National Treasure Ricky Tomlinson is on the road this spring where he is starring in the new UK and Ireland tour of hit musical comedy Irish Annie’s.

The live stage show, written and directed by talented singer-songwriter Asa Murphy, celebrates the very best of Irish culture and is packed with music and laughter.

Actor, comedian and keen musician Ricky joins Murphy, Catherine Rice – who plays the eponymous landlady of an Irish bar, and stellar live six-piece band The Shenanigans, along with some madcap regulars for an evening of irresistible comedy, music and mayhem.

Ricky is well-known to audiences for his screen roles including Bobby Grant in Brookside, DCI Charlie Wise in Cracker, and Jim Royle in The Royle Family. He also played the title role in the film Mike Bassett: England Manager. Here he talks about Irish Annie’s, why to some people he will always be Jim Royle – and why, at 84, he’s loving life and as busy as ever.

How would you describe Irish Annie’s?

It’s infectious. It’s for anyone who likes a laugh, to feel good inside, to be able to participate. It’s a feelgood thing. And what I love about it, and this is amazing, it doesn’t matter where we’ve played, the finale is like a Glastonbury for pensioners! They’re up dancing, waving their handbags, waving their hats. It’s unbelievable!

What is your role in the show?

I’m a customer in the bar. My role is to have a little laugh on the stage, gee people along when they start to sing, and if I have a tambourine or an instrument, I join in. I’m basically Ricky Tommo really, or Jim Royle, or whoever you want. I’m used to entertaining in pubs. It depends where you are, but sometimes if there’s someone in the audience you can have a little fun with, then we do that too. We have a bit of license to have a laugh with the audience.

You mentioned playing the tambourine, but you can also play banjo and harmonica. Tell us more about your love of music, and the music in the show.

The music in Irish Annie’s is great – Asa Murphy, what a singer! And he absolutely loves what he does. I love Irish music. I recorded an Irish song called Are You Looking at Me? (by Shane Macgowan’s backing band The Popes) and it got into the top 30 so I was made up with that. The video had Mickey Starke (Sinbad in Brookside) and Noddy Holder in it – we had to sign a contract with Noddy you know. He wanted 2/6, a bacon sandwich and a week in my caravan. I never fulfilled the contract so I’m waiting for the solicitor’s letter!

Irish Annie’s is ultimately a celebration of Irish culture. Do you have any Irish heritage yourself?

Sue Johnston and I have just done a programme where they take your DNA and can tell you who your antecedents were. I haven’t had mine yet although Sue’s had hers. I’m waiting to see if I’ve got any Irish in there.

You’ve played some much-loved characters over the years. If people stop you in the street, who do they want to talk about?

I was at Anfield recently, and people were coming up and saying: “Can my lad have a photograph with you Jim?” Older people tend to call me Bobby, and ask “how’s Sheila?” This happens everywhere. I think it’s lovely. It doesn’t matter where you go. And if they’re young, somewhere in the conversation they’ll get a ‘my arse’ in! Although I was at a charity event in Liverpool once, and I was signing photos for people when this woman in a fur stole came up. I asked if she wanted a picture signed and she said: “could you put on it, ‘my bottom’?”!

Is it fair to say Brookside was an important moment in your career?

Yes. I’d only done one other job at that point. And how I got the part is I did this one play – I’d actually bluffed my way into a Play for Today, directed by Roland Joffé, called United Kingdom. It was shown on television while Andy Lynch and Jimmy McGovern were writing storylines for Brookside. Andy Lynch saw me on the screen and phoned Phil Redmond and said: “We’ve just found Bobby Grant.”

You also speak with a lot of fondness about your time in The Royle Family.

Now and again, I get invited to do a little talk, and I’ll tell people about The Royle Family, and about us corpsing. I remember when Craig Cash, who played Dave, took 14 takes to say one word because we were deliberately making him laugh, me and Ralf Little. In the end, Caroline (Aherne) made him go and stand in the naughty corner. Because he couldn’t control himself. Recently we did a little documentary, just me, Lurkeo (Ralf Little), Sue Johnston and Craig Cash, where we sat and talked about Caroline and Nana (Liz Smith) and Twiggy (Geoffrey Hughes) and Joe (Peter Martin). It was really nice, telling those stories. Nana was my favourite, I loved her. She was amazing. Even on her day off, she’d come on the set, always at lunchtime. I used to say to her – ‘you’re a bloody disgrace you! What do you mean you just happened to be passing? Just as we’re having our lunch?!’ And she’d say: “I AM just passing!” When she retired, she moved to Worthing, and Ralf Little used to go to visit her and take her a bouquet of flowers or a basket of fruit or a bundle of ladies’ magazines.

You’re 85 this year, but it seems you don’t have any intention of slowing down. What else are you working on as well as Irish Annie’s?

I’m a workaholic kid! I know I should be putting my feet up, but I love working and I love getting up and knowing what I’ve got to do. Every time you go to work you meet different people, hear different stories and learn different things. I have the time of my life and I’ve met some wonderful people. I’ve been doing a TV series with Sue Johnston called Ricky and Sue Take a Trip or Two. Working with Sue is a dream. We’ve known each other 40 years now and we’ve had some laughs over the years. I’ve also just finished my first children’s book and I’m waiting for an illustrator to come and see me. I try it out on my grandkids, and they absolutely love it. It’s an adventure story but it also mentions the environment and looking after the countryside, although it’s not dogmatic.

In the meantime, what are you looking forward to most about the 2024 UK and Ireland tour of Irish Annie’s?

This might sound corny, but I’m looking forward to meeting the people after the show who come to see us. I’m old-fashioned, and I am what I am, but I want to say to them – thanks for coming to this show, thanks for giving us your support. And we spend as much time there at the end of the show as we do on stage. Because we have a great time when we’re on the road. We all get along together like a house on fire, and not a lot of people can say that. We play practical jokes on one another, we have laughs. That’s what I’m looking forward to as well.

Irish Annie's is playing William Aston Hall, Wrexham on 11th March 2024 - click here to find out more.