# Pat Shortt

Patrick Shortt (born 12 December 1967) is an Irish actor, comedian, writer, and entertainer. His role in the 2007 film Garage led to him receiving the IFTA for Best Actor. He is most notably remembered for his role as Tom in the television series Father Ted.

## Career

Shortt toured alongside Jon Kenny as the comedy duo D'Unbelievables. They released "One Hell of a Video", "D'Unbelievables", "D'Video" (a live random sketch show), "D'Telly" (featuring Shortt and Kenny playing various characters – primarily two brothers who run a shop together), "D'Mother" (in which Kenny's character oversaw the running of a public house alongside his "mother" – who was later revealed to be his father, in a role played by Shortt) and "D'collection". One character played by Shortt was Dan Clancy, known for telling "his stories". The pair were highly successful in Ireland, selling out the Vicar Street venue for 14 weeks. The duo stopped touring in 2000 after Kenny was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma.
Shortt played the role of Tom, a crazy man, in the comedy series Father Ted. His character maintained a unibrow and wore a tee shirt with the slogan "I shot JR".
In 2003, RTÉ approached Shortt to create a comedy series, Killinascully. Shortt elaborated on his work with D'Unbelievables, again playing Dan Clancy and a number of other characters. The programme ran for five seasons, with six Christmas specials.
In 2009, Shortt created and starred in a comedy, Mattie, for RTÉ, set in a Garda Síochána station. The series was retitled and reworked in 2011. The cast included Sue Collins.
He starred in the 2007 Cannes award-winning film Garage, directed by Lenny Abrahamson. Shortt won the Best Actor award at the 2008 IFTAs for his performance in this film. In 2008, An Post issued a postage stamp featuring Pat Shortt, as Josie, in the film Garage.
In 2014 Shortt appeared in Episode 3, Season 2 of the Sky 1 programme Moone Boy. In the episode, the main character Martin Moone and his friend Padraig float down the River Boyle on a raft. They land on an island in Lough Key where Shortt's character, the caretaker, entertains them and helps them to return to the mainland.

## Personal life

Shortt was born in Thurles, County Tipperary, one of 11 children of Mary (née Scully) and Christy Shortt. He studied at the Limerick School of Art and Design, and began his stand-up career shortly after graduating.
Shortt and his wife Caroline have two children. In 2020, he and his daughter Faye, an actress who trained at the Gaiety School of Acting, began creating sketches for social media. Faye Shortt subsequently co-wrote and performed in a sketch for RTÉ Does Comic Relief. Between 2020 and 2021, Pat and Faye Shortt co-wrote and performed two live-stream shows, before going on tour with their live comedy show, "Well".

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Director | Notes |
| 1993 | In the Name of the Father | Un­known | Jim Sheridan | Uncredited |
| 1996 | Angela Mooney Dies Again | Dunner | Tommy McArdle | |
| 1998 | This Is My Father | Garda Ben | Paul Quinn | |
| 2000 | The Closer You Get | Ollie Doyle | Aileen Ritchie | |
| 2000 | Saltwater | Mr. Fanning | Conor McPherson | |
| 2000 | Wild About Harry | Ronnie | Declan Lowney | |
| 2001 | Mapmaker | Patsy | Johnny Gogan | |
| 2004 | Man About Dog | Fergie | Paddy Breathnach | |
| 2004 | Inside I'm Dancing | Nightclub Doorman | Damien O'Donnell | |
| 2007 | Garage | Josie | Lenny Abrahamson | |
| 2007 | Strength and Honour | Wheeler McCoy | Mark Mahon | |
| 2008 | Spacemen Three | Dr. Glen Hosey | Hugh O'Conor | Short film |
| 2010 | Soulboy | Brendan | Shimmy Marcus | |
| 2011 | The Guard | Colum Hennessey | John Michael McDonagh | |
| 2013 | Life's a Breeze | Colm | Lance Daly | |
| 2013 | Breakfast Wine | Mr. Kelliher | Ian Fitzgibbon | Short film |
| 2014 | Calvary | Brendan Lynch | John Michael McDonagh | |
| 2014 | Queen & Country | Private Redmond | John Boorman | |
| 2014 | Song of the Sea | Lug | Tomm Moore | Voice |
| 2016 | Twice Shy | Pat Collins | Thomas Ryan | |
| 2016 | The Flag | Harry Hambridge | Declan Recks | |
| 2018 | The Belly of the Whale | Ronald Tanner | Morgan Bushe | |
| 2019 | Animals | Bill | Sophie Hyde | |
| 2019 | Dark Lies the Island | Daddy Mannion | Ian Fitzgibbon | |
| 2019 | Satnav | Radio Comedian | Eugene O'Connor | Short film |
| 2019 | Maya | Ken | Sophia Tamburrini | Short film |
| 2020 | Pixie | Father Daly | Barnaby Thompson | |
| 2022 | Give Him Time | Liam Walsh | Danny McCafferty | Short film |
| 2022 | Lambing | John | Katie McNeice | Short film |
| 2022 | The Banshees of Inisherin | Jonjo Devine | Martin McDonagh | |
| TBA | Baggage | John | Jason Ruddy | Short film; In Development |
| TBA | Raynor | TBA | TBA | In Development |
| TBA | The People's Champion | TBA | TBA | In Development |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role |
| 1995–1996 | Father Ted | Tom |
| 2000 | The Fitz | Bobby |
| 2004–2008 | Killinaskully | Various |
| 2009–2011 | Mattie | Mattie Dwyer |
| 2014 | Moone Boy | Island Joe |
| 2015 | Toast of London | Larry Muggins |
| 2016 | Smalltown | Tom |
| 2021 | Frank of Ireland | Padraig |
| 2024 | Bodkin | Darragh |