Strong Offaly links to new TV series starting this weekend

There are strong Offaly connections to a new four-part reality TV series called Second Chances, which begins airing on Virgin Media One this Sunday (January 7) at 9pm.

Birr native Nicky Larkin directed the series, which is described as taking "seven individuals, who have hit rock bottom, on a journey to find their better selves".

Speaking to this newspaper on Wednesday, Nicky said one of the people featured on the show was a fellow Offaly man, Joe Gallagher from Daingean, whose story will be covered in the fourth episode.

"I think Joe will be one of the stars of this series," said Nicky. He explained that the show explores a period of crisis in Joe's life which resulted in him "spiralling into suicidal depression".

Nicky said Joe's story resonated in particular because of how difficult it has traditionally been to get middle-aged Irish men to talk about the mental health challenges they may be facing.

"It was really powerful to have a man of his generation show such vulnerability and admit that he was in a dark place," he commented.

Other participants in the series include a woman who has battled breast cancer, an Afghan refugee who spent three years in direct provision, a person who lost their legs as a result of diabetes, and a Traveller who wants to open a business but has encountered discrimination along the way.

The series is hosted by one of Ireland's first openly transgender women, Rebecca Tallon De Havilland, who takes the participants to meet with professional counsellors but also puts them through immersive experiences designed to be entertaining and informative.

Nicky said Second Chances was making history, as it would be the first Irish television series to be hosted by an openly transgender person.

"Rebecca is a great character and we became great friends during the making of the show," he said. "She's now 66. She's overcome addiction issues. She's been a sex worker. She lives with HIV.

"She's had this incredible rollercoaster of a life, and she's now 16 years clean and sober. So the idea for Second Chances was that she would be a mentor to this group of people who at some point had hit rock bottom in their life, even though they each had their own very different path."

Produced by Mind the Gap Films, with funding from Coimisiún na Meán and Virgin Media, Second Chances has been in development for almost two years now.

"I've gone through every episode 1,000 times at this stage, so it's surreal to think that it's now finished and about to go out on TV," said Nicky.

A freelance writer and director, he has been based in Belfast for the last decade.

With his Italian partner Federica, and their two-year-old daughter Lia, Nicky visited Rome at Christmas before coming home to Birr to see his parents Mary and Benny Larkin in the lead-up to the new year.

Looking ahead, he has written a feature film called The Observer Effect, which is currently in development with Poli Productions. Actors Michael Smiley and Roisin Gallagher have been cast in the film, which he said was "a thriller I wrote during the first lockdown".

Nicky also has some other TV documentary projects in development. "I'm hoping that it will be a busy year, but it's always hard to tell when you're freelance," he said.

* ‘Second Chances' begins airing on Virgin Media One this Sunday at 9pm.