From Errigal to the Emmys

Patrick McGarvey grew up a stone’s throw away from St Ciaran’s Ballygawley and remains an avid supporter of his local GAA club Errigal Ciaran, but his career has transported him into a world that to most of us seems virtually unfathomable.

A freelance producer stretching back more than two decades, Patrick, who is based in Manchester, has worked across various stints for media monoliths instantly recognisable by their abbreviations – the BBC, ITV, RTE and CBS.

If his career is grounded in one particular theme, it’s sports production and he joined the ranks of critically acclaimed fly-on-the-wall docuseries ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ in September 2022.

For the uninitiated – and it’s quite a tale – ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ documents the events of the Welsh association football club after which it was named.

Languishing in the fifth tier ‘National League’, Wrexham faced an uncertain future when the 2019-20 season was halted due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, but it was pulled back from the brink thanks to the unlikely intervention of two Hollywood actors.

Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney became co-owners of the club in September 2020 in a £2 million takeover – and their attempts to revive the third-oldest association football team in the world have been chronicled by ‘Welcome to Wrexham’.

The endeavour has been a rip-roaring success in every respect. The club has achieved back-to-back promotions and they currently sit third in the dizzying heights of League One, captained by Derry man James McClean.

The documentary, meanwhile, has been acclaimed far and wide for its portrayal of a working class mining town and topics of acute sensitivity infringing upon the club’s players and their families.

At the annual Emmy Awards, staged in September at the Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles, ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ was named winner in two categories, including the ‘Outstanding Unstructured Reality Programme’.

Supervising producer Patrick McGarvey was among those who took to the stage to receive the award – and yes, he felt like a fish out of water but he certainly wasn’t complaining.

“It was an amazing experience, there were plenty of people in attendance who you’d know and recognise. I was all dolled up in a fancy tuxedo, it wouldn’t be what I’m used to.

“Because of the nature of the particular award we won, it was one of the last to be handed out. We went up on stage then there were photos and interviews and all that sort of stuff.

“Then it was a case of getting yourself out of there, and there was a big party in the convention centre just across the road.

“It was a fantastic night, there were dishes served that I’d never heard of before and as much drink as you could’ve wanted. There were amazing ice sculptures, an amazing band and the party went on into the night so it was good craic.

“We all got a trophy as well, so I got to bring the Emmy back home which was great. I’d say for me in terms of my career, it was probably the biggest honour I could win so it was pretty mind-blowing really.”

It was his first time in Los Angeles as well – and the City of Angels left an indelible impression on the Ballygawley man, and not necessarily in a uniformly positive light.

“I’ve been in America a fair amount but it was my first time in LA. The heat is the first thing that strikes you, it was 42 degrees.

“I would also say that the disparity between the haves and the have nots is more visible than anywhere else I’ve ever seen in my life.

“You have multi-billion pound homes on one side of the road then homelessness everywhere else you went.

“It was sad to see, it really was. I’ve seen homelessness all over Ireland and the UK but this was on another level. It just shows you that America has a long way to go.”

Filming is ongoing for the fourth season of ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ and Patrick leads a production team on location with the editing process completed across the Atlantic. It’s very much a hands-on process, as he explains:

“I go to most training sessions and keep in touch with the players, getting an idea of what they’re up to.

“If they have something going on in their life, maybe their partner is having a baby or someone isn’t well, we try to keep on top of these things. Some players aren’t willing to be involved and we obviously respect that but I try to encourage the players to open up, to build their own profile and the profile of the club. It’s a documentary based around a football club, it’s not a football documentary.”

Describing himself as a ‘home bird’, Patrick’s passion for Errigal Ciaran and the GAA hasn’t waned with distance or time.

Whenever he finds space in his busy calendar, he journeys back home and takes in matches at both club and county level as well as keeping in touch with family.

Married to Annie with two sons Thomas, 13, and Jack, 6, he’s passed on the torch and Thomas lines out for St Brendan’s Manchester GAC, the same club Patrick linked in with while studying at university and went on to represent for many years.

But while the GAA is and always will be a core part of Patrick’s identity, Wrexham has also taken up a prominent place in his affections.

“The club was on the brink of extinction and the fans had to raise money to keep the club alive, which is something we dealt with in the documentary.

“Now they’re going from strength to strength – an opposition team might have a sponsor no-one’s heard of whereas Wrexham are running around with all these international brands – United Airlines, Tiktok and other famous brands.”

He concluded: “It’s been crazy in a good way to see the rise of the club. I knew of some of their famous victories in the past in the FA Cup but I wouldn’t have known about the town and club in great depth. I’ve got to know so many people and have made life-long friends. If and when I do leave it’ll certainly always hold a firm place in my heart.”