LIKE EVERY HOUSE in Ireland in the 90’s, there were at least a couple of VHS recordings of D’Unbelievables lurking around in old cabinets, ready to be ‘thrown on for a few minutes’ any time there was deemed to be ‘nothing on the telly’.
The intention would be to sit down, watch a sketch or two and then carry on with whatever needed doing around the place, while the comforting soundscape continued in the background.
But of course, that never happened. One by one, family members were lured in, maybe by shouts of ‘I won’t says I, I’m fine’ or ‘D’at’s right’, until eventually, everyone was gathered on the sofa, watching the madness on display in its entirety until the end.
That was the beauty of the D’Unbelievables. That ability to draw you in. To make you laugh from that place in your belly that you sometimes forget is there. From the simplest of set ups; a child buying sweets, a hurling coach giving a pep talk, coughing and conversation at the back of the church; the precision of the characterisations and the celebration of rural culture that appealed to young and old, was something we had never seen before.
In our house we had grown up on a diet of Dick Emery, Mr Bean, Fawlty Towers and now here were two of our own. The power of it cannot be underestimated. Jon Kenny and Pat Shortt found new ways for us to laugh at ourselves. The way they broke the fourth wall and transformed audience members into fully fledged characters integral to the sketch, felt revolutionary, like an act of rebellion. They may not have been the first ones to ever do it, but they were the first ones like us to do it.
Jon Kenny was laid to rest this week in his beloved Limerick. He leaves behind a grieving family, friends and colleagues who clearly adored him and a trail of characters and catchphrases that cement his status as a legitimate Irish comedy icon.
It’s always tricky to pinpoint where something creative begins, who influences who and how the next generation of comics are conceived, but there’s surely a line that can be drawn from D’Unbelievables to Tommy Tiernan, The Two Johnnies, and beyond, with plenty of offshoots in between. When D’unbelievables stopped touring in 2000, Jon went on to further great work throughout his career, often coinciding with challenging health issues which he faced with his trademark courage, humour and grace.
A Father Ted appearance as a bumbling Eurovision host who can turn on the charm for the cameras will surely go down as some of his finest work, as well as long-running tours of The Matchmaker co-starring Mary McAvoy and in more recent years Norma Sheahan, and most recently his unforgettable role in The Banshees of Inisherin which saw him reunited with his D’Unbelievables co-star once again.
“Jon had no time for notions”, Norma Sheahan told me by phone this week. She worked with him on several tours of The Matchmaker by John B. Keane, a role which expertly showcased his devilment and wit and for which he was rightly beloved.
“He would put his car keys in his pocket at the interval and get straight on the road after the curtain call. It didn’t matter where we were or how long it would take him, he wanted to get home and have a glass of wine or a cup of tea with his beloved wife Margy”.
It’s a theme that runs through the anecdotes of anyone who ever worked with him. A love of family and a no-nonsense approach to getting the job done. “Oh yeah, he wasn’t much into rehearsing, laughs Sheahan, “he preferred to keep it loose and get on with it”.
Kevin Gildea, himself a stalwart of early 90’s comedy in Ireland, remembers gigging with Jon in Limerick many moons ago. “He was with Pat, but I don’t know if they were officially the D’unbelievables at this point”. Kevin was performing with the sketch group Mr Trellis, alongside Ardal O’Hanlon and Barry Murphy. “It was a late gig for the students’ union I think, basically a really rowdy crowd who didn’t pay attention to us at all”.
With the gig rumbling on and the crowd getting more and more rambunctious, it was then the turn of Jon and Pat. “Pat played a lot of saxophone in those days and the gig was out of control at this point”, continues Gildea, “But then I remember he started playing this beautiful version of Summertime and Jon started miming all these summery things, swimming, going to the beach and so on, it was hilarious”.
It wasn’t long before the crowd took notice. “This rowdy bunch of chaotic students were completely transfixed. There was complete silence as the whole crowd paid attention. It was one of the funniest and most beautiful things I’ve ever seen”, finishes Gildea.
It conjures up a spark of creative madness that never seemed to leave Jon. At comedy clubs and venues throughout the country this week, standing ovations and applause were freely given in honour of a man who lit up Irish stages and screens for over two decades.
On announcing his passing, his family said: “Jon grabbed life and shook it as hard as he could, getting every ounce of fun, madness, and love from it”. There are comics up and down the country who he has directly inspired to do the same.
Ar dheis De go raibh a anam.
Sharon Mannion is the resident host of The Comedy Cellar, Ireland’s longest running comedy club, Wednesday 8 pm at the International on Wicklow St in Dublin. Her solo show ‘Sharondipity’ continues its nationwide run in early 2025. SharonMannionComedy.com, Insta: @sharonmannioncomedy.
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