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Entertainment

15th Mar 2022

Graham Norton’s Holding viewers say Irish accents too “hard to understand” – and, really?

Sarah McKenna Barry

I’m sorry to say that the Brtis are at it again.

The highly anticipated TV adaption of Graham Norton’s acclaimed novel Holding hit our screens last night, and many fans were delighted.

The ITV comedy-drama stars Conleth Hill as PJ Collins, a detective attempting to get to grips with an unsolved murder in the small west Cork town of Duneen.

Joining Hill in the cast is a host of Irish talent including Pauline McLynn, Siobhán McSweeney, Charlene McKenna, Brenda Fricker and Olwen Fouéré.

As the show is set in Cork, the actors, naturally, had to don appropriate accents, and some viewers across the pond struggled to get to grips with the show.

One viewer tweeted: “I’ve been looking forward to this, great cast. But I’ve had to put subtitiles on to follow the dialogue. The accents are quite strong.”

Another wrote: “watching Holding, had to put the subtitles on to understand the Irish accent.”

Others, however, were full of praise for the new series.

One fan wrote: “#Holding is already a masterpiece and good on @ITV for making it happen, great bit of original and genuine writing, executed to perfection, reckon there’s a #BAFTA in the bag!”

A second tweeted: “Well it’s funny and quirky and has the wonderful Conleth Hill. Not to mention beautiful scenery. I’ll keep watching.”

A third said: “#Holding was right up my strasse. What a cast. Great characters, beautifully drawn. A gently, lopsided smile of a show. Bravo to all.”

Another defended it from online criticism, saying: “Quite enjoyed #Holding. Not sure why ‘Father Ted with Murder’ is a bad thing?”

Someone else agreed with this sentiment as they tweeted: “I think people might be missing the point with #Holding. It’s meant to be quirky and tongue in cheek with slightly odd characters.”