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🇮🇪 Ireland /Crime & Justice

Downton Abbey star to lead RTÉ drama about Mr Moonlight murder

From RTÉ News · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • Brendan Coyle will portray Bobby Ryan in RTÉ’s five-part drama The Murder of Mr. Moonlight, which will air in 2027 and has been acquired by the BBC.
  • The series follows Ryan’s 2011 disappearance, the discovery of his body nearly two years later, and Patrick Quirke’s 2019 murder conviction.
  • Producers say the drama will focus more closely on Ryan and his family, whose story they say was overshadowed by attention on the other figures in the case.

Brendan Coyle, known for Downton Abbey, will play Bobby Ryan in a new RTÉ drama about the disappearance and murder of the Tipperary DJ known as Mr Moonlight. The five-part series, The Murder of Mr. Moonlight, will air on RTÉ in 2027 and has also been acquired by the BBC for BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

the people caught up in it, the human factor, the cost of it all

· Malcolm CampbellThe screenwriter explained what drew him to the case.

The cast includes Owen McDonnell as Patrick Quirke, Sinéad Keenan as Mary Lowry, Hazel Doupe as Ryan’s daughter Michelle, and Carolyn Bracken as Quirke’s wife Imelda. Ian Lloyd Anderson, Danny Power, Helena Browne, Muiris Crowley, Aidan O’Hare, Emmet Byrne and Pom Boyd also appear.

At its heart are real people whose lives were profoundly affected by these events

· Malcolm CampbellCampbell described the human focus of the drama.

Ryan disappeared in June 2011, and his body was found almost two years later in an underground tank on a farm in County Tipperary. Quirke was convicted of his murder in 2019 and received a life sentence after a 15-week trial.

Our responsibility has been to approach the process with care, sensitivity and rigorous research, while exploring the relationships and circumstances that made this case so compelling

· Malcolm CampbellThe screenwriter outlined the production’s approach.

Based on journalist Catherine Fegan’s book of the same name, the drama will draw on extensive research and interviews. It will examine the relationships, secrets and tensions surrounding the case, along with the effect of Ryan’s death and the investigation on people close to the events. Screenwriter Malcolm Campbell said he was drawn to “the people caught up in it, the human factor, the cost of it all”. He said the production’s responsibility was to work with “care, sensitivity and rigorous research”. Producers Kim Varvell and Tommy Bulfin said the series would seek to give Ryan and his family a stronger voice, remembering him as a father, grandfather, friend and loved member of his community.

This drama intends to give a voice back to Bobby and his family

· Kim Varvell and Tommy BulfinThe producers said the series would place greater emphasis on Ryan and his family.
About this summary

Originally published by RTÉ News in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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