Barry O'Hanlon is a fictional character in the Irish soap opera Fair City, portrayed by Pat Nolan.

[2] He has been summarised as "the unlucky in love ex-teacher who now runs the local paper and used to be involved with Niamh before Paul swept her off her feet (that's only the half of it)".

[4] In his younger years Barry studied for the priesthood,[5] but later decided to become a schoolteacher against the wishes of his domineering mother.

In 1991 Barry began dating Linda O'Malley, who became pregnant, and they got married in 1992, even though he knew the unborn child wasn't his.

Sadly, baby Alice died a year after birth and it soon emerged that Bela Doyle was the biological father.

In 1996 he finds himself falsely accused when schoolgirl Niamh Cassidy, a student in his class seduces him and they have a passionate clinch.

[6] Niamh then lies that Barry was the one who seduced her and he nearly loses his job, but she eventually tells the truth.

In 2000 Barry finds himself attracted to Niamh for real when he starts to get to know her better after helping her to move on from her breakup with Leo Dowling.

They begin a relationship and become engaged, but as the wedding day approaches, Niamh starts to have second thoughts and she realises she has feelings for Paul Brennan, who is O'Hanlon's best friend.

When Barry finds out, he is left a broken man and spends Christmas at home drinking and feeling depressed.

Driving out of church while arguing with a drunken Annette, Barry in a fit of rage, takes his eye off the road and accidentally knocks down couple Ray O'Connell and Gina Cassidy (Niamh's mother) who were just arriving in the church to get married, killing Gina.

[12] He accidentally murders his friend Sarah O'Leary and – witnessed by resident thug Denzo Bishop – the pair contrive a plan to hide her body.