The phrase ‘success is sweeter when shared’ springs to mind when looking at Lynseyann Mulvey and Karl Bowe. The loved-up duo, who are celebrating their third wedding anniversary this year, have been busy navigating life as newlyweds while living out their acting dreams together on RTE’s Fair City. While they rarely share the screen in the same scenes, they’re each others biggest supporters – even when the cameras stop rolling. Forget the showbiz glam – these pair are more comfy running lines in their kitchen with a cuppa in hand, especially now as Lynseyann is at the heart of one of show’s biggest plots.
Here, we sit down with the couple to chat about how a chance Instagram follow in 2019 lead to a picture-perfect Italian proposal and wedding, the hardships of the acting world, battling imposter syndrome, rejection and why they wouldn’t change this life for anything!
Lynseyann and Karl, how are you both keeping?
Lynseyann: Life is great at the minute! We’ve had an exciting few weeks celebrating both our birthdays – five days apart – so between that, filming and other work as well, it’s been a busy few weeks!
You’re celebrating three years of marriage this year, has time flown?
Karl: Unbelievably so! In some ways it only seems like yesterday we got married, but here we are, three years later.
L: It honestly feels like the wedding could have been the other day. It’s still so vivid in my mind. It has been the fastest three years ever. We still talk about it regularly – well, me more than Karl maybe! [laughing]
How is married life treating you both?
L: There’s something so special about knowing Karl is my husband. Even though life itself didn’t massively change, knowing we are married is such a gorgeous feeling.
K: Ah, it’s been fantastic. We have our ups and downs like everyone else, and we always navigate through that. At the end of the day Lyn is my best friend and as soon as I met her, I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. And here I am living out that dream!
You big romantic! And the wedding itself on the Cilento Coast was so magical! Looking back on it, what was your fave part?
L: Honestly, the whole day was magical. It was like nothing else I have ever experienced. The ceremony was like a movie. It was so silent walking down the aisle and all I could see was Karl at the end waiting for me. It’s a memory that will never leave me.
K: When I saw Lyn walking down the aisle with her dad, she genuinely looked like an angel. I completely lost it.
L: There was no going back! [laughs]
So you got married and engaged in Italy – does it hold a special place in your heart?
K: Definitely. I genuinely believe that Lyn and I were two Italians in a past life who just love bread, pasta, pizza and wine [laughs]. I introduced Lyn to a movie starring Robert Downey Jr. called Only You which was set in Italy. It has the most unbelievable scenery and soundtrack. It inspired me to propose to Lyn in Italy, and then, in turn, have our wedding there.
L: Italy is such a special place for us, and I think it always will be. I loved Italy even before meeting Karl. I had my 30th in Rome, and brought all my family and friends over to celebrate. So my love affair with Italy started long before this, but now, we love it on another level. We have friends there now, and have gone back every year.
Take us back to the start of your relationship, where did it all begin for you both?
K: Lyn found me on Instagram in September of 2019.
L: I had seen him tagged in a photo of a mutual friend of ours, so I gave him a follow. I thought to myself, ‘Yer man looks alright!’
K: I followed her back, and noticed she was also an actress. I thought she was gorgeous, and was chancing my arm, starting the conversation with, “Hey, I feel I know you from somewhere. Have we ever met before?” knowing full well I didn’t!
L: I was only too happy to go along with it. We exchanged numbers, and arranged a first date, two weeks later, on the 20th September 2019 – which is in fact, the date we got married on four years later. That date is very special to us now!
K: We got on like a house on fire, and the rest is history.
Look at you now, happily married, and working together too on Fair City. How do you find working on the same show, even though your paths rarely cross on set?
L: It’s quite rare that our paths cross, or our storylines overlap, but knowing Karl is on the show, and understands how it all works, is great. He knows how rigid the schedules are, how long the days can be and he knows everyone in there too, so it’s a lovely familiarity. It can be quite tiring some of the days so it’s nice to know when I come home, he gets it. And also, he’s great at running lines with me because he knows that in a few weeks time, he’ll be asking me to return the favour.
K: It’s a fantastic experience getting to work alongside your wife. And being on Fair City itself, it’s so iconic in its own right. It’s a pleasure to be involved with the show. And although Lyn and I very rarely cross paths on it, it’s still a lovely feeling to be doing something we both wanted to do for years, alongside each other.
Would you prefer more screen time together in the future or are you happy as it is?
L: I’m not going to turn down storylines. If they feel Kira and Andy may cross paths, then bring it on.
K: Of course, it would be great, but at the same time, I feel it’s good Andy and Kira are two separate characters, and we’re forging our own paths as two individual actors.
The show is an institution here, with hundreds of thousands of viewers each week. When you both signed up, was it exciting, intimidating, daunting, a mix of all?
L: When I signed up initially, which was in 2022, it was quite intimidating. I was a returning character, who had been well established, and had some big story lines – teenage pregnancy etc. I had big boots to fill. I was going into a story, an on screen family that was already so well established. But once I started, I felt like I settled in well. Everyone was so lovely and welcoming and I calmed a lot after that.
K: You don’t realise the reach sometimes, until you are out and about and people stop you to say hello, or you get recognised. It hits then, the large following it has.
Does that happen often, getting stopped?
L: Yeah, absolutely! We get stopped by people quite often, looking for a chat or some gossip, or to have a moan about characters. It’s great craic altogether!
K: It’s funny because, although I’m not in the show as much as Lyn, I would still get recognised. When I tell people who my wife is in real life, they are blown away. I get some of the best reactions.
How do you protect your relationship from the public eye?
L: We show what we are comfortable showing and sharing to the world. At the end of the day, our relationship happens behind closed doors, like everyone else’s.
Do people sometimes forget there’s a difference between the actor and the character?
L: All the time! People definitely forget sometimes its a soap and we are working off a script. I’ll often get people coming up to me saying, “Do you know who I can’t stand?” or “How could she do that?”. It’s funny.
Lynseyann, it’s all go for you at the mo with your on-screen husband, George McMahon who plays Mondo. Talk to us about that.
L: So we are in the middle of the storyline where Mondo killed Anto in an incident at The Station Bar. This has been, by far, the most emotional and in-depth storyline I have been involved with. There’s a big trial coming up, so the scenes at present are tense. George is great to work with, so doing these big, emotional scenes has been a pleasure. It’s great to have such a good screen partner where you feel fully comfortable to immerse yourself in the plot. It’s been challenging, but so rewarding. As actors, we love drama!
Those sort of scenes must be emotionally draining and tiring to shoot, how do you switch off when you’re done?
L: Oh yeah, lots of them are. And there are days where you might film say, eight scenes in one day. It can be exhausting to keep your emotions at such a heightened level for the whole day. Honestly, I would just come home after days like that and go to bed. We generally film four studio days a week, so you could be back in the next morning for 7.20am. I’m boring and prioritise my sleep over anything. At the weekends though we might go for a nice dinner or a glass of wine. We try and catch up then as a couple and have some proper us time.
Karl, the same for you, what’s your reset to relax and unwind?
K: Depending on the mood, I either love to sprawl out on the bed and not do a thing or I could get a burst of energy at the end of the day and go to the gym. I’m a very simple guy!
You’ve both been working in the entertainment world for a long time now, but did you grow up in that environment or how did the passion spark?
K: It was something I developed over time. From a young age, I was always into acting. And as I got older, I went about doing some training to gain confidence and experience, and one thing led to another. I am still learning and wanting to do more. I trained in Bull Alley, Liberties College for two years doing a Performance Arts course and it was a wonderful time. From there, that’s when I got the bug and featured in a variety of different TV and theatre productions over the years. Mr. Ireland was another proud experience in my life and it opened so many doors for me.
L: From very young I had a keen interest too. I was an Irish dancer from the age of five, so I loved the stage. I went to a primary school heavily involved in dramatics, where they would let me create my own little skits and pieces of drama. In my teens then I went and did some Gaiety school training, short courses and after that I decided I wanted to do full time training. I went to London for three years, came back, got myself an agent, and did some free work to gain experience and confidence like Karl said. Everyone has to start somewhere. I think if you have the passion in you, it’s always there.
The acting world can be fickle, how have you learned to navigate that over the last couple of years?
L: You have to be prepared for anything and everything. You can be working a 9-5 job and get a call from your agent to say you have booked a gig.
It can move very fast and I think you have to be in a mindset to move with it.
K: A big part of the acting industry is rejection. Personally I have been rejected more times that you can count, but that’s what makes you stronger – clichéd as it sounds. You have to remember to believe in yourself and if you keep knocking on the door it will eventually open.
L: If you don’t believe in yourself, you will find it hard for anyone else to.
If you could sit down and tell your younger self anything, what would it be?
K: Count to 10 and breathe. Growing up in this industry, I have always lived life in the fast lane, wanting to do this and wanting to do that. But as time passes, I have realised you have to relax, take your time. I am a firm believer in what’s meant for you, won’t pass you by.
L: Mine goes back to what we just spoke of. Self belief. It took me a long time, not to have imposter syndrome. I was always conscious of being from Finglas, a working class area. When I would go to auditions as a younger woman, I would feel out of place, I would feel different, and wonder, “Do I belong here?” or feel like I’m not good enough. I try remind myself now, especially in a working environment, yes, I belong here, otherwise I wouldn’t have gotten the job. We can be so doubting of ourselves and harsh on ourselves at times.
That’s advice we should all follow. So finally, tell us, what are the hopes for the future? What else is on the bucket list?
L: Hopefully still working as an actress and getting to continue to do my dream job. And to travel more with Karl and enjoy our life together – that’d be nice!
K: Exact same. Hopefully be a James Bond or Superman one day. But the most important is to continue to grow old with Lyn.
