Gerard "Gerry" Stembridge (born 1958,

County Limerick County Limerick () is a western Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Reg ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

) is an Irish writer, director and actor. He was educated at CBS Sexton Street in Limerick and later at

Castleknock College Castleknock College () is a voluntary Vincentian secondary school for boys, situated in the residential suburb of Castleknock, west of Dublin city centre, Ireland. Founded in 1835 by Philip Dowley, it is one of the oldest boys' schools in ...

. While attending

University College Dublin University College Dublin (), commonly referred to as UCD, is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 38,417 students, it is Ireland's largest ...

, he was auditor of the Literary and Historical Society. He taught English and drama at

Mount Temple Comprehensive School Mount Temple Comprehensive School is a secondary school in Clontarf, Dublin, Ireland. The school operates under the patronage of the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin, and has, as a primary objective, the provision of state-funded second ...

in Clontarf.

Radio

He reached significant prominence in Ireland when he co-created the satirical comedy radio programme ''

Scrap Saturday ''Scrap Saturday'' was an Irish satirical radio sketch show created by Dermot Morgan, who was also the main performer on the show, and Gerard Stembridge, Gerry Stembridge, which ran on RTÉ Radio 1 on Saturday mornings from 1989 until 1991. ...

'' with

Dermot Morgan Dermot John Morgan (31 March 1952 – 28 February 1998) was an Irish comedian and actor, best known for his role as the title character on the Channel 4 sitcom ''Father Ted''. Early life Morgan was born in Dublin, the son of Hilda "Holly" (née ...

. It became one of the most popular programmes on

RTÉ Radio RTÉ Radio is a division and service of Irish public broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ), which broadcasts four analogue channels and five digital channels across Ireland. Founded in January 1926 as 2RN, was the first broadcaster in ...

Film career

Stembridge wrote the screenplay for ''

Ordinary Decent Criminal ''Ordinary Decent Criminal'' is a 2000 crime comedy film, directed by Thaddeus O'Sullivan, written by Gerard Stembridge, and stars Kevin Spacey and Linda Fiorentino. The film is loosely based on the story of Martin Cahill, a famous Irish crim ...

'' (which starred

Kevin Spacey Kevin Spacey Fowler (born July 26, 1959) is an American actor. Known for Kevin Spacey on screen and stage, his work on stage and screen, he List of awards and nominations received by Kevin Spacey, has received numerous accolades, including two ...

and

Linda Fiorentino Clorinda "Linda" Fiorentino (born March 9, 1958) is an American actress. Fiorentino made her screen debut with a leading role in the 1985 coming-of-age drama film ''Vision Quest'', followed that same year with another lead role in the action fil ...

). He co-wrote ''

Nora Nora, NORA, or Norah may refer to: * Nora (name), a feminine given name People with the surname * Arlind Nora (born 1980), Albanian footballer * Pierre Nora (1931–2025), French historian * Simon Nora (1921–2006), French politician Place ...

'', a film about

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (born James Augusta Joyce; 2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influentia ...

and

Nora Barnacle Nora Barnacle Joyce (born Norah Barnacle; 21 March 1884 – 10 April 1951) was the muse and wife of Irish author James Joyce. Barnacle and Joyce's life together has been the subject of much popular interest. ''Nora Barnacle'', a 1980 play by ...

which starred

Ewan McGregor Ewan Gordon McGregor ( ; born 31 March 1971) is a Scottish actor. His accolades include a Golden Globe Award and a Primetime Emmy Award. In 2013, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his services to drama and ...

and

Susan Lynch Susan Lynch (born 1971) is an actress from Northern Ireland. She is known for her role in the 2003 film '' 16 Years of Alcohol''. Her other film appearances include '' Waking Ned Devine'' (1998), '' Nora'' (2000), '' Beautiful Creatures'' (200 ...

. He has directed such films as ''Guiltrip'', ''Black Day at Black Rock'', ''

Alarm ALARM (Air Launched Anti-Radiation Missile) is a British anti-radiation missile designed primarily to destroy enemy radars for the purpose of Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD). It was used by the Royal Air Force, RAF and is still used by ...

'' and ''

About Adam ''About Adam'' is a 2000 romantic comedy film written and directed by Gerard Stembridge and starring Kate Hudson, Stuart Townsend, and Frances O'Connor. The plot focuses on the effect a seductive young man has on four siblings. Plot Adam ...

''.

Playwright

A selection of his plays include *''1992'' *''Betrayals'' *''Ceaucescu's Ear'' (Teatru Míc in Bucharest) *''Daniel's Hands'' (

City Arts Centre, Dublin City Arts Centre (CityArts) was a community arts organisation in central Dublin founded in 1973 and liquidated in 2012. History Origins Originally called the ''Grapevine Arts Centre'', what became the ''City Arts Centre'' occupied a number of ...

) *''Denis and Rose'' (Civic Theatre, Dublin) *''The Gay Detective'' (Project Arts Centre, Dublin) *''Love Child'' *''Melting Penguins'' *''That Was Then'' (

Abbey Theatre The Abbey Theatre (), also known as the National Theatre of Ireland () is a theatre in Dublin, Ireland. First opening to the public on 27 December 1904, and moved from its original building after a fire in 1951, it has remained active to the p ...

, Dublin). *''The Leaving''

Novels

Stembridge's latest novel ''The Effect of Her'' was published in 2013. He is also the author of three earlier novels: ''Unspoken'' (Old Street Press), ''Counting Down'' and ''According to Luke'' (both Penguin Ireland).

References

External links