This is a list of characters in the Ross O'Carroll-Kelly series.
Ross's family
Ross Ross Kyle Gibson McBride O'Carroll-Kelly is the protagonist and narrator. His initials, given to him by Sunday Tribune journalist Gerard Siggins, are ROCK. This is a double reference - Ross attends the fictional school Castlerock College (a portmanteau of Castleknock College and Blackrock College.)
Ross is the only son of Charles and Fionnuala O'Carroll-Kelly. His middle names are from the famous Irish rugby players Jack Kyle, Mike Gibson and Willie John McBride — his father always hoped that Ross would be a great rugby player. His parents weren't as well off when Ross was young, living in the relatively poor suburb of Sallynoggin. When Charles's business began to succeed, they moved to wealthy Foxrock (which threatened to be renamed Sandyford West in the play Between Foxrock and a Hard Place). Ross was bullied in school, but after becoming a rugby player was one of the most popular at Castlerock College.
As a young man, Ross is vain and a heartless womaniser. Though Ross performed well in schools rugby, his natural laziness meant that he never progressed in the game as an adult. Ross has an intense hatred for "skangers" or "skobies" (as he refers to a particular group of people in Dublin, the majority of whom reside north of the River Liffey) and "boggers" or "culchies" (as he refers to people from outside the Dublin area). His marriage to Sorcha did little to hinder his prolific womanising. Once he has had his way with a girl, he rarely replies to her calls or messages, unless he needs to use her for some ulterior purpose.
Charles
Charles O'Carroll-Kelly is Ross's father. Ross treats him with contempt, often while obtaining large amounts of money from him. Charles is very proud of his son's rugby skills and demands the utmost respect for him from sports columnists. Ross's nicknames for him, possibly suggested by his initials (C.O.C.K.), include "Dick-features" and "Knob-head".
Mr O'Carroll-Kelly is portrayed as an extreme right winger, with little respect for trade unions, the poor, environmentalism or and state intervention in the economy. He was elected as a local councillor for Dún Laoghaire in the 2004 local elections, but two years later was imprisoned in Mountjoy Jail for corruption (following revelations about the "fictional" events depicted in his wife's novel Criminal Assets), where he then manages to turn the prisoners into a rugby team. Charles has an inflated sense of self-importance, repeatedly writing to the Irish Times on various issues, convinced that people think of him as a "major captain of industry" and man with his "finger on the pulse of the nation". Like Ross, he has an intense hatred of North Dubliners. When he found out that Ronan was born, he bribed Ronan's mother, Tina not to let Ross know about the boy. However, prior to a letter from Fr. Fehily, Charles first speaks to Ronan at Fionnuala's book party. They have since developed a close bond.
During the time the senior O'Carroll-Kelly spends in prison, Ross's contempt for him diminishes somewhat. This corresponds with his father's inability to provide him with seemingly endless resources of finance and Charles's new-found respect for the less fortunate. In essence, this is the first period in their relationship when Ross is unable to prevail upon his father for his every desire to be satisfied. It appears that Ross's respect for his father grows as a result of this.
In Mr S and the Secrets of Andorra's Box, Charles reveals to Ross that he (Charles) is Erika's real father, and that Fionnuala revealed his crimes to get back at him for this. The final pages of The Oh My God Delusion reveal that Charles suffered a heart attack, while on holiday.
Charles' new found vigor for life after the heart attack lead him to rekindle his relationship with Erika's mother and leave Fionnuala. The two open a cheesemongers and all is calm in his life until the introduction of a wig he found while moving leads to a massive personality change. Charles then has an affair with Fionnuala, his original wife who he then returns to and turns to public office once more, starting a new right-wing political party 'New Republic' where he vows to dismantle the current Government and 'Make Ireland Great Again'.
He is elected Taoiseach, afterwards it comes to light that his new found business connections from Russia have been meddling in the social affairs and election systems of Ireland to help him gain power, once in office he begins selling massive sections of Ireland's national forests to the Russians along with other schemes such as turning Athlone into a private prison for European states. At the end of the 2 most recent novel Normal Sheeple Charles orchestrates a plot to burn down Dail Eirin, hiding his tracks before he is exposed.
Fionnuala
Fionnuala O'Carroll-Kelly is Ross' mother. Often gets involved in campaigns (such as "Halting Sites Where They're Appropriate") to keep working class and disadvantaged elements out of Sandymount and Foxrock. Much to Ross's horror, she has become a successful author of "chick-lit". After sending Charles to prison by revealing his financial crimes in her first novel, Fionnula becomes an extremely successful public figure on foot of her writing. She separates from her husband and falls in love with her book agent Lance Rogan, causing Ross to despise her even more. In 2008, she loses her contract with Penguin and signs a new contract with a new publishing house.
Sorcha
Sorcha Eidemar Françoise O'Carroll-Kelly (née Lalor) is Ross's recurring love interest, and eventually his wife. She is a benevolent character and is concerned with environmental issues and poverty. Her main interests are shopping and watching Friends, Dawson's Creek and The O.C.. Ross repeatedly cheats on her but is possessive of her nonetheless. Her signature scent is Issey Miyake perfume. Sorcha worked for a short period for Ross's father as a cut-throat human resources manager, helping him to "rationalise" the work-force. She now runs her own boutique in the Powerscourt Centre in Dublin City. She split up with Ross after he slept with their nanny, and she then moved to California with her old boyfriend Cillian, an old flame of hers (who she left Ross for in 2001), but when he went paranoid over money, she left him and moved back to Dublin. She is currently really good friends with Ross, but they are due to get a divorce.
Erika Erika Joseph was Sorcha's closest friend during college even though she cannot stand Sorcha's caring nature. Hobbies include horse riding and dating super-rich men. Currently is pursuing a career in organising "Divorce Fairs" including divorce parties and cruises. Totally uninterested with the predictable topics her girlfriends talk about (favourite moment in Dawson's Creek, Weight Watchers points etc.). Erika can put down a man with one lash of her tongue and thus became something of a forbidden fruit in Ross' eyes. She repeatedly toys with the idea of seducing Ross (who knows he would be unable to resist), with the sole apparent intention of hurting Sorcha, but has been in love with Ross's best friend Christian Forde since she was 15.
It is revealed at the end of Mr S and the Secrets of Andorra's Box that she is Ross' half-sister and that Charles O'Carroll-Kelly is her biological father.
Erika went to live in Argentina with her lover Fabrizio, having dumped fiancé Fionn at the altar in The Shelbourne Ultimatum. She had a daughter with him - Amelie, but broke up with Fabrizio after he had an affair. Following much persuasion from Ross in Seedless in Seattle, she returned home.
Ronan
Ronan "Ro" Masters is Ross's illegitimate son, who, to Ross's initial shame, is a prime example of the skanger subculture. Though only a child, he has many criminal connections, and is tipped by his neighbours to become "the next Genoddle", i.e., The General, Martin Cahill. Surprisingly he is the only character in the series who has been able to make Erika smile and - despite the vast social gap between them - she has grown quite fond of him also. In the more recent books with Ronan becoming a sustained character and being widely accepted as the humour of the stories, his adventures have started to take him overseas generally dragging Ross alongside him. The first of these comes as a result of a school trip after Ronan joins Castlerock and becomes Fr. Fehily's bright hope for their rugby future. The trip takes them to France where Ronan vanishes into the Red light district of Pigalle in Paris forcing Ross to act as a parent and bring him home. While there Ronan calls Ross "Da" for the first time and not something offensive while Ross was thinking about Ronan's earlier statement of becoming a Pimp after uttering the sentence "I think I should get meself a string a' bitches". In 2008, at 10 years of age he falls in love for the first time with a "Mountie" named Blaithin. She is very similar to Sorcha, and is a world apart from Ronan. By age 14 Ronan has found a new love, 16-year-old Shadden. It is revealed at the end of The Shelbourne Ultimatum that Shadden has become pregnant, meaning Ross is to become a grandfather. In Downturn Abbey Shadden gives birth to a daughter which she and Ronan name Rhianna-Brogan, named after the Barbadian R&B singer Rhianna and Dublin Gaelic football player Bernard Brogan. Ross is smitten by his new granddaughter, whom he refers to by the nickname "R&B".
Honor
Honor O'Carroll-Kelly - Ross and Sorcha's daughter. Sorcha went into labour at Fionnuala's book party at the end of the 6th book. Honor initially hated Ross and cried whenever she saw him but now they have a better relationship, even though, due to the split with Sorcha, Ross only sees her on Sundays. She took her first steps in Starbucks, Dundrum. Sorcha and Honor moved to California with Sorchas ex-boyfriend Cillian. When Cillian went obsessed with the recession, Sorcha dumped him and she and Honor moved back to Ireland. Honor has subsequently grown to be a very dislikeable little girl. She is constantly dismissive of her parents who are an embarrassment to her, even though she is only seven years old. Honor was cast in the lead role in the TV movie adaptation of Fionnuala's misery-lit novel, "Mommy, they've never heard of Sundried Tomatoes". However, before the movie is released, the producers decide to replace Honor as her accent is not considered sufficiently 'authentic' for an American audience. This infuriates Honor whose behaviour becomes ridiculous in "Downturn Abbey". She is expelled from her fee-paying primary school and destroys both the food and Sorcha's dress in advance of Ross and Sorcha's wedding renewal ceremony.
Johnny, Brian & Leo Ross and Sorcha's triplets (Johnny O'Carroll-Kelly, Brian O'Carroll-Kelly & Leo O'Carroll-Kelly) are born in Keeping Up with the Kalashnikovs. They are named after Johnny Sexton, Brian O'Driscoll and Leo Cullen, who Ross considers as "very much personal friends" of his. As they grow, the boys take to swearing with a vengeance, and Sorcha.
Ross' siblings Hugo, Cassiopeia, Diana, Mellicent, Louisa May and Emily O'Carroll-Kelly are Ross' brother and five sisters, conceived in vitro in Schmidt Happens and born via six surrogate mothers in Braywatch, the twentieth novel.
Hillary Hillary Pius Flannan de Barra is the son of Sorcha and Fionn, conceived during a sexual encounter when Ross and Sorcha were going through one of their regular break-ups. He is named after Hillary Clinton and was born at the end of Dancing with the Tsars.
Ross's friends
Christian