With a blend of joy, tears and an animated Dáithí Ó Sé, the host, the 2024 International Rose of Tralee was conferred upon New Zealander Keely O’Grady at the finale of this year’s festival in Co Kerry.
“I’m finding it hard to articulate my emotions. I’m trembling with excitement at the moment,” expresses O’Grady, who’s a 21-year-old fourth-year pupil at the University of Canterbury aiming for a speech and language therapy degree. “Representing my nation as an International Rose is what I await eagerly. The count of New Zealand Roses stands only at two and to increase it means so much to me.”
This festival has provided some unforgettable moments including bagpipe performances, a fun rowing-machine competition hosted by the co-anchor Kathryn Thomas, and a surprising act by Ó Sé of waving cheerleader pompoms towards the astonished spectators. The excitement doesn’t stop here (barring the pompoms) as the contest’s second half begins on RTÉ One, Tuesday, at 8pm.
Night two will kick off with Niamh Shevlin, the Donegal Rose and an Irish dancer, who has graced the stage in Michael Flatley’s Lord of Dance and is participating in this contest as a homage to her late aunt. Following her will be the Sligo Rose, Megan McCormack, a primary school teacher and intercounty footballer from Gurteen, and finally, the London Rose, Glenna Mannion.
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The rapport between Mannion and Ó Sé left a lasting impression in an otherwise lacklustre first half. The conversation segued into a tale regarding Mannion’s sister having an encounter with Pope Francis during his 2018 visit to Ireland, where viewers got to see a photograph of her pecking the Pope on both cheeks. Ó Sé cheekily questioned whether she had attempted to snog the Pope. Mannion went to foretell from the teacup leavings that Ó Sé drank from, and predicted him to be the host of the Late Late Show in the future. David Lynch making a comeback to cinema would seem less startling than this spectacle of Rose of Tralee.
The subsequent part features the New York Rose, Billie Cooper, born in Cavan and who had resided in Singapore and China before emigrating to the United States with her family. Her attempt to tutor Ó Sé in Chinese could be politely defined as semi-successful.
Post the news break, the stage is graced by Roscommon Rose, Rachel Hastings, who converses about her emergent work as an education promoter on Instagram. Yorkshire Rose, Clídna Bailey-Doyle makes known her strong Irish roots and affirms her support for Ireland against England in football. Westmeath Rose, Grace O’Connor, marks an emotional moment with a heartfelt poem dedicated to her late brother, Ryan.
As the eager anticipation for the result grows, an atypical musical diversion is presented with a performance by Sharon Shannon in partnership with TikTok celebrity, Garron Noone, that culminates with a unanimous on-stage chant of “diddly-doo”, subsequently followed by Shannon being presented with a Ó Sé cardboard cut-out by Thomas. One might be tempted to quip about the uncanny resemblance between the cut-out and the real thing.
The suspense is palpable as the announcement of the winner nears. All that viewers can do is buckle up and immerse themselves in the thrill, the energy, the cheerleading and Ó Sé’s valiant, albeit near-disastrous, effort to pronounce ‘Tralee’ in Chinese.