Father Jack actor Frank Kelly dies aged 77

His death comes 18 years to the day after the sitcom’s star Dermot Morgan died at the age of 45.

“Frank was an all-around talent, an institution in Irish entertainment, a very determined professional”.

Kelly’s first screen role was as a prison guard in The Italian Job starring Michael Caine.

Frank enjoyed a career spanning six decades with stints in television, radio, theatre and film.

Morgan played Father Ted Crilly alongside Kelly and passed away aged 45. “He mightn’t have been as eccentric or mad as Father Jack but it’s not without foundation in reality”. He had “catchwords” rather than “phrases”; “feck!”, “arse!”, “drink!” and “girls!” were his favourites. He also had a brief role on Emmerdale, although he left the cast after just five months of filming.

The Divine Comedy, the band which wrote the theme tune, posted ion their official twitter account: ‘Farewell, Amber Portwood.

Condolences have been coming in since the news of Frank’s death emerged. “Sad news about Frank Kelly“.

“His partnership with Dermot Morgan and the team in the Father Ted series brought him wide worldwide acclaim. I worked with him on The Deal and he was such a great guy”.

Kelly announced he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease last November, but insisted he would continue to work.

He added that his “mobile is always on”. If you are watching what you are doing, you can control it.