My Uncle is an Taoiseach!

Dervla Kenny c/o Herald.ie

Having connections in high places can be a mixed blessing. Dervla Kenny, 2012 Mayo Rose, is the niece of Enda Kenny - yes that Enda, An Taoiseach. As Dervla was reported as saying in the Herald, "everybody is a relation to somebody" in Ireland.


Read more in the excellent Herald.

Love the Mayo

Dervla Kenny c/o Mayo Today

Mayo Today is a fantastic newspaper, it is not a trade magazine for mayonnaise. It reports that Dervla Kenny is the 2012 Mayo Rose.

Dervla is a very busy lady to judge by all the her activities reported in that paper!

Keep up with her here.

Good PR never hurt



Declan Murphy with sister Blathnait Ní Mhurchú c/o Dundalk Democrat

Blathnait Ni Mhurchu is the 2011 Mayo Rose. According to the Dundalk Democrat not only is Blathnait working with Servisource Recruitment, her brother Declan is the CEO. It appears that Servisource Recruitment have very competitive employees. Don't believe me?

Read it here.

Yet more Aoibhinn news



pic from Independent Woman

There seems to be no end to the interest in the pairing of Aoibhinn Ni Shúilleabháin (Rose of Tralee 2005) and Ryan Tubridy. It was a feature article in the Irish Independent's Independent Woman section telling us about the couple arriving at at the Mansion House in Dublin. Ryan was launching his new book all about JFK.

Go the Independent Woman for all the dirt.

Speed Dating for the Craic..

Pic :Gerry Mooney

Former Rose Aoibhinn Ni Shuilleabhain

From Herald.ie we find this nugget about three former Roses. The three are Aoibheann Ni Shuilleabhain (former Rose of Tralee), Isabelle Green (Galway Rose 2010) and Martha Gilheaney (Leitrim Rose 2010).

The Herald.ie has a lot of info on the three Roses - go there for more..

Talented Michelle

Michelle Moyles, the 2010 Mayo Rose, is but one competition away from appearing in the International Rose final in Tralee. According to the Mayo Advertiser, Michelle is "quite nervous" about the regional final in Portlaoise.
The article details some of Michelle's abilities -"Michelle is an avid Galway Musical Society member and accomplished member of the McCole School of Irish Dance for adults; she also enjoys salsa and ballroom and once a month helps organise a disco for people with disabilities. Well-travelled Michelle hopes to complete a masters degree and further contribute to the field of social care".

Mayo Rose one step from Tralee

Mayo Rose one step from Tralee

The Mayo News has a piece about Michelle Moyles, the 2010 Mayo Rose, written by Aoife Gillivan

MAYO Rose, Michelle Moyles, will be competing in the Rose of Tralee International Regional Finals this weekend to determine whether she will qualify for the main event in Tralee in August.

The finals will be held in the Portlaoise Heritage Hotel over the June Bank Holiday weekend, where British and North American finalists will also compete.


Michelle’s journey to become a rose has certainly been a family affair. Speaking to The Mayo News, the Crossmolina native explained it was her sister who filled out her application form for the contest, which gave Michelle a kick-start towards fulfilling a childhood dream.


“I suppose, like every Irish girl, I grew up watching the Rose of Tralee. I was five years old when I told my daddy that I was going to one day be up there on the stage. It’s a dream really to be involved in a contest I have been watching my whole life.” Michelle’s sponsor for the competition is ‘Alpha Wind Energy’ a Danish company her father worked with while setting up the family venture ‘Moyles Wind Farm’.


Michelle admits that becoming the Mayo Rose is ‘only just sinking in’ but she is excited to continue in the competition. She has already been practicing some social duties that coincide with the title, such as being invited as guest of honour at a ‘Sex and the City’ movie premiere night in the Broken Jug Bar, Ballina.


The Mayo Rose has been astounded by the support and encouragement of her family, friends and work colleagues. Michelle is a social care worker in ‘Ability West’, Co. Galway. Her clients, whom she calls her ‘family away from home’, have been exceptionally supportive.


“They’re so cute, they now call me ‘Rosey’. One client missed an interview I had on Mid-West Radio and has been plaguing me to bring in a tape of it.” They have also made posters and banners that some of Michelle’s work colleagues will bring to Portlaoise, in a bid to cheer Michelle on to Tralee.


Michelle proudly acknowledges her achievement so far, especially overcoming her nerves before singing in front of hundreds of people at the TF., Castlebar. Her experience of the contest so far has been wholly positive, as she recalls the kindness of a fellow contestant at the Mayo Rose competition. “It turned out I had to stay an extra night at the Castlebar competition for Mayo Rose and a girl I had just met that day, Debra, invited me to stay in her home. We went out with people from the competition that night, who were complete strangers to us, and had the best fun.” It is this positive meeting of new people that Michelle seems to enjoy most about being part of the competition.


The Portlaoise finals will be the last hurdle Michelle will face on her route to the Festival Dome. It is a case of the more the merrier who wish to attend the finals in support of the Mayo Rose.


She will partake in personal interviews, on-stage interviews and of course perform her talent of singing. All going well, she will be one of six girls, out of the regional finals twenty nine roses, selected to the live show.

Mayo's Michelle Moyles

Yet again the good people at Event Capture bring us wonderful photographs of a Rose selection night. This time they snapped the events in Castlebar when Michele Moyles was crowned 2010 Mayo Rose.

Go to their site for many, many more pics.

Dubai Rose 2009

The Mayo News brings us up to date with Clodagh Fleming, the 2009 Dubai Rose. Why the Mayo news? Because Clodagh is from Ballina, in Mayo.

There is plenty more at Mayo News.

Aoibhinn Ni Shuilleabhain In The News - Again

Aoibhinn Ni Shuilleabhain was voted Sexiest Female TV Star in the Herald poll. Naturally.

Rose As A Teacher

Yes it's Aoibhinn O'Sullivan again. Here she is launching http://www.brainfood.com/. And of course there is reference in the article to the boyfriend.

Go to the Irish Independent for the item.

Aoibhinn Takes To The Stage

The following is from an article in The Mayo Advertiser - "She has a first class honours degree in theoretical physics from UCD, she is a regular on our TV screens as a panellist on RTÉ’s flagship satire programme The Panel, she is well known for her exploits on Celebrity Bainisteoir with the Kiltimagh GAA club and now Mayo’s multi-talented 2005 Rose of Tralee winner Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin is set to take to the stage as she joins Ragús for their spectacular homecoming tenth anniversary show on November 8 at the Royal Theatre, Castlebar."

Read the ful item here.

Sing Like a Mayo Rose

Aoibhinn Ní Shuilleabháin was the 2005 Mayo Rose, we have mentioned her before. In the above clip, she sings like an angel.

Mayo Rose At Last

At last we have snippet of news regarding the Mayo Rose 2008, Lorraine Cronin. It's not much, we admit, but it's a start. Go to crossmolina.ie, navigate towards the end of the page, and you will find the item. You may not thank us for the effort, but any news is good news!

Mayo Won in 2005

Aoibhínn Ní Shúilleabháin was the Mayo Rose in 2005, and became the Rose of Tralee in that year. This link, at Castlebar.ie, has more links fior you to follow.