought I’d be doing what I’m doing, I didn’t go to any schools or anything, it was actually Tops of the Town that started me off. I was working for a company at the time and we just went in for the chat. I never thought I’d be on the Late Late show or in films.”
Owen Ryan has been a journalist with the Clare Champion since 2007, having previously worked with a number of other publications in Limerick, Cork and Galway. His first book will be published in December 2024.