Away with the Fairies is a story idea I have.

It’s about a lonely old man in rural Ireland who thinks he will die if the fairy tree on his land falls. Everyone thinks he is “Away with the Fairies” as he puts a great deal of effort into protecting the tree, building a fence around it, and tying the battered branches together with ropes and string.

One day the tree does fall and he meets the fairy who lives there! In a frisky move to save his own life the old man invites the fairy (who is now without a home) to come live with him in his cottage.

Happily ever after!….Or is it?

I animated a 3 minute long short of Away with the Fairies for my final Year of university. I really wanted my characters to have Irish accents. When I tried to imagine what the characters would sound like I could hear

Ardal O’Hanlon and Chris O’Dowd voices.

Father Ted and Moone Boy were huge staples of my childhood, it was a real treat to catch these on the tv, seeing shows set in Ireland with Irish characters.

Through the power social media I pitched the idea to Chris O’Dowd who said “That looks class” and agreed to voice my fairy character. Ardal O’Hanlon is originally from my small town of Carrickmacross, I was very fortunate to know someone who knew someone who knew him, and he was very kind to voice Tommy, the old man!

Tommy

The Fairy

The cottage

The tree

Sketches and poster concepts

I’ve been playing around with this wee idea in my head for a good few years now. Thinking of what scenarios and shenanagins these characters will get into. The majority of the work shared here was created as part of my Uni project.