Paddy – The life and times: One -Man show starring Don Wycherley comes to The Civic

FIFTY years after his wrongful conviction, at the age of 74, Paddy is facing into his twilight years and wrestling with a thousand turbulent memories.

In ‘Paddy’, he relives the journey that forever altered his destiny.

A one-man show, starring Don Wycherley as Paddy, the play is inspired by Paddy’s memoir ‘Life After Life, a Guildford Four Memoir’ (2017).

‘Paddy’ is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the power of forgiveness, reminding us that the privilege of freedom and love, family and everyday life can restore us and mend the scars of even the most savage injustice.

Don Wycherley brings unflinching honesty, pathos and humour to his portrayal of Paddy, a man failed and scarred by a flawed system yet refusing to be defined by it.

This week, The Echo sat down with Don to discuss ‘Paddy – The Life and Times of Paddy Armstrong’, which performs in the Civic from March 6 – 8.

How did you come to learn about the story of Paddy?

Mary-Elaine Tynan, who co-writes the show with Don and Niamh Gleeson and also directs it, co-wrote Paddy’s memoir; this book had been out for some time.

I had also heard of the Guildford Four, and when I lived near Paddy, I would see him around, but I didn’t know him.

Mary-Elaine came to me from the Viking Theatre because they had recommended me to help her work on an adaptation.

I read the book after the offer, and it was a great read; I asked Mary to write a first draft for the show, and I helped her tweak it a bit because she was new to playwrighting.

I was offered the chance to meet Paddy over a coffee; that chat was the moment I started to get sucked in and started getting ideas.

Mary and I discussed for a long time what should be in the show, how it should be told, etc.

The process became more intense towards the end, and we decided on an end product because Nora from the Viking wanted to see the show performed in November; I remember our first time really performing it was when we did a dress rehearsal for Paddy and his wife Caroline.

Thankfully, it has been really well-received; we’ve been to places such as Galway, Limerick, and Cork.

Another aspect that also inspired me to take on this project was that I was interested in Paddy’s side of the story (many are already familiar with Gerry Condon’s version).

What have been the highlights or challenges of working on this show?

Well, the whole production and putting it all together is a challenge.

A highlight is when you put effort in and get a hugely positive response from reviewers or audiences.

I remember being nervous about Paddy, Caroline and their kids coming to see my portrayal of him and wondering what they’d think of it! Another challenge is I also remember Mary-Elaine and I going over and over the script multiple times, and we had our fair share of arguments.

Another highlight was talking to Paddy and just being fascinated hearing his story and the way he was telling it; he’s a very funny character.

You wouldn’t think it with what he’s been through, but he has a great sense of humour! Some of the stuff he told me was very interesting, like how he moved prisons, British prisoners wanted to kill him, and he met Reggie Kray – that kind of stuff.

He also told me about how he hung out with Daniel Day-Lewis when he was preparing to portray Gerry Condon in ‘In the Name of the Father’.

Do you prefer writing or performing?

I enjoy both! In a one-man show especially, you kinda have to embody both.

As I mentioned before, Mary was new to playwrighting, and I needed to give her a hand and tried to be supportive.

I like performing live; it feels more visceral.

It’s gas seeing how audiences start off apprehensive, not sure if they should laugh at certain lines, and as the show goes on, they start to get into it!

What would be your favourite project you’ve ever worked on?

I would say my favourite project is always the one I’m currently working on; whatever happened in the past is in the past.

People nowadays mention ‘Father Ted’ or ‘Eden’ to me, and they know and remember the lines better than me!

I have great memories from working on projects such as that, and I’m glad to hear that people enjoy my work, but I don’t really like to dwell on them; after a certain point, you need to move on.

I think this current project is especially important to hammer home the reality of just how awful the miscarriage of justice was.

For example, after our previous show in Fermoyle, there was a guy waiting around who was really annoyed and upset over the system.

He was genuinely apoplectic! I think this show is like that; it induces emotion, whether that be laughs, tears, or anger; all of this is induced by a person telling the story of his life for an hour and 10 minutes; this kind of impact, I feel, is what good theatre is all about!

What is next for you?

Well, I have a few tapes to do to audition for screen; I’ll have to grab a relative to help me line-read!

Who would you like to thank for help on the show?

I would definitely like to thank Paddy Armstrong for sharing his story, trusting me with it and my portrayal of him, and making himself available for me, along with his wife Caroline and their kids, for going with him to see me perform.

I would also like to thank Mary-Elaine for being amazingly resilient as a writer and director and continuing to work with me despite our disagreements.

Many thanks to Niamh Gleeson for her help with the writing as well!

Finally, I would like to thank my own wife for being a supportive listener even when I must’ve been wrecking her head!