They turned the Ballymena man into a household name in Northern Ireland – though most people will know him through the advert rather than his name alone.

But this often masks the fact that he is one of the Province's most respected – and busiest – actors.

Continuing a run of stage roles, he will be appearing in a production of Candide which opens in the Old Museum Arts Centre in Belfast next week.

The show, from Bruiser Theatre Productions, promises comedy, action and romance – and four players taking on an extensive list of characters.
"It used to be you could put on a lavish production, when they would throw loads of money at these things," Paddy said.

"But now everything is stripped down – though that's sometimes for the good."

Based on Voltaire's classic satire, this allegorical tale pokes fun at religion, politics and philosophy.

"Candide goes on a journey around the world to find the love of his life," Paddy said.

"He meets up with all sorts of mad characters along the way."
Bringing an allegorical tale to life presents a challenge, not only in conveying the story of the piece but also the rich subtext.

While a witty turn of phrase may be fairly obvious in print, on stage it's a different matter.

"It's a journey for Candide, but as a production is frenetic – I'm the oldest member in the cast and I can feel it," Paddy joked.

"It's high-octane stuff."

With a total of eight roles in the play, it's certainly a frantic piece of theatre for Paddy.

"I play a priest, I play a king, I play a slave and I play Dr Pangloss – Candide's mentor and tutor – among others," he said.

"There's so much physicality to this – it's not naturalistic theatre, more high farce and escapism."

However, Paddy is relishing the challenge of so many roles in such a short space of time.

"It's great – it's part of the reason why I am actor," he said.
"You try to bring as much as you can to each character."

It's a departure from his recent outings - including roles in the Grand Opera House pantomime, Owen McCafferty's epic Scenes from the Big Picture and the intimacy of Closer at the Baby Grand.

"With this, you don't have to dig quite as deep as you would if you're playing one character," Paddy said, "but, collectively, it requires the same amount of effort."

And the particular challenge with this production is its unrelenting speed.
"The difficulty is the pace of the show," Paddy said.

"It's an adaptation which has been reduced to its raw state, there's a lot of information to take on board, and it's our job to make sure that the message gets across."

As with every role, Paddy will be immersing himself in this rather off-kilter set of characters.

"I'm one of those guys who won't back off," he said.

"I'll always give 110 per cent – I will try and give a part as much as I can, and I won't be happy unless it's perfect."

Paddy added that, once he got the chance to act, he was determined to put his heart and soul into whatever role he was taking on.

"There's no point otherwise," he said.

"It's a hard old game, and it can be difficult to make ends meet at times, especially when you have children to look after.
"But I can't let it go – I just love it."

n Candide is at the Old Museum Arts Centre from April 1-8. For more information, or to book tickets, contact the box office on 9023 3332 or log on to www.oldmuseumartscentre.org.