06-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Sunday World
Dallas star Patrick Duffy travels around Ireland in new doc tracing his roots
Patrick (76), who famously played Bobby Ewing in 'Dallas' and starred in 'The Man from Atlantis', has just finished filming a documentary in Ireland with his actress partner Linda Purl
Patrick with Larry Hagman as JR Ewing and Linda Gray as Sue Ellen in Dallas
President Michael D. Higgins, his wife Sabina and Patrick Duffy at the St Patrick's Day parade in Dublin in 2023
TV legend Patrick Duffy reveals he's looking into getting an Irish passport because of the current political climate in America.
Patrick (76), who famously played Bobby Ewing in 'Dallas' and starred in 'The Man from Atlantis', has just finished filming a documentary in Ireland with his actress partner Linda Purl.
'We came here to trace our roots, and a pub was the easiest way, because that's generally where the conversation starts,' Patrick tells the Sunday World.
'It's where you are best known in your community and everybody talks about your parents and your grandparents and pub culture.'
The actor grew up in Montana where his parents, Patrick Mor Terence and Marie Duffy (nee Dawson), owned a pub in Boulder. The couple were tragically murdered there in 1988 during an armed robbery, with their two killers getting parole in 2007 and 2015.
Patrick's paternal grandfather was from Kilmovee in Co Mayo.
'We are really tracing the pub culture through Ireland, and we will end up in Kilmovee in Mayo,' he explains. 'I have roots primarily in Mayo.
'I first came here in the mid-80s. We went to the Aran Islands and around the rest of Ireland a bit, we were looking at locations for a film. This is my sixth trip to Ireland.'
The actor, who became a household name in the '70s and '80s, confirms he is looking into getting an Irish passport.
'I am entitled to it, my grandfather emigrated,' he points out. 'It's worth looking into, especially now with the political climate the way it is, it's worth looking into absolutely.'
The couple spoke to us while filming a segment of the documentary at O'Loughlin's pub in Dun Laoghaire, where Patrick pulled and downed pints of Guinness.
Linda (69) is best known for playing Ashley Pfister, Fonzie's girlfriend, on the '70s sitcom 'Happy Days' and also starred as Pam Beesly's mother, Helene, in the American version of 'The Office' and as Ben Matlock's daughter Charlene Matlock in the first series on 'Matlock'.
'We were up in Galway, we were up in Lettermullen in Connemara, and we are so lucky to be working with Brian Redden who is now part of the family. Brian is one of the best producer-directors, which is absolutely wonderful.
'My folks are Scots Irish and so they would have come over in the early 17th century and settled up in Ulster, that's where my kin is. This trip is about finding Duffy roots, and so we are having this lovely adventure on the way to Mayo
'We were here three years ago, and ages ago I shot a miniseries here, The Manions of America, for American television, Pierce Brosnan was also in it.'
The couple live in Encino in Los Angeles and have been together since 2020. Linda has been married and divorced four times and has one child.
Patrick has been married once, his wife Carlyn, whom he married in 1974, died in 2017 and they had two sons.
The actor says one of them is carrying on the family tradition.
'My son Padraic, he's the eldest, he works in a bar, it's called Broadwater Plunge in Hollywood,' he adds.
When shown a picture of his Dallas co-stars Larry Hagman (JR) and Linda Grey (Sue Ellen) during a trip to Ireland, he speaks fondly about them.
'I know they came here a lot,' he smiles.
When asked if they'd like a holiday home here, Linda laughs: 'One step at a time!'
Patrick adds: 'We travel a lot, and our holidays are spent thankfully at home.'
He reflects about his favourite moments on recent journey here.
'Just meeting the people, and especially the pub culture,' he says, with Linda adding 'and the music'.
Producer/director Brian reveals the one-hour documentary has been commissioned by RTÉ and will be shown around Christmas.
'We were trying to go to as many Duffy's pubs as possible as his folks had a Duffy's pub in Montana,' he tells us. 'So we visited a few of them — there's one in Malahide, there's one in Killimor in Galway. There's one in Donegal, Annagary.
'We went to the Hi B in Cork, O'Loughlin's in Dun Laoghaire, went to Jim Of The Mills in Tipperary. 'We were out in the Aran Island, Joe Watty's on Inishmor on the Aran Islands as well. We went to Moate, TR Dallas's pub in Moate, and TR Dallas got to sing his hit Who Shot JR. TR was delighted to meet him and sing the song.
'We got to meet lots of distant cousins and relatives in Kilmovee on Wednesday, which was the last pub we did, Duffy's Four Ways, and where Patrick's grandfather was from. We spent about two weeks doing it.'
Brian explains that the idea for the documentary came from the couple.
'Patrick and Linda were back here a couple of years ago searching for the family roots, they had gone down to Mayo, Kilmovee,' he says.
'When they were over here the idea hatched to come back and document the trip and document Ireland, what Ireland means to him. I came on board later on.
'He has a history of pubs in his family. His son runs a pub in Hollywood, and his grandfather had one and his dad had one, and he grew up in a pub in Montana, so we thought that was an interesting prism to look at the changing face of Ireland.
'It's an hour long special, we are just calling it Duffy's Pub, because we are kind of using it as a home for Ireland.'
He says the reaction to the couple has been 'incredible' wherever they've gone.
'There's flags and buntings everywhere, tea and scones and brown bread and black pudding.
'I've eaten more scones on this trip that I never want to see a scone again,' he says.
President Michael D. Higgins, his wife Sabina and Patrick Duffy at the St Patrick's Day parade in Dublin in 2023
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