Johnny Depp was thrilled to finally meet his Irish hero, author JP Donleavy, in anticipation of starring in the movie adaptation of the writer's critically acclaimed novel The Ginger Man.

Pirates Of The Caribbean star Depp attended a 50th anniversary party for the book in New York recently, and gushed about his encounter with the literary great, whose controversial work was banned in the Republic Of Ireland and the US on publication for obscenity.