Fair City’s Rachel Pilkington said she didn’t go into acting to follow in her dad Joe Pilkington’s footsteps.
But the Carrigstown star, who plays the mischievous Jane Black, said she is grateful her two sons have inherited their granddad’s sense of humour and love of nature, despite missing out on meeting him.
Reflecting on her legendary acting star father, who died suddenly almost 20 years ago, the 44 year-old actress told TV Now: “I did watch him on The Riordans as a small child and I also remember listening to it on the radio.
“He played a very affable traveller called Eamonn Maher.
“He also did a lot of theatre in the 60s and 70s, playing in all the major theatres around Dublin and he toured the country too. I don’t think I ever saw him on stage.”
And speaking about how his legacy has lived on, the mother of two boys to Jordan, 22, and Noah, 13 added: “My father passed away, 20 years ago this July.
"He did get to meet my eldest son Jordan but Jordan was only two-and-a-half when he died.
“I’d have loved if both my sons could have known him and for them to have a granddad to visit in Galway and spend time with.
“I see him in my youngest son Noah every day and I love that.
“They’re very alike in many ways. But both my sons inherited their grandad’s sense of humour and regard for nature.
“That is what he would have spent most of his time trying to teach them I think, that the environment is fragile and needs to be treated with the greatest care at all times.
Rachel, who is passionate about spreading the vegan message added: “I teach them to love and respect nature. It is the single greatest philosophy we live by in our lives and it influences most of the decisions we make.”
Despite both her parents dabbling in acting, the actress, who has played Paul Brennan’s love/hate interest on the RTE soap since 2013, revealed they weren’t the reason she went on to pursue the job.
The former Clinic star said: “I don’t think I got into acting because of him, I think I was just naturally intrigued and drawn into this world of fantasy and make believe, probably in the same way he was.”
However, speaking of her mum, who trained at The Abbey School of Acting, she admitted that having two parents passionate for the artform did make her dream to appear on the small screen seem more possible.
She said: “She was involved in their repertory productions, then she left acting to raise the three of us.
“Having two parents who shared a love and passion for acting certainly influenced me from childhood and becoming an actor myself never seemed outside the realms of possibility.
“It always felt like something very much within my reach.”
