Johnny Ward: ‘Fair City, panto and musicals are the three hardest gigs – ironically, they're the most frowned upon'
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Irish Daily Mirror
24-07-2025
- Irish Daily Mirror
Johnny Ward says brave mam will be in the audience for Little Shop of Horrors
Actor Johnny Ward has told how his brave mother plans to be in the audience for the Irish premiere of the Little Shop of Horrors. Johnny stars in the upcoming show at the Bord Gais Energy Theatre, which opens to the public from Friday, July 25. The Dubliner takes on the role of Orin in the theatre's first ever all-star Irish cast. Next Tuesday will see the stars – which include David O'Reilly and Kenneth O'Regan - perform for a special opening night – and Johnny said he will have more than just his lines on his mind. He revealed his mother, Kathy, will receive results after doctors found a lump two and a half months ago. "Yeah, I suppose it's all on Tuesdays. Of all the days, Tuesday is our opening night and Tuesday is kind of where we'll know how things stand with my mother, and what they kind of do for the next six months." Dubliner Johnny said the last year "has been a nightmare". David O Reilly, Jaqueline Brunton and Johnny Ward from the cast of The Little Shop of Horrors on stage in rehearsals at the Bord Gais Energy Theatre. Picture Brian McEvoy "This time last year she was obviously diagnosed with cancer. Where do you start? Like she just kept collapsing then on top of that, she had a heart attack, and she had a stroke, and then she had something called takotsubo cardiomyopathy (broken heart syndrome). "I suppose I didn't really take it as seriously as what I should've over the lockdown. It was a no brainer for me to move back in. And then, you know, we've got a really, really amazing arrangement between myself and my wife and my mam. "The last year has been an absolute nightmare, particularly like August to January was very difficult. August to November in particular was so tough, the worst. "We were told the worst at one stage, and she has cancer, and it was stage four and it was in part of her pancreas. "So part of her pancreas had to come out. It was just one step forward and two steps back. On top of that, once he was in the hospital, there's slow, very, very slow and extensive recovery, and then she got Covid, then she had a bad fall, then she had to be put on a feeding tube. "It was very difficult. She went into convalescent care in November and then she got out in January, and since then, you know, it's been great." But he said that on Tuesday, doctors will give them a new indication about what lies ahead for the next six months. "We know that the light is kind of dimming, and we need to go back into the tunnel for a while and kind of see where we stand for the next couple of months. "She's a suitable advocate for immunotherapy. The most recent thing is that they found a lump almost two and a half months ago. "But the professor actually recommended that given everything that she's been through, let's see if it gets any bigger. That's kind of where we stand." Lights, ! It was feeding time on Skid Row as the Bord Gais Energy Theatre and TheatreworX unveiled the set for their dazzling new production of Little Shop of Horrors in Dublin, Pictured were the cast including David O Reilly Johnny Ward and Jaqueline Brunton ahead of the shows opening this Friday 25th, it will run until until 9th August. But he said his mam will be in the audience with Johnny's wife Brenda cheering him on. "Tuesday is going to be very eventful. My mum will be there on Tuesday. My wife will bring her in. "From what you learn is you just take so many things for granted, and you have to be grateful for the last six months. "She's out walking now. She's doing it on her own. "She's got an amazing sense of independence, and I honestly thought that door was closed a long time ago. She's doing really, really well. And she just, yeah, she can't wait to come on Tuesday, regardless of the results." Speaking about the Little Shop Of Horrors, Johnny said: "It's great to be a part of. Everything feels brand new and it feels really special. It is the first in-house production ever to be in the Bord Gais Energy Theatre, which is really, really special to be a part of. "It's a lot of excitement, it's a lot of fun, it's a fantastic atmosphere and it doesn't feel like work. It's the most amazing bunch of people. "I suppose for a long time, to make it as a musical theatre performer it was a no brainer that you had to go over to the UK to make it in the West End so the fact that they have put on a production is hopefully a stepping stone for many more in house production from Bord Gais to come." Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
Irish Daily Mirror
20-07-2025
- Irish Daily Mirror
Johnny Ward shares message Barry Keoghan sent before DWTS final
Actor Johnny Ward has revealed Barry Keoghan sent him a video message the night before the Dancing With The Stars final. The pair worked together on Love/Hate, which saw Keoghan launch into international stardom. But Johnny said the pair occasionally keep in touch, with the Dubliner revealing the sweet message the Banshees of Inisherin star sent him before the final of Dancing With The Stars in 2019. He said: 'I thought that was so lovely. He hasn't forgotten who he is and his background." They co-starred in the 2016 film Mammal, directed by Rebecca Daly. Ward remembers filming with Keghan in Luxembourg for the 2016 movie Mammal and being keenly aware of the Dubliner's star potential. "I remember looking at him and going, 'This guy' - it's like a disease, but in the best way possible, because there's no way someone can be, without any effort, just so talented. I was sitting going over lines, wondering, 'What emotion can I do here?' whereas he would just do it - he's absolutely phenomenal,' he told Sunday Independent's Life magazine. The Dubliner also opens up dealing with grief since the death of his father John, who passed away from cancer in 2019. After Ward completed RTÉ's Ultimate Hell Week in 2022, the first person he called was his dad, getting through to the answer phone before the realisation hit him. Recently, he was in a shopping centre and Coldplay's Viva la Vida came on. "I hear that and the music will give me shivers because, oh God, we were doing a routine, and I'll just think of my dad and what stage of death he was at. "You get those little things, and it's normal," he added. "But I know that if my dad was alive, he'd be saying, 'Look after your mother, and that's what I'm doing." Ward splits his time between living and caring for his mum in Walkinstown, Dublin, and his home with his wife, Brenda, in Kilcullen, Co Kildare. "It's kind of half and half, and then at the weekends we'll all come together," he said, adding that he sees it as a chance to try and repay all the support his mum gave him growing up. "She's the reason I'm sitting here," he says emphatically. "Without her, I definitely would have given up acting a long time ago. I wouldn't have stuck to it." Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
Irish Independent
16-07-2025
- Irish Independent
Johnny Ward: ‘Fair City, panto and musicals are the three hardest gigs – ironically, they're the most frowned upon'
Johnny Ward is balancing precariously on a swivel chair, facing away from the Zoom camera with one leg raised up, only belatedly realising that, to the people sitting in the open-plan space on the other side of the glass office, it probably looks like he's displaying his arse to the screen.
