Rory Cowan

Rory Cowan (born 15 July 1959) is an Irish actor and entertainer best known for portraying Rory Brown in Mrs Brown's Boys from 2011 to 2017, and for starring in Mrs. Brown's Boys D'Movie in 2014. Cowan subsequently played John Bosco Walsh in the RTÉ soap opera Fair City.

Rory Cowan
Born (1959-07-15) 15 July 1959[1]
Dublin, Ireland
NationalityIrish
EducationSt Benildus College
Alma materUniversity College Dublin
Occupation
Known for
Parent(s)
  • Rory Cowan Sr.
  • Esther Cowan
Relatives
  • Gerard (brother)
  • Maeve (sister)

Early life

Rory Cowan was born in the Coombe Hospital in Dublin, Ireland, on (1959-07-15)15 July 1959 to Rory Cowan Sr., and Esther Cowan.[1] His parents were trade-union activists, and the Cowans lived in Dublin, Athlone and Limerick.[2]

Career

Cowan's mother wanted him to go into banking, but Cowan deliberately failed his maths exam in order to avoid this.[2] He then worked in a record shop owned by EMI, eventually becoming marketing manager of the holding company in Ireland.[2] While there, he managed Christy Dignam and the drag act Mr Pussy, and first saw Brendan O'Carroll in performance.[3] After being made redundant in 1992, he was asked to book an act for a venue that would bring in similar crowds to those that had accompanied Mr Pussy and Dignam; and suggested O'Carroll.[3] As a result of this, he became O'Carroll's publicist, and has worked alongside him well into the 2010s.[3] Soon afterwards, O'Carroll developed the Mrs Brown routine, creating the character of Rory Brown specifically for Cowan,[1] although at first, Cowan did not take on the role as he was simply "the logistics man" who organised shows and bookings.[2] The character of Rory Brown originally appeared in the radio slots, and was originally played on stage by another actor who resigned at short notice.[2][4] As a result, Cowan, despite never having acted in front of an audience before, was asked to take on the role by O'Carroll, and his deliberately camp performance quickly became the definitive portrayal.[2][4] In 2016, alongside actress Deirdre O'Kane, Cowan was signed up to the Irish version of Gogglebox, screened by TV3.[3]

On 16 June 2017, Cowan gave O'Carroll his resignation notice,[5] and the following month announced he had quit Mrs Brown's Boys.[6] He described his parting from the company as "amicable" and completed a stage tour of the show, but did not appear in the 2017 Christmas special.[7]

In 2019, Cowan joined the RTE soap drama Fair City.

Personal life

Cowan is openly gay, and has often discussed his sexuality in the press and in interviews.[1][2] He has lived in Kilmainham since 1990,[1] and credits his work with O'Carroll with enabling him to afford to buy his house and achieve financial security.[1][3] In December 2016, Cowan was a victim of homophobic online abuse on Twitter, which led to police reports being filed and an official investigation launched by the Gardai.[8][9] No charges were laid; and while initially offended and hurt by the online statements Mr. Cowan has not claimed irreparable harm.

On 12 August 2020, Cowan announced on Twitter that he had joined Fine Gael, after being persuaded by former Fine Gael TD Noel Rock.

References
  1. Egan, Barry (10 November 2014). "Mrs Cowan's boy - Rory Cowan from 'Mrs Brown's Boys' - Independent.ie". The Irish Independent. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
  2. Orpen, Joy (19 September 2016). "'The reading was so high I could easily have died': How carbon monoxide almost killed Mrs Brown's Rory Cowan". The Irish Independent. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
  3. Fegan, Joyce (1 September 2016). "'Mrs Brown paid for my house', says star Rory Cowan". The Irish Examiner.
  4. Henderson, Calum (12 March 2016). "'It's just a feckin' laugh' – The slow, strange rise of Mrs Brown's Boys". The Spinoff. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
  5. Ryan, Keeley (10 July 2017). "Mrs Brown's Boys star quits show after confessing he was unhappy". mirror. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
  6. "Rory Cowan leaves Mrs Brown's Boys after 26 years: 'I hadn't been happy for two years' - Independent.ie". Independent.ie. 10 July 2017. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  7. Brennan, Colin (26 December 2017). "Former Mrs Browns Boys star Rory Conwan on why he couldn't watch his replacement". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 26 December 2017.
  8. Sanz, Catherine (30 December 2016). "Online trolls compare actor to Jimmy Savile". The Times. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
  9. Staff writer (9 February 2017). "Mrs Brown's Boys actor Rory Cowan reports 'sick' Twitter trolls to gardai". Independent.ie. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
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