So tell us Graham, did you always know you wanted to be a comedy writer?
"Nope, I just kind of stumbled into. When I was a kid I had intentions of being a serious arty film director, the next Martin Scorsese or Wim Wenders or something. But soon realised that every time I was serious, I ended up being pompous. Going for laughs just seemed to suit me better. It's still true these days, so please stop me if I try and say anything serious!"

Comedy is a competitive business. How did you get recognised?
"I started writing when I was 16, and after meeting Arthur Matthews decided to team up and see what we could come up with. We had a bit of success in Ireland, but really wanted to crack the UK."

"One day we were looking at the credits of Smith and Jones and noticed there were lots of different writers on it. It occurred to us that they probably took submissions. So we got the name of the producer and sent off some ideas. It took off from there really."

"They were very nice to us. When we were working on Smith and Jones we went in everyday to watch how the show was put together and it was a real education in comedy writing."

You mention Arthur Matthews, your writing partner for shows like Father Ted and Big Train. How did you guys meet?
"We both worked for a music magazine in Dublin called Hot Press. He was the art layout guy and I was a journalist. We clicked straightaway."

"He's a funny guy, very dry. I've never meet anyone who's made me laugh as much as him, and making him laugh became a full time obsession for me."

"My sense of humour actually got better and better because I was measuring it against Arthur's. To make him laugh is a pretty big achievement in my book. We're constantly trying to make each other laugh and outdo each other."

Father Ted was your first whopping hit. What did you like most about the series?
"I also always had a real soft spot for Father Ted himself. On that show, he was the one who had a lot of heart, and gave the show its emotion. Really, when you think about it, Ted's situation is very unlucky. I like almost all of my characters, but I've a real affection for Ted."

So what shows make you laugh? Not counting Father Ted and Big Train of course...
"I laugh in no particular order at Seinfeld, The Simpsons, Friends... erm... ooo, what else... Futurama, Larry Sanders, and basically anything of quality. I like a lot of episodes of South Park, especially the Pokemon parody."

Who has influenced you the most in your career?
"Steve Martin - back when he was funny. I used to love him. I also adored the Pythons and Fawlty Towers. When we were growing up in Ireland, Arthur and I were watching exactly the same shows that people our age in England were watching."

"Our comedy is Irish in the sense that we wrote it but in the context of comedy, and the history of comedy, I think we're working in the tradition of English comedies like Python."

What's been the best bit of your career so far?
"Oh god! That's a good question. Writing with Arthur has been the best thing and I don't think I will ever have as much fun as I've had writing with him."