Father Dougal McGuire Linehan and Mathews to discard the mockumentary format and expand the Father Ted episode to a traditional sitcom, Father Dougal became one of the main characters. When writing Dougal, Linehan and Mathews drew on Stan Laurel, incorporating some of Linehan's own behaviour during moments of confusion. Linehan and Mathews saw O'Hanlon in a modernised Shakespeare play broadcast by RTÉ, and were impressed by the "weird, gormless" face he could pull. Linehan later said, "That was Dougal right there. He was just spot-on and he became our secret weapon. The show took off so quickly because Ardal was so instantly funny."
Hell (Father Ted) the same young woman from the luxury caravan. Her husband, clad only in a towel, chases after Ted as he and Dougal get in their car. The man hangs onto the hood as Ted races away from the caravan park, losing the towel along the way. Ted eventually stops, giving time for the man to get off, find a glass bottle and puncture the car's tires before walking off. Ted and Dougal, refusing to go back to the park, look to hitchhike home. They are elated when island eccentric Tom, transporting raw sewage in a tanker-truck, offers them a ride.