Byline: YVONNE KINSELLA

NEW RTE sitcom The Cassidys is set to become Ireland's Friends, insiders have claimed.

Described as a "true Dub" comedy about a typical inner city family, it starts tonight on Network 2 at 9pm.

It's hoped the show will become as popular as Friends and rival many of the best British offerings.

An RTE source said yesterday: "There's a lot riding on this - it's targeting the Friends audience.

"It's a big risk for the station so we're keeping our fingers crossed, but the feedback is good."

The show is based on the lives of twenty-something siblings Emma, 29, Lisa, 20, and Barry, 27, who live together in the family home - minus their parents.

Their mother died in 1987 following an illness and their father, who found a new lease of life after losing his wife, died in a skydiving accident while trying to impress his new girlfriend.

The writers admit it has been written by "glittering, superficial people to give it an authentic superficial feel".

The series starts with Emma, played by Alison McKenna, convincing herself that she doesn't...