“Jerry has a lot of secrets…”
“And Sandra has a few herself…”
That’s all that These Sacred Vows stars Jason O’Mara and Justine Mitchell are willing to say spoiler-wise ahead of the first episode this Sunday, 1 February, on RTÉ One at 9:30pm.
Watch: The trailer for These Sacred Vows
Set over seven days at the Tenerife wedding of Sandra and Jerry’s eldest daughter, Niamh (Eva O’Connor), These Sacred Vows is the new comedy-drama from writer-director John Butler (Handsome Devil, The Stag).
It opens as Father Vincent O’Keeffe (Tom Vaughan-Lawlor) arrives on the island to meet the family – and you’ve just arrived at your new appointment-to-view.
Below, stars Justine Mitchell and Jason O’Mara set the scene…
Who is Jerry?
Jason O’Mara: Jerry’s a fairly successful businessman. It’s not generational wealth, that’s for sure. He’s from, I’d say, a solid south Dublin family! I think Sandra’s story might be slightly different… There’s something definitely comfortable from where he’s from; it’s not like he’s had to pull himself up by his own bootstraps.
Who is Sandra?
Justine Mitchell: Sandra’s from Mayo, so she’s not born into the south county Dublin milieu! But it doesn’t make her feel insecure. I think she’s very well established there now. But, no matter what, there is something of the outsider still about her. And I don’t know if it’s because of that or in spite of that. She gets to look at it a little bit sideways, the whole lot of them, but she’s a part of them as well.
Watch: These Sacred Vows stars Aaron Heffernan, Justine Mitchell, and Tom Vaughan-Lawlor join Patrick Kielty on The Late Late Show
Why I wanted to play Sandra
Justine Mitchell: I’ve never played such an interesting character with so many layers and levels to her and who is so instrumental to the story. All of the characters are so beautifully fleshed out. Very impactful. They are punchy, funny, moving scripts. I’d worked with John Butler years ago on a sketch show called Your Bad Self and I just couldn’t wait.
Why I wanted to play Jerry
Jason O’Mara: John asked me to read the first three and would I do it, and I think halfway through the first one I was just like, ‘Yes, yes, yes – I’m doing this!’ And then, when I saw where the character went, it was so surprising, so many twists. John makes it all so funny, that’s the thing. If you’ve got something uncomfortable, he makes it funny. That’s a joy to play as an actor. I don’t get to do much comedy, and John’s one of the, I suppose, potential employers to really see that I can do comedy. I’m just eternally grateful for that, and for this role.
Justine Mitchell as Sandra – “It’s an Irish wedding, but it’s abroad, so it’s even more under the microscope!”
Organising the wedding
Justine Mitchell: It’s frustrating for Sandra because Niamh (onscreen daughter) just won’t let me at it, so I am actually having to be a bit hands-off! Sandra trained to be an artist and is a frustrated one – didn’t really follow that path – so she has a lot of opinions that she’d like to unload on Niamh, but that’s not happening!
Jason O’Mara: And Jerry’s paying for the whole thing! He’d like to have some kind of creative input – he’s already told what to do! Jerry and Sandra do show up for their kids, maybe a little too much…
Adam John Richardson as wedding guest Cormac and Jason O’Mara as father-of-the-bride Jerry – “There’s sort of a relentlessness about Jerry that I really enjoy playing”
Father Vincent
Justine Mitchell: They know him very, very well. They have been friends since, certainly, their late, late teens/early twenties. And Sandra deeply wants him there.
Jason O’Mara: Jerry has kind of – I wouldn’t say bullied, bullied is too strong a word – worked hard to convince Vincent that he needs to be here to do this. They didn’t want a foreign priest. Vincent didn’t really have a choice but to come. Jerry made a very attractive package that he couldn’t say no to!
“It’s the perfect opportunity for chaos to ensue!” says Justine Mitchell
As episode one begins…
Justine Mitchell: The wheels are coming off! There are a lot of things between Jerry and Sandra that are unsaid. Things they’ve done. A clown car? Yes, but comedy comes out of the tension. But also, it’s pretty hard as well. Some sad stuff emanates from the sort of potential falling apart of it all, which Sandra is feeling extremely keenly. I think she kind of feels the house is falling apart around her. Another metaphor, apart from the clown car!
Jason O’Mara: There’s tension in all families – between fathers and daughters and mothers and daughters, sons, whatever. But I think with this family, because there’s an elephant in the room that isn’t discussed, it just heightens these tensions and makes things pretty untenable. As the series goes on, secrets are slowly revealed and things come into relief. The question is: will it change the family forever or not?
These Sacred Vows, Sundays, RTÉ One and RTÉ Player, 9:30pm
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