Film

Waking Ned

Name: Waking Ned
Genre: Comedy
Released: 1998
Cast: Ian Bannen, David Kelly, Fionnula Flanagan, Susan Lynch, Brendan Dempsey

A gently anarchic Irish comedy in which an entire village conspires to impersonate a dead man so they can claim his winning lottery ticket. Shot on the Isle of Man standing in for Donegal, it's sunlit, mischievous and unhurried — more interested in gossip, guilt and moral flexibility than in plot mechanics. Ian Bannen and David Kelly anchor a cast of eccentrics with real warmth. Charm without cynicism.

TMDb rating

7.0

If you liked this

Local Hero1983

A whole Scottish village quietly conspires against an outside force for shared gain, told with the same wry, unhurried affection for eccentric small-town life. It's the clear ancestor of Ned's tone.

But Slower and more melancholic, with long stretches of mood and music over actual jokes.

Saving Grace2000no page yet

A broke widow and her whole English village turn to growing cannabis to save the farm — same setup of ordinary people, collective scheme, and gleeful contempt for authority.

But Broader and more farcical, with less of Ned's understated character warmth.

The Full Monty1997

Unemployed steelworkers turn to stripping to survive, and the film finds the same mix of daftness and real tenderness that makes a scheme feel like a community holding itself together.

But Has a harder economic edge and more genuine desperation underneath the laughs.

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Whisky Galore!1949

Same engine, older machine: an entire small community uniting in cheerful deception of authority for shared spoils, from the studio that basically invented this genre.

A shipwrecked cargo of whisky washes up near a Scottish island, and the whole community conspires to hide it from the customs man — the exact structural ancestor of Ned's plot, decades earlier.

But Black-and-white, stiff-upper-lip 1949 pacing; some viewers find Ealing comedy too polite now.

Calendar Girls2003no page yet

A close-knit community pulls off an outrageous shared scheme for a good cause, with the same generous ensemble spirit and gentle mockery of village propriety.

But Leans sentimental toward the end in a way Ned mostly avoids.

Kinky Boots2005

An unlikely partnership and a small English town rally around one improbable plan, delivered with the same warm, feel-good British comic engine.

But More earnest and message-driven than the amoral cheerfulness of Ned.

Cold Comfort Farm1995no page yet

A gallery of rural eccentrics gets gently sent up by an outsider fixing everyone's business, with the same fondness for small-community absurdity.

But Drier and more literary in its humour, less physical comedy.

The Ladykillers1955

An Ealing classic about a small group scheming to get away with money that isn't theirs, driven by the same dry, deadpan English-Irish comic sensibility.

But Black-and-white and stagier in pacing; some may find it quaint rather than funny.

Death at a Funeral2007

A single day of escalating chaos among an ensemble trying to keep secrets and appearances intact, with farce building the same way Ned's lies compound.

But Faster, twitchier, and more slapstick — less interested in place or people than plot.

The Matchmaker1997no page yet

An American visitor gets swept into the schemes and superstitions of a small Irish village, with the same fondness for gentle communal con artistry.

But Thinner script and less confident direction; charming rather than sharp.

Ballykissangel1996

Takes the exact tone and setting — small Irish village, outsiders and locals colliding — and stretches it into serial television instead of a tight caper.

A gentle Irish village dramedy stretched across seasons instead of ninety minutes, full of the same gossip, scheming and warm eccentricity, just with room to breathe and wander further.

But Soapier and slower-burning; commitment to a whole series is a bigger ask than one film.

Fargo1996

Same moral seed — decent-seeming people rationalising a lie for a payout — played at a much colder, crueller register to show how differently it can end.

Ordinary people cooking up a scheme for money spirals into something far darker and bloodier, asking what happens when Ned's premise loses its sense of humour.

But Genuinely violent and bleak in places; not remotely a comfort watch.