Father Ted Crilly stated, "It's nice to think of them all in the house having adventures, but when you think about it, it's really cruel to Ted. It's just an awful future for him... He's not watching a sitcom, he's living this awful life." "The Independent" characterised Ted as "by turns devious, cunning and disingenuous", noting a running joke about parish funds being traced to Ted's personal account. Ardal O'Hanlon, who played Father Dougal, said that Ted was the show's only rounded, fully formed character, and that the rest of the cast were essentially playing caricatures. Ted is frequently portrayed as a natural
"Good Luck, Father Ted" Dougal is distracted, and Ted is forced to chase him down, finding him asleep on a park bench. Ted sits down with him, but too late discovers the bench is part of the "Crane of Death" ride, and the bench is lifted high into the air. From his vantage, Ted sees that Dougal has been found by the television reporter, and since Ted said he was the only priest on the island, the reporter assumes Dougal is Ted. In his lament, Ted falls off the bench to the ground. Later, a heavily bandaged Ted watches the television interview along with