Donncha O'Callaghan: The rugby hero turning dad mishaps into a successful book series

Broadcaster and former Irish rugby international Donncha O’Callaghan.

O’Callaghan is a man of many talents: Irish rugby star, radio presenter, and television fitness coach. His latest pivot is children’s author of the Disaster Dad series. He’s taking it all in his stride.

O’Callaghan recalls the idea for the first book. “I remember chatting with a good friend of mine about writing a book. I said to her, ‘I think I have the makings of a Wolf of Wall Street book here’. But she said, ‘What you have is a children’s book’. And she was right.”

Last year, O’Callaghan released Disaster Dad: Chicken Chaos. His latest book, Disaster Dad: Fun Day Fiasco, is the second in the series. In this latest adventure, Disaster Dad and family take part in a family fun day, with predictable mishaps, laughs, and ... a zebra.

Donncha O'Callaghan with Zack Lenihan at the launch of 'Disaster Dad: Fun Day Fiasco' in Eason's Douglas, Cork.

O’Callaghan says he is very much a Disaster Dad. “It’s real-life things that have happened to me. You know, whether it’s the red jocks or painting the kitchen table, and all the other little mishaps that I have around the place. 

"But what I’ve done is just put them all together and tried to get them across in a bit of a fun way.”

Who could forget O’Callaghan playing on in his red underwear for Munster against Cardiff Blues, with the referee insisting, “You can’t play like this.” O’Callaghan says the books are a way of showing his children that it’s alright to have these embarrassing situations. It’s how you deal with them that matters.

“Look, I think there’s a bit of Disaster Dad in everyone, really. I think showing little bits of vulnerability as a parent isn’t a bad thing. To know that sometimes things go wrong for mom and dad, too, and that’s OK. I just think, sometimes we try to mask over vulnerabilities. And we shouldn’t,” he says.

“I’d love it if a parent was reading this book at night with their kid, and it kicked off into another story about a disaster that happened to them.

"They’re the stories I remember with my own mom; she’d be reading me a story, and then it would pivot, and, all of a sudden, the book’s gone and she’d tell me something brilliant about her life.” 

Donncha O'Callaghan with Allanah Daly at Eason's in Douglas, Cork City, for the launch of 'Disaster Dad: Fun Day Fiasco'.

O’Callaghan has four children with his wife, Jennifer, three girls and a boy, ranging in age from 10 to 15.

When the children were younger, O’Callaghan says, “I used to view bedtime as a stress, but, if you can, take some little beauty in those 20 minutes, where you cuddle in together to read a book, start with a chapter, and then have a bit of a chat. You never know where that time will lead. As a parent, it can be a magical time of the day. There’s nothing like imagination. We should all encourage our kids to be curious and ask absurd and ridiculous things.”

Former Munster and Irish rugby international Donncha O'Callaghan relaxing in the penthouse of the Dean Hotel, Cork. Picture: David Creedon

As his children get older, O’Callaghan reflects on those bedtimes, and those moments. “That time is fleeting, isn’t it, as a parent?” With a couple of teenagers in the house now, O’Callaghan says he can see firsthand how different it is for his daughters at this stage of their lives than it was for him as a teenager.

“I feel for this generation. I think we need to tell them it’s OK to make mistakes. It’s alright to get it wrong, it isn’t a bad thing. We used to say in rugby, ‘You don’t really lose, you learn’. And I think that’s not a bad way of viewing those kinds of moments. 

"But it’s so difficult for them now.” 

After an “amazing summer”, it’s back on the “treadmill” for the O’Callaghan household, with the children all back to school.

“Just getting back up to pace again, even small things like getting everyone out the door can be hard. 

"But we’re lucky. The kids genuinely love school. They love going in. 

"Of course, the mornings are tough, when they have to get out of bed, but they have good friends and they enjoy school, so that makes it easier.”

Donncha O'Callaghan celebrating the launch of  'Disaster Dad: Fun Day Fiasco', with staff at Eason's in Douglas, Cork.

In the chaos of back-to-school, after-school activities, and life, planning is a big thing for O’Callaghan.

“I sit down on a Thursday and I plan my week ahead. What does the week look like? What do I need to do? What do I have on? What do the kids have on?” Forget Disaster Dad, you’re sounding like Organised Dad there, I say.

“That’s where all the disasters come from, though. I might have a plan and be delighted with myself, and then, before I know it, it all goes out the window,” he laughs.

As his book launch approaches, O’Callaghan says he’s “a little bit nervous”, “I want it to go well, and I’m half cringing no one will be there. I’m normally part of a team, but this is very much on my own.”

“I know this sounds terrible, but the Jeff Kinneys (Diary of a Wimpy Kid), the Dav Pilkeys (Dog Man), and all the other brilliant kids’ book writers out there, I’d love to give them a bit of a run for their money, you know.”

• Disaster Dad: Fun Day Fiasco, written with Karen Owen and illustrated by Jenny Taylor, was recently launched in Easons, Douglas Court, Cork, and is available in bookshops around the country.