When it comes to the O’Carroll family, you don’t have to look too hard to find Father Brendan and several of his family members on our screens as the iconic Brown family from Dublin.
Brendan didn’t have to go very far in his search for the perfect matches when casting Mrs Brown’s Boys, enlisting the help of Children, grandchildren and wife, Jennifer.
Mrs Brown’s Boys has been running since 2011, with consecutive seasons, Christmas and New Year’s specials, and a one-off live episode that aired in 2016. However, the star-studded family cast has experienced little to no change in those 13 years.
Brendan has been the life and soul of the Mrs Brown franchise as far back as the original movie starring Anjelica Houston in 1999. Thanks to his creative tendencies and amazing writing skills, the sitcom Mrs Brown’s Boys arrived on-screen on New Year’s Day, 2011 and hasn’t left since.
In 2014, he starred in Mrs Brown’s Boys, D’Movie, which proved a huge hit in Irish cinemas. In 2017, a spinoff series of the original called All Round To Mrs Brown’s aired on RTÉ and BBC. Each episode saw Agnes herself sitting down with prominent celebrities and personalities about their future plans.
Brendan has played major parts in several stage productions in recent years, most notably D’Musical, which is based on the life of the actor’s alter-ego. He also recently starred in The Walk-In, a five-part true crime series about the infiltration of a far-right terrorist organisation plotting to murder an MP.
The Finglas native currently lives in Davenport, Florida, with his co-star and wife, Jennifer Gibney. Heading stateside, both O’Carroll and Gibney starred in the twelfth movie in the Madea universe, which was directed by Tyler Perry.
Danny O’Carroll – Buster Brady
It’s safe to say that Agnes didn’t have much time for Buster, with his antics and dodgy dealings, but in real life, things are quite the opposite, with the two having a strong father-son relationship.
Danny hasn’t strayed very far from the Mrs Brown franchise since things took off, apart from an appearance alongside co-star Paddy Houlihan (Dermot Brown) in RTÉ’s travel series High Road, Low Road. O’Carroll and Houlihan flew to Amsterdam, where one experienced a luxury holiday while the other had a less fancy experience.
The 40-year-old lives in Donegal with his wife and co-star, Amanda Woods, who plays Betty Brown, and his two sons, one of whom also plays a major part in the comedy series. He is active on social media and shares snaps of his coastal lifestyle on Instagram.
Eilish O’Carroll – Winnie McGoogan
Winnie provided hours of comedic relief throughout each season of Mrs Brown’s Boys, often falling victim to Mrs Brown’s quick wit, but deep down, you couldn’t name another set of closer friends. Like their on-screen relationship, the O’Carroll siblings are close, with Eilish playing the big sister in real life.
While running Mrs Brown’s Boys, she also performed in Live, Love, Laugh, a stage production which ran from 2013 to 2018.
O’Carroll has two adult sons, Stuart and Lee. However, in the early 2000s, she announced that she was in a relationship with her now long-term partner, Marian O’Sullivan. The pair now live in Co Cork, and in 2015, she emerged as one of the most outspoken members of the Together For Yes Campaign during the marriage referendum.
Fiona O’Carroll – Maria Brown
Maria is the long-suffering partner of Mrs Brown’s youngest, Dermot, but outside of the comedy, Maria and Mrs Brown are related. O’Carroll, Danny’s older sister, has appeared in numerous dramas since the launch of Mrs Brown’s Boys on RTÉ and BBC.
In 2014, she appeared in the ITV drama The Widower and, more recently, played a major part in Picture Day, which came to screens in 2023. Stepping away from the world of drama, she took part in the RTÉ series Special Forces Ultimate Hell Week in 2022 alongside GAA star Eoin Cadogan.
In 2021, O’Carroll’s marriage to co-star Martin Delany ended. The couple have four children, three of whom were diagnosed with Autism. She still lives in the family home in Co Meath and recently took part in a 260-mile walk from Cork to Belfast to raise money for children with special needs.
Jennifer Gibney – Cathy Brown
Mothers and their daughters? Mrs Brown and her daughter Cathy have had their fair share of hairy moments, but they share the love as husband and wife in real life.
The 59-year-old ex-civil servant married O’Carroll in 2005 and has been part of Mrs Brown’s Boys dynasty since, splitting her time between Davenport in Florida and Dublin.
In 2014, Gibney appeared on BBC One’s Strictly Come Dancing but was sadly eliminated in week three after dancing the Foxtrot to ‘Mama Mia’ by Abba.
Jamie O’Carroll – Bono Brown
Since a very young age, Jamie has played a big part in the Mrs Brown’s Boys series, but today, fans can see him all grown up as he is active on social media, regularly posting snaps on Instagram.
Amazingly, O’Carroll has nearly 15,000 followers on Instagram. Last year, to celebrate the young star’s birthday, his parents, Danny O’Caroll and Amanda Woods, treated him and his little brother to a trip to Florida, presumably to visit his grandfather, who has since become a stateside sensation since the arrival on Mrs Brown’s Boys on American Streaming platforms.