| Composer: | John McPhillips |
| Country: | Ireland |
| Language: | English |
| Num Series: | 3 |
| Num Episodes: | 18 |
| Editor: | Dermot Diskin, John O'Connor |
| Location: | Lahinch, County Clare, Ireland |
| Cinematography: | Cathal Watters |
| Network: | RTÉ One |
Smother is an Irish thriller drama television series written by Kate O'Riordan and directed by Dathaí Keane.[1] It stars Dervla Kirwan as Val Ahern, a mother who is determined to protect her family at any cost.[2] The series is produced by BBC Studios and Treasure Entertainment for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, and premiered on 7 March 2021 on RTÉ One. A second series was announced in April 2021 and had its premiere on RTÉ One on 9 January 2022. It aired in the UK by Alibi in June 2021. The show then premiered on Peacock in the US on July 1, 2021. The second season premiered on April 28, 2022. The series airs in Norway on TV2.[3] In August 2022, it was confirmed that the series would end at the end of the third season. The third and final series began airing on 6 February 2023.
Set in a small town on the wild and rugged coast of County Clare, Val Ahern, a devoted mother, is determined to protect her family and particularly her three daughters—Jenny, Anna and Grace—at any cost. When Val's husband Denis is found dead at the foot of a cliff near their home the morning after a family party, Val attempts to investigate the events that unfolded the night before.
Filming began in February 2020 in and around Lahinch.[4] [5] On the series' way of writing and storytelling, lead actress Dervla Kirwan said that "it's been a long time since anything this well written about an Irish family has come my way. In Smother, [Kate O'Riordan] has created a riveting thriller that will wake the world up to contemporary Ireland and rewrite an outdated narrative that has been peddled about the Irish for years."[6] She also relates the series' setting to the character in the series, in particular to the Ahern family:
In March 2020, production was halted due to social restrictions being imposed nationwide to combat the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. On the filming halt, cast member Niamh Walsh states:
On 4 April 2021, it was revealed that comedian Kevin McGahern has joined the cast in episode 5, portraying Michael Foley.[7]
On 26 December 2021, it was announced that former Coronation Street star Dean Fagan will be starring as Denis Ahern's estranged son in the show's second series.[8] [9]
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Nominee(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 July 2021 | Best Drama | Production Team | ||
| Best Director – Drama | Dathaí Keane | |||
| Best Script – Drama | Kate O'Riordan | |||
| Best Actress | ||||
| Best Supporting Actress | ||||
| Best Supporting Actor | ||||
| Best Score | ||||
| Best Cinematography | Cathal Watters | |||
| Best Costume | Triona Lillis | |||
| Best Sound | Hugh Fox, Fionán Higgins & Mark Henry | |||
| 12 March 2022 | Best Drama | Production Team | ||
| Best Director – Drama | Dathaí Keane | |||
| Best Script – Drama | Kate O'Riordan | |||
| Best Actress | ||||
| Best Supporting Actress | Justine Mitchell | |||
| Best Sound | John "Bob" Brennan, Fionán Higgins, Mark Henry, & Andrew Kirwan | |||
| 12 April 2022 | Drámaíocht / Drama | Smother | [10] | |
| 28 March 2023 | Drámaíocht / Drama | Smother | [11] | |
| 7 May 2023 | Best Drama | Production Team | ||
| Best Director – Drama | Dathaí Keane | |||
| Best Script – Drama | Kate O'Riordan | |||
| Best Actress | ||||
| Best Actor |