Cathal is a middle-aged professional living in Arklow and commuting to Dublin. Self-entitled and stubbornly set in his ways, he harbors ingrained sexist views that color his treatment of women. Rather than examining his own flaws after his engagement ends, he spends his would-be wedding day eating microwaved food and a bachelor party cake while resenting his ex-fiancée.

Sabine is an independent woman who works at the Hugh Lane Gallery in Dublin's city center. She appreciates art and fine ingredients, taking pride in her domestic skills and expensive cooking. Despite her initial willingness to merge her life with Cathal's, she recognizes his lack of appreciation for her personhood and chooses to leave him before they marry.

This unnamed 39-year-old writer secures a residency at a quiet, pastoral house to focus on her work. She treasures her solitude, taking pleasure in quiet activities like swimming in a cove, baking, and reading Chekhov. Having broken off past engagements to preserve her independence, she vigorously guards her personal and creative boundaries against intrusion.

A retired literature professor and tourist visiting Achill Island. He acts entirely entitled to the Böll House and the protagonist's time, disregarding her requests for privacy. He callously consumes her food, monopolizes her space, and condescendingly questions her qualifications for the writing residency.

An unnamed married mother who feels constrained by her domestic routine and marital role. Desiring a sense of adventure and a reclamation of her physical autonomy, she travels to the city for a weekend of Christmas shopping with the explicit intention of seeking out an extramarital affair.

A local man who strikes up a conversation with the protagonist over drinks and a game of pool. He lives on the outskirts of the city in a barren, undecorated house devoid of photographs or a telephone. Though he initially appears harmless, talkative, and accommodating, his isolated lifestyle carries a quiet intensity.

Cathal's sibling, who texts him support after his engagement falls apart. He shares his family's cruel sense of humor, demonstrated by a childhood memory where he violently pulled a chair out from under their mother for a laugh.

The mother of Cathal and his brother. She serves as the target for the casual cruelty of the men in her family, silently picking up spilled food after her sons and husband laugh at her physical expense.

Cathal's father, who normalized callous behavior toward women in his household. By finding cruel jokes at his wife's expense humorous, he shaped Cathal's entitlement and lack of empathy.

An employee in the accounts department at Cathal's office. She went out for drinks with Sabine, providing a space for them to discuss the selfishness of men and clarifying Sabine's decision to leave.

Cathal's supervisor at the office. Aware of Cathal's canceled wedding, he sympathetically suggests Cathal take the rest of the day off to rest.

The cleaner who tends to the offices where Cathal works. She crosses paths with him briefly at the end of his shift.

Cathal's pet cat, originally adopted at his suggestion when he proposed to Sabine. She spends the day trapped in the bathroom after Cathal accidentally locks her inside.

The spouse of the protagonist in "Antarctica." He stays home with their children while his wife travels to the city for the weekend.

The former spouse of the man in "Antarctica." She left behind a resilient rubber plant in his house, which he has actively neglected but which refuses to die.