The Irish actor Frank Kelly has died at the age of 77.

Kelly was one of the leading actors of his generation – but it took his star turn in the acclaimed comedy series Father Ted to cement his celebrity in the most unlikely way. In the Arthur Matthews and Graham Linehan-written comedy series, Kelly played the gloriously expletive-loving priest Father Jack Hackett, whose most memorable turn of phrase was the immortal “Drink! Feck! Girls!” or indeed "Drink! Feck! Arse! Girls!”...

Kelly starred in numerous RTÉ programmes, including Hall’s Pictorial Weekly, for which he won a Jacobs Award in the early 1970s, Wanderly Wagon and Glenroe. He also appeared in a number of movies including the Irish thriller Taffin, Hear My Song, The Boys From The County Clare and Mrs. Brown’s Boys D’Movie. Among his recent roles was as Dermot Macey, across 43 episodes of the UK television soap, Emmerdale. He also starred recently in an ad for Tayto crisps. One of his most popular personae was as Gobnaith Ó Lúnasa, which was developed on his radio programme The Glen Abbey Show on RTÉ Radio One...

Frank was also an accomplished singer and had a novelty hit in Ireland in 1982, with the Christmas single, written by playwright Hugh Leonard, ‘Christmas Countdown’ – which reached No.8 in the Irish charts. Released two years later in the UK, it climbed as high as No.26 there.

Frank had been battling with Parkinson’s Disease and had also been diagnosed with bowel cancer. He is survived by his wife Bairbre and his seven children. Hot Press extends its sympathies to one, and all, of his family and friends.

As observed in a tweet from Don Morgan, son of Dermot Morgan, who played Father Ted, Frank Kelly died on the 18th Anniversary of the death of Father Ted himself, Dermot Morgan.