Mary Gallagher is a multifaceted individual, exceling in various creative pursuits as an actor, stand-up comedian, and writer. Her impressive repertoire includes notable appearances on popular television shows such as Friends, The West Wing, and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, as well as prominent roles in films like Flightplan and How Do You Know.
Born in Elm Grove, Wisconsin, Mary's academic background is marked by a Bachelor's degree from The University of Wisconsin - Green Bay, where she received the prestigious Chancellor's Medallion in recognition of her outstanding work in acting, writing, and directing. Alongside her colleague Amy Ketchum Holterman, Mary co-founded the comedy troupe "The Flying Napkins," which aimed to promote social awareness through health and sex education. In 2021, she was honored with UWGB's Distinguished Alumni Award.
As a stage actor, Mary has showcased her talents in productions such as Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, King Lear, Tartuffe, and In Circles, earning a nomination for the American College Theatre Festival's Irene Ryan Award. She also secured first place in the 15 Minutes of FEM competition at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood, portraying her character Shelby Gratt.
Following her graduation from UWGB, Mary underwent training at Second City of Chicago and toured nationally with the improvisation group Wavelength. She held leading roles in Rob Reiner's NBC pilot Everyday Life and Jason Alexander's Let Bob Do It for Nickelodeon, and served as the host of the pilot The Short Show for E! Networks, co-host of Game Show Network's cult classic Faux Pause, and co-host of NBC/PAX-TV's World Cup Comedy, produced by Kelsey Grammer.
In 2018, Mary made her national television stand-up comedy debut on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Her stand-up comedy performances have been featured on Amazon's Laugh After Dark and a 2022 Dry Bar Comedy special. Moreover, her series Be My Therapist (co-created with Brian Kiley) was a finalist at The Montreal Just For Laughs Festival in 2019, and she has been a semi-finalist in Comedy Central's Laugh Riots competition and the Andy Kaufman Award competition for The New York Comedy Festival.
