‘Love/Hate’ - Stuart Carolan’s gripping Dublin gangland crime epic - may have ended season three on a tragic note but the series itself continues on a creative high, winning over UK audiences this Summer and even the praises of The Guardian newspaper.
With anticipation near breaking point for its season four premiere this Sunday, IFTN spoke to IFTA-winning ‘Love/Hate’ producer Suzanne McAuley about the show’s enduring appeal, its influences and audience response to date.
As Nidge faces a new antagonist this year in the form of Garda Inspector Mick Moynihan (Brían F. O'Byrne) and his undercover surveillance unit, fans can look forward to the show’s darkest season yet…
Ms McAuley, thanks very much for taking the time to speak to IFTN. Are you looking forward to the audience reaction to the season four debut?
Yes, very much so! ‘Love/Hate’ was such a phenomenon last year that we really hope it continues to grow and that the audience grows with it and loves it as much as we do. We feel it’s the best series to date. We gave it our best shot and we’re really happy with what we have, so we’re quite excited to see what the audience reaction is.
‘Love/Hate’ was recently described by The Guardian as the Irish answer to 'The Wire' and season four sees a new police unit running surveillance on Nidge’s gang. Was ‘The Wire’ an influence on ‘Love/Hate’s new direction?
No, not at all. Stuart Carolan creates all these storylines from scratch himself and it is a total work of original fiction. Stuart researches his world really well and he has been talking to various people in different areas and has done a lot of research with the Gardaí this year. You couldn’t compare it to any other show. It’s original and stands on its own.
What can you tell us about the Garda inspector played by Brían F. O’Byrne?
I can say very little because I don’t want to leak any storylines at all! Brían is fantastic and his character is brilliant. He’s Nidge’s nemesis and he’s in the undercover cops and that’s about all I can say! I can’t give any more away!
Nidge as a character - in terms of his ability to swing from moments of comedy to extreme outbursts of violence - often seems like the Irish equivalent of Tony Soprano. What do you see as his appeal?
I would see Nidge’s character as having a lot of Shakespearean influences there. We had the reign of King Nidge and there’s even a hint of Richard III in him. There are a lot of Shakespearan influences in all the character arcs, particularly in the women’s roles you’ll find as well. Series four is certainly darker than we have been before and we hope that the show will grow in its success.
Can you tell us anything about some of the new cast additions this year?
I can’t reveal anything but there are lots of new characters and storylines that are opening up. As we’ve gone into the world of the cops, naturally our cast has expanded. There are lots of surprises in store and new names this season!
Without naming him for anyone who is not up to date, has the death of a certain major character in the season 3 finale altered the dynamic between the remaining characters and do you think his absence will be felt?
I think the show is bigger than any one character. ‘Love/Hate’ as a show does stand on its own and I don’t think any one character is stronger than the show, which carries on.
Do you find it gratifying that the show has garnered such an enthusiastic fanbase in such a short space of time?
We’re all absolutely thrilled. The whole core people involved – we work like a brilliant team and a family. We love our product. We love our show. We love working on it. We don’t see it as work. We want the audience to be happy and it’s very rewarding to see it achieve such success.
‘Love/Hate’ has won an astonishing 13 IFTA awards for its first three seasons, so hopefully we’ll see you all on the red carpet again next year.
Hopefully, we’ll see! Fingers crossed!
Will there be a fifth season of ‘Love/Hate’?
We are in development at the moment on a series five, yes.
‘Love/Hate’ season 4 begins this Sunday 6th October at 9:30pm on RTÉ One, and the trailer can be viewed below.
