Ask Colm O'Maonlai transcript
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| This event took place Tuesday 5th Novemeber 2002 |
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Colm O'Maonlai
The tall, dark and handsome fire-fighter brought a bit of Irish charm to EastEnders. He joined us live in the studio after the explosive exit of his character, Tom Banks!
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Question from Anna, Caterham: Do you get lots of fan mail?
Colm O'Maonlai: Hello Anna. I get quite a package every week to my home now.
Question from Katie: Do you get recognised in the street more since you were in
EastEnders?
Colm O'Maonlai: Yes more than I can explain. It is still happening though.
Question from Bubbles: What was your favourite thing about working with
EastEnders?
Colm O'Maonlai: That's tough. There were so many aspects of it - working with the
cast really, them and the crew. It's such a well oiled machine. They were all really cool.
It was great working with Letitia. We had no time to form a relationship at the beginning as
we were thrown into it but we got there in the end.
Question from Sarina, Rotherham: If you had originally been in EastEnders when you
first fell in love with Sharon, how do you think your character would have grown?
Colm O'Maonlai: He wouldn't have grown a tumour hopefully! That is a tricky question
actually. I don't know. There might have been more scope for romances - Dot Cotton
maybe?!?
Question from EastEndersfan: What was it like walking into the flames and knowing
that was the last time you'd see Sharon?
Colm O'Maonlai: Strange, although it's not done in actual time so when I was walking
into the flames, I knew I had to come back and do two scenes from three weeks previous.
That's kind of weird but I'm used to doing film work and that's always done out of sync.
Business as usual really.
Question from Liz: Do you think you could have been a fire-fighter in real
life?
Colm O'Maonlai: Nope. I don't have the physique. They're hardy men.
Question from Easty: Do you have an idol who has influenced you on screen?
Colm O'Maonlai: Hmmm. I think Harrison Ford would spring to mind, he's a great film
actor. John Cleese is amazing, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, particularly in Scarface. I
wouldn't call them idols but I've learnt quite a bit off them and enjoyed their work. I've
done both film and TV, I've done multi-camera work on both so that wasn't too bad. I can't
wait to get back to acting in film. The pace of production on EastEnders was mad, but good
experience.
Question from Bleurgh: Will you be doing any more films in the future?
Colm O'Maonlai: My new film, A Place To Stay, which we shot in Wiltshire last year.
That is really my thing, to get some serious film work under my belt and maybe set up a
production company. Then decide where my career would like to go. Production I don't really
fancy. I did it once and it was so stressful, trying to co-ordinate people from all walks of
life - musicians, caterers the whole thing. Directing I'd like to try my hand at some
stage.
Question from Princessp: Did you go to acting school to train?
Colm O'Maonlai: I did go to acting school. I did a Theatre Studies course in Trinity,
which I left in 1988. My mother was an actress and I was asked to do a play when I was 12,
in Irish, in Dublin. I got the part and from then I did another play and then got the bug. I
did a film then and loved it. That was a fluke. I was sitting in a cafe in London and
someone came up to me and asked if I was an actor and that was that. A week later I was in
Spain making a movie. I then got an agent in Dublin and auditioned for parts and kept at it.
Five years ago, there was a character called Connor in EastEnders - I went for the audition
and got down to the last two. The other guy got the job but the casting director remembered
me from then, flew me over and I got the part of Tom. The rest is history.
Question from Angelofnorth: What was it like to see your own death on screen?
Colm O'Maonlai: I'll be honest - I cried. Not so much me dying, I think it was a
release, I was finally finished. I was exhausted as it was really tough stuff. Sharon's
reaction was particularly heart-wrenching too, the acting was amazing. I'd certainly watch
my funeral. Apart from that, I don't know. I probably will because I've been watching it
from the beginning, I've been a fan for years.
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