Sharon Horgan Says New Comedy 'Catastrophe' is Based on Her Own Life

The first episode of Sharon Horgan's brand new Channel Four sitcom Catastrophe debuted last Monday to rave reviews. The Irish comedian wrote and stars in the show alongside Boston funnyman Rob Delaney as they tell the story of a couple who find themselves expecting a child after only a short time together.

"That is what happened to me so it made sense to write about it," Horgan told The Evening Herald.

The actress had an unplanned pregnancy with her now husband Jeremy Rainbird after dating for six months, and have two kids together, Sadhbh (aged 11) and Amer (aged six).

"I couldn't have written it four years ago. I had to get further down the line and realise how brutally hard having children is, then hear Rob talk about it so viscerally in his stand-up," she explained.

"We liked the idea of writing about how hard it is to stay in love and in a relationship when you've got kids, and how easy it would be to put an end to it."

The idea came together brilliantly and if the first episode is anything to go by, it's one of the most well-written comedies to come out of Britain for a while. The comic-timing was perfect and both lead characters were instantly likeable for all their quirkes. Here's hoping it will more of the same in the upcoming episodes.

It's not just this side of the pond Horgan is doing well for herself either, she's only gone and written a new HBO series for Sarah Jessica Parker too, in what will be the actress' first television outing since Sex and the City.

"It's luck and chemistry. She'd been looking for something, so HBO sent her some of my work and set us up on a date. She liked my stuff and we got on well,"

Eh, luck and chemistry? More like talent if you ask us.

We saw the first episode of the new show and loved it and will definitely be checking out episode two on Monday night. Have you checked it out yet?