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The late Dermot Morgan, 60 years old today, with his partner Fiona at the 1996 British Comedy Awards. CHESKIN/PA Archive
R.I.P.

WATCH: Dermot Morgan jokes about Bertie Ahern… in 1994

It’s Father Ted’s 60th birthday today. Even if he was still around, he probably couldn’t have been any more on-the-button.

Updated, 13.28

THE MOST WONDERFUL thing about the comedic legacy of Dermot Morgan is the fact that he means so many things to so many generations of Irish people.

While he will perhaps inevitably be best remembered for his title role as the parish priest of Craggy Island as Father Ted, older TV viewers will remember him with equal fondness as Father Trendy (or in plenty of other roles) on The Live Mike, or recall his on-the-button comedy single in 1985 as Barry McGuigan serenading his manager.

Other connoisseurs of political satire will remember the classic Scrap Saturday, in which he teamed up with the likes of Gerry Stembridge to mock Ireland’s powerful classes, whether in politics, the media, showbiz or even the Church.

It is in this vein that we opt to pay tribute to Morgan today, on what would have been his 60th birthday. With so much attention being focused on Bertie Ahern right now, we thought we couldn’t let the day pass without sharing this one with you.

This is from his Dermot Morgan Live video in 1994, and shows a man at the peak of his powers, discussing his approach to comedy, taking the unholy mickey out of a man who was not yet at the height of his own.

We wonder if, had he lived beyond his 45 years, he ever could have been quite so spot-on as he was with this one:

(YouTube credit: )

Edit: The same YouTube account has another video showing the five minutes before the Bertie gag, including jokes about CJ Haughey and Albert Reynolds. Worth checking out, if you have the extra time:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rq_tPH_ZBhs

Watch: Two series of Father Ted on 4oD >

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