Dublin girl lands Queen of the Land title

The 44th annual Queen of the Land Festival which took place in Tullamore over the weekend has once again proved to be a resounding success. Huge crowds attended this years festival from all over Ireland due, in no small part, to the fantastic line up of entertainment and the 26 entries from all four corners of the country. Friday night kicked off with a packed house to see local comedian Neil Delamere, who entertained the crowd and Queens alike with a laugh-inducing comedy show. Dancing continued on into the wee small hours of the morning. On Saturday morning, bright and early, the Queens were interviewed by the three eminent judges; Darragh Mullin, news correspondent with the festival"s main sponsor, The Irish Farmers Journal and Irish Country Living newspaperYvonne Daly, the 2007 Queen of the Land and prominent local businessman Christy Maye prominent local business man. Many locals on the town"s streets provided much help and guidance when the Queens were sent on a treasure hunt around Tullamore town to visit many local landmarks. The Queens also enjoyed the help of a bunch of escorts who were to be at their beck and call for the weekend. On Saturday night the queens were chauffeured to the Tullamore Court Hotel where they were put through their paces on stage by compère for the night, Grainne Kelly. The Queens and their hundreds of supporters danced the night away to top band The Aftermath. On Sunday morning, despite the late nights, the Queens attended Mass where the Tullamore Gospel Choir provided stunning musical accompaniment. Bowling was next on the agenda and the Queens and their escorts showed their competitive side as they battled against each other for victory. On Sunday evening, following two hours of hair-styling and make-up, the Queens gathered for photographs and the gala banquet. The festival committee were very honoured this year to have Mairead McGuinness as guest speaker. Other distinguished guests included Mairead Lavery, Editor of the Irish Farmers Journal and Irish Country Living, Catherine Buckley, National President of Macra na Feirme, Ger Maher, Chairperson Offaly Macra na Feirme and Nigel Larkin, President of the Queen of the Land committee. A special presentation was also made on the night to Christy Maye by Geraldine Mooney Cooper, former Chairperson of the Queen of the Land committee in recognition of the enormous help, support and encouragement which he has given to successive Queen of the Land committees down through the years. By 11.30pm the nerves were beginning to show in anticipation of the announcement at midnight. To huge cheers, the queens were led in by piper, Brian Meacle. The honour of announcing this year"s winner fell to Darragh Mullin, who declared the winner of the Queen of the Land 2008 to be Kate Harrison, representing UCD Dublin. The first runner-up this year was Emily O Connell, representing Seandun, Co. Cork, while the second runner up was Noreen O"Shea, representing Kerry. Dancing continued into the small hours of Monday morning with music by Fiesta