It is a truth universally acknowledged that Normal People star Paul Mescal is really, really ridiculously good looking.
The actor’s devastating performance in the smash hit BBC Three and Hulu television series, which is available to watch in Australia on Stan, is matched only by his devastatingly handsome face.
The 24-year-old Irishman made his TV debut in the adaptation of Irish author Sally Rooney’s New York Times bestselling novel last month, and in the weeks since his piercing blue eyes and broad shoulders graced our screens, Paul has suddenly found himself with a ridiculous number of Instagram followers – 464,000 to be exact – lusting after his every move.
For the record, when the show first debuted, Paul’s follower count was sitting around 17,000.
Whether it’s a promo image, a cute candid selfie with his co-star Daisy Edgar-Jones, who plays Marianne, or an arty film pic snapped by a mate, Paul’s fans cannot stop crushing on their new favourite internet boyfriend.
There’s even a glorious fan account dedicated to the iconic silver chain Paul’s character Connell wears throughout the series, hilariously titled, Connell Waldron’s Chain.
The comments section on Paul’s Instagram is a wild place to be.
The remarks from his fans range from harmless factual observations – “Good god you are handsome! The show was absolutely amazing!!”- to grade-A psycho – “I’m buying my wedding dress, you just need to show up”.
But things really started to get out of control when Paul posted this video of himself playing an acoustic version of Sia’s hit single Chandelier, which you can watch in the player below.
The thirsty comments started rolling in thick and fast.
Some screenshots below, for your viewing pleasure.
And just because we cannot get enough of these, here’s a few more gems from Paul’s comments section:
“I am so In love with you 😂 I started watching normal people and I literally just watch it over and over and cry 😭😍”.
“Ur so fit”
“fully fancy him when lockdown is done I’m finding a Irish man x confirmed”
“JEZUZ!! 🙌WHY AM I SO OBSESSED”
“Fit i love you”
“can’t stop thinking about him x”
“Fancy u think my boyfriends hate me”
“more in love than ever 🙏❤”
“wish he would just marry me tbh”
“im sweating”
“you are gorgeous”
“so handsome”
“sexy legend 🔥👏🔥👏🔥”
Wondering how Paul is cooping with all of this attention?
It seems he’s doing just fine.
“It’s a little bit nuts at the moment, but I’m really enjoying it and it’s just been crazy trying to gauge the response that people seem to be having to the show. It’s really, really exciting,” he said during an interview on BBC Radio this week, explaining he is currently isolating in London, which is under full lockdown.
“All the kind of positivity I’m getting is through my phone and through social media, but when I put it down nothing is really any different, I’m still staring at the same four walls,” he joked.
“It’s just crazy!”
Normal People is currently streaming on Stan.