Mrs Brown's Boys 'based on true events', says Brendan O'Carroll
The actor and comedian, 69, who is best known for playing matriarch Agnes Brown in the hit comedy series, will reprise the role in a new miniseries next month.
The fifth series, which is due to air on 1 August on RTÉ One and BBC One, follows Mrs Brown as her meddling in the lives of her family and friends takes her on a number of misadventures.
Speaking about the new series, O'Carroll said: "Believe it or not, most of the storylines are based on true events that either happened to my family or have been told to me by people about their families.
"Everybody has a story, and it's quite common for someone in a family to say in the middle of a family disaster, 'This is like an episode of Mrs Brown's Boys '.
"In every episode, there is something that stands out for me. I love being Agnes Brown and I love her family, and her neighbours like Winnie and Birdy."
The new series will follow Mrs Brown as she becomes the subject of a podcast, helps Winnie pass her driving test, and becomes the unexpected new member of a book club where she discovers a "passion" for steamy fiction.
Mrs Brown's Boys was first broadcast in 2011 and has since transmitted more than 50 episodes, including Christmas specials.
The BAFTA-winning series is filmed in front of a studio audience, which O'Carroll described as "essential".
He said: "So many times, at the end of rehearsals for a particular episode, our director, Ben Kellett, will say, 'All this needs now is the audience', and he is so right.
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