Eugene O’Brien: Heaven, Pure Mule, and life in the midlands 

The creator of one of Ireland's greatest ever TV shows is bringing his new play to Cork, Waterford and Limerick 

Andrew Bennett and Janet Moran in Heaven,  by Eugene O'Brien. Picture: Leo Byrne 

Twenty years ago, Eugene O’Brien brought his acclaimed play Eden to London’s West End. However, while it was embraced by Irish audiences and garlanded with awards here, the Pure Mule creator's two-hander about marital strife in the Midlands did not get quite the same reception in London.

“The English didn't quite go for it," admits O'Brien. "There was all this kind of Adam and Eve imagery and Biblical stuff on the poster and I think people went in thinking they were going to get something else. Instead, they got these two people from Offaly that they couldn't really understand.”