This is the second story in Roddy Doyle's "Barrytown Trilogy", following the adventures of the Rabbitte family. However, as 20th century Fox owned the film rights to the Rabbitte name (from The Commitments), the characters had to be re-named in the subsequent film adaptations (The Snapper, The Van).
The hospital where the baby is born is actually a real maternity hospital called the Rotunda in the middle of Dublin.
This was granted a cinema release in the UK after its initial TV airing.