John Colleary brings his show ‘Mighty Quack’ to the Civic Theatre

HAVING toured extensively with Tommy Tiernan in recent years, John Colleary has performed consecutive successful solo shows, Loud And Colleary (2023), Head Like A Shed (2024), and Wildlife (2025) all over Ireland with great success.

Apart from being one of the most in-demand comics in the land, John has also co-written and starred in IFTA-nominated shows ‘The Savage Eye’ (RTÉ2) and ‘Irish Pictorial Weekly’ (RTÉ One).

Other TV credits include appearances on ‘Hardy Bucks’ and ‘Bridget & Eamon’ (RTÉ2). A talented actor and mimic, John featured as one third of The Gusset Brothers on ‘The Tommy Tiernan Show’ (RTÉ One).

2026 and beyond promises even more success for John as he brings his new show ‘Mighty Quack’ on tour.

This week, The Echo sat down with John to discuss ‘Mighty Quack’, which premieres in the Civic Theatre on August 21 at 8pm; booking details are available on the Civic’s website.

For more details of John’s other tour dates, check his website johncolleary.

What can you tell us about your latest show ‘Mighty Quack’? What can audiences expect from it?

The latest show Mighty Quack, has no theme as such, and it will be drawn from more of the one-liners plus observational material that has come about most recently.

There will also be an element of going back down memory lane with some anecdotes from life on the road as a comic and some of the experiences that came about from the making of TV shows like ‘The Savage Eye’ and ‘Hardy Bucks’.

There will, as always, be a quick look at the current state of the world too, as it does need the laughter treatment, I think!!

There might also be a few impersonations of well-known folks. I tend to find one new impersonation every once in a while, and maybe this will happen in ‘Mighty Quack’. If all else fails, I might even do an impersonation of myself for a change and see how I like it.

This will be your fourth consecutive solo show; how do you find the energy to keep touring?

To be honest, it is difficult to keep the energy levels up for touring, but as with like everything else in life, thinking about it can often be harder than doing it. Truth is, it’s the audience that always gives the most energy from which to keep at it!.

These days, I try to manage the logistics as much as possible to ensure I’m not going all around the country in one weekend.

I’ve had a lot of help with the planning, and it means that the driving has been reduced, and I make sure I’m only in one part of the country at a time.

What has been your favourite part of working on ‘Mighty Quack’ so far and why?

My favourite part of working on this one, and it’s the same for all shows, is the moment when a gag or a line or an inspiration for a story comes from absolutely nowhere.

Also, I like the anticipation of the unknown when looking at material and wondering, will it work or not?

Something else that I like about this one is that I’m not too concerned with a theme or a central idea with this show.

The aim here is to create jokes, gags and lines that have a laugh

(hopefully) in there for audiences. And hope also to add bits as I go along through the tour.

Despite the writing element, the best stuff can often just come in the moment during a show. I’m hoping the show at the Civic will have a few of those moments.

Have there been any challenges working on this show compared to your previous ones? If so, how have you navigated these challenges?

The most challenging thing for me is always trying to come up with something new.

That’s easily navigated if material is coming but not so otherwise.

Again, it’s the audiences that provide the platform for all of it and when in doubt about stuff, I’m always confident that their energy will see it through.

It’s also a challenge to judge properly what the best ideas are. Often times, I think something is funny, but it might not be at all.

It’s important to navigate this part of the process as well as possible, and that means just swallowing the pride and asking for help from other comics and especially from the promoters Roisin Dubh Comedy, who have been amazingly supportive and thorough as regards getting this show on the road.

At the end of the day, the best way to get around all the challenges is by just going straight through them lol.

What are you hoping will be audiences’ biggest takeaway from ‘Mighty Quack?’

I just hope they laugh a lot and enjoy it. I hope they come away from the show with a feeling of satisfaction that they have fulfilled the laugh quota for that day, week or even month.

The best comedy gigs I’ve attended are the ones where I can’t remember any of the jokes, and I hope this show will affect audiences in a similar way.

That would be handy, as I could come back next time with the same show!!

The Civic performance will be the first of a tour that will run until mid-February 2027. Could you see the feedback from this first performance influencing how you approach the material going forward?

Absolutely.

The first show will always be very informative (and mighty quacky), and there will be things that happen on the night unexpectedly that could be central going forward. I really enjoy playing the Civic, so I’m glad it’s the first one of the run.

Tallaght is a great community and has a vibrant art scene focused around the Civic Theatre.

There seems to be a mix of people living in the area. People from all over.

That is always a gift as far as audience is concerned, as theres a wide-ranging group to perform to, which can be a challenge in itself but also provides invaluable feedback going forward.

Who would you like to thank for helping you with ‘Mighty Quack’ so far and why?

Everybody that ever came to one of my shows.

And in this instance especially I would like to thank ROISIN Dubh Comedy, Namely Niall and Kevin, for investing wholeheartedly in this process and setting it up in such a way that all I need to do is show up, and when I do, be funny (hopefully).

Last but by no means least, Id like to thank my partner Janet for all her support always and especially for taking the pics that have ended up on the poster!. Without whom…as they say…