'Imagine if I accidentally said something abusive or irreligious. Not that I ever would, but in a live show, you have to be so, so careful. It’s a huge responsibility. I just hope I remember.'
Brendan O’Carroll says live TV "scares the living daylights" out of him but it's that fear that keeps him hooked.
The Finglas man is fronting a Mrs Brown’s Boys live Halloween special, which will air across the UK and Ireland — on both RTE and BBC — in real time.
And the star admitted that the live aspect of the show is stressful.
While the seasoned cast are used to performing together in theatres, Brendan said that doing a live show to such a huge audience is terrifying.
Brendan told the Irish Sun: "Of course doing the live show scares the living daylights out of me. But that’s why you do it. That added stress brings an adrenalin I’m hooked on.
"Imagine if I accidentally said something abusive or irreligious. Not that I ever would, but in a live show, you have to be so, so careful. It’s a huge responsibility. I just hope I remember."
Get the latest RSVP headlines straight to your inbox for free by signing up to our newsletter
Brendan isn't the only one concerned about the special, as he admitted that TV executives are also worried.
"There is no five or ten second delay," said Brendan. "So I’ve no doubt that the people running both channels will be s******g themselves.
"Those lads will spend the whole night on the edge of their seats. Frankly, I’m amazed I’ve been entrusted with half an hour of live TV which, by its nature, you never know what’s going to happen."
The father-of-four recounted how, in 2018, he was summoned by BBC bosses to a meeting and asked to cut down on the swearing in Mrs Brown so the programme could air earlier in the evening.
Brendan — who is married to Jennifer Gibney, who plays his on-screen daughter Cathy Brown — revealed: "I said, ‘You want me to stop saying ‘f***’ so you can put the show on at eight o’clock?
"‘The show is the show. Put it at eight o’clock, or put it on at 10.30pm, put it on at 12.30am, the people who want to see it will find it, but the show is the show. I don’t care when you put it on, we are not changing the show’."
Tags
RECENT