COMEDIAN Patrick Kielty will be among three Irish comedians to meet Pope Francis this week.
The trio are among 100 comedians and entertainers from Europe and the America invited to Rome for an audience.
The Co Down native will be joined with Fr Ted’s Ardal O’Hanlon and Tommy Tiernan to meet with the Pope at the Vatican on Friday.
Pope Francis “recognises the significant impact that the art of comedy has on the world of contemporary culture,” the Vatican said as it announced the unusual gathering.
Stars from the US, including Whoopi Goldberg, Jimmy Fallon and Conan O’Brien, will also be in the audience. Stephen Marchant, the co-writer of the TV comedy series The Office, and the Ian Hislop, the editor of Private Eye, will represent the UK.
“The meeting between Pope Francis and the world’s comedians aims to celebrate the beauty of human diversity and to promote a message of peace, love and solidarity,” the Vatican said.
The audience, jointly organized by the Vatican’s Dicastery for Culture and Education and Dicastery for Communication, is intended to “establish a link” between the Catholic Church and such artists, the Vatican said.
Of the hundred invited, the majority are Italians while all the rest come from either Europe or the Americas.
Mr O’Hanlon famously played Fr Dougal Maguire in the irreverent Fr Ted hit show, while Mr Tiernan’s first appearance on The Late Late Show in 1997 led to hundreds of complaints following a routine based on the crucifixion.
