RTÉ Reveals First Look of Brand-New Drama The Dry  

This eight-part Irish comedy drama stars Oscar nominee Ciarán Hinds

RTÉ and Britbox today has released two images from the original comedy-drama series, The Dry. The brand new eight-part drama is produced by Element Pictures, in association with Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland and ITV Studios, for RTÉ and Britbox. 

IMAGES here: https://we.tl/t-FulFQF6wU

The image features Roisin Gallagher (The Fall, Nowhere Special) as Shiv Sheridan who returns to Dublin after years of partying in London, sober and full of good intentions – but being back with her family makes staying on ‘the dry’ much harder than she expected. As Shiv tries to navigate this new phase of her life, so must her family…and they all have issues they don’t want to face.

Award-winning playwright and screenwriter Nancy Harris (Our New Girl, Dates) and acclaimed director Paddy Breathnach (Viva, Rosie) are the team behind The Dry. Harris has created and written the 8 x 30 min scripts, with Breathnach directing all episodes in the series.

On the origins of the series, writer Nancy Harris says, “I came up with the idea for The Dry over a couple of years, as like a lot of people, addiction has touched my life in different ways. However, every time I’d ever seen addiction represented on screen, it had always been in the most extreme way, such as somebody in rehab. I was interested in exploring the ordinary reality of being sober. And of finding the humour in suddenly having to navigate the emotional minefields and absurdities of family life – all while trying not to drink.” 

Dermot Horan, Director of Acquisitions & Co-Productions for RTÉ said: “Nancy Harris’s writing, brought to the screen by director Paddy Breathnach and a great cast have made The Dry a really special series about a very typical Irish family and the multiple issues they have to deal with. RTÉ are delighted to be working with the team at Element Pictures and UK platform Britbox and also many thanks to the BAI and Screen Ireland without whose support the series could not have been made. The Dry is one of many Irish drama’s on RTÉ this year as we pride ourselves on showcasing Irish talent.” 

The Dry also stars recent Oscar nominee Ciarán Hinds (Belfast, The Terror), Pom Boyd (Vanity Fair, Frank of Ireland), Siobhán Cullen (Origin, The Limehouse Golem), Moe Dunford (The Dig, Vikings) and newcomer Adam Richardson.

Emma Norton and Michael Dawson are Exec Producing for Element alongside company founders Ed Guiney and Andrew Lowe and writer Nancy Harris. Element Pictures has offices in Dublin, London, and Belfast. The company recently brought the record-breaking adaptation of Sally Rooney’s Normal People to the screen, and was behind Lenny Abrahamson’s internationally acclaimed films Room and The Little Stranger; as well as all of Yorgos Lanthimos’ English language films, The Favourite, The Lobster and The Killing Of A Sacred Deer, and upcoming production Poor Things.

ITV Studios is handling global distribution for The Dry. The series was supported by the BAI Sound & Vision scheme.