Niall, how are you doing? I’m good. I’m a bit stressed and busy, but that’s generally the best state for me. I don’t like being bored. So, yeah, it’s one way or the other.

How did you find the process of putting together your debut album, Glass And Mirrors, compared to making a single or an EP? Truthfully, I found it really tough. I originally booked out a month in a studio in Belfast nearly three years ago now, and I thought: ‘We’ll get it all done in one big chunk. And then it’s done and we’ve captured a moment in time.’ But obviously, we didn’t have enough time. And obviously, I wrote 400 songs in the meantime.

You’ve been compared to many artists, from Shane MacGowan to Joe Strummer and Alex Turner, but how would you describe your sound? I can hear all the influences of things I like, but there’s such a mix, you know, of Christy Moore and Shane MacGowan, also Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, and the Arctic Monkeys and Coldplay and Oasis. I can hear all the influences in there, but I don’t know if they were on purpose.

At 26 shows, this tour is your biggest to date, plus there’s the album release and two forthcoming films you’re starring in. How do you stop yourself from burning out? Panic! Just pure panic. I think in any other instance, there would have been loads of reasons to have burnout and stuff. But truthfully, my brain always goes: ‘I haven’t really got time to burn out’.

You’re playing the lead role in a romantic comedy called One Night In Bath. As a self-proclaimed ‘romantic’, this must be a dream come true? Yeah, I loved it. It was so silly that movie, you know, as a proper kind of old-fashioned British romcom. It was just good to have a laugh. Everyone on set was awesome. And to get to lead something like that is always a privilege, because it’s a lot of responsibility. You want to get it right from an actor’s point of view. But when I’ve stepped on set, especially in a smaller role, you kind of look to whoever is at the top of the cast list to lead by example. And I love being in that position, because of that responsibility. I take it very seriously. You have to be a leader as well as an actor.

You’re also playing the role of goalkeeper Alan Kelly in Saipan. What was it like being on the set of a major production and working alongside a star like Steve Coogan? Unbelievable. I’m such a massive Alan Partridge fan, and Steve Coogan fan, and a football fan. And I know Éanna (Hardwicke) who plays Roy Keane; he’s one of my best mates. You can go deep into what acting is but, on a certain level, if you’re a bloke you want to pretend to be a soldier or a spy or a footballer. I support Ireland and I remember that era so well, so it was all just ridiculous.

You recorded a fight scene with Jackie Chan in The Foreigner. Does that mean that you could batter Roy Keane? No! No, I’d rather go into the ring with Jackie Chan than Roy Keane.

Are you a goalie in real life? I used to be a goalie. Not as my first position, but I was one of those lads who, if the goalie’s injured or whatever, I always fancied myself as a bit of a goalie and played a bit of the time. And this is going to be a conversation I’m going to be having with friends for the next year or two… we were having a kickabout on one of the first couple of days and someone hit a screamer past me. I went: ‘Shit, did you see that? He’s got a foot like a traction engine!’ I didn’t even mean to, it just came naturally. And I was so embarrassed. Luckily Steve Coogan wasn’t there. But that’s what I was battling with the whole time, because I have so many friends that I speak to only in ‘Alan Partridge’.

How much can you remember about the 2002 World Cup? I was young, I think I was about seven, but I remember it very clearly. It’s one of my formative memories because it was Ireland at a World Cup, which was exciting anyway. But I also remember really clearly my dad saying to me: ‘Now look, the World Cup’s in Japan, so all the games are going to be pretty much early in the morning.’ And I was like: ‘What do you mean?’ And he said: ‘We’ll get you up early, we’ll have a bacon sandwich and we’ll watch the matches before school.’ I was so excited.

Are Ireland going to qualify for the World Cup? Yes. Yeah. I’m going with the manager. He [Heimir Hallgrímsson] says we are. So yes, this is the year. This is the year.

Niall McNamee is touring the UK and Ireland until Friday 6 February 2026; Glass And Mirrors is self-released on Friday 10 October; Saipan will be in cinemas in January.