On Thursday, 21 March well-known broadcaster and actress Blathnaid Ní Chofaigh dropped into the Bower for an interview and general craic with TY students. Teacher Mairead Reilly had invited the television personality to speak to her class as a perfect example of a wife and mother who continues to forge a successful career in the media through her fluency in Irish.
The TY students had prepared questions on a wide range of topics which Blathnaid answered frankly. She touched upon her early years – moving back to Ireland from Canada, school in Navan and later Dublin and her close relationship with her own mother. She admitted that she hadn’t been a very good student; it was her love of debating that ignited her passion for journalism. Her first job in RTE was as a researcher and reporter.
Impressed by the oral fluency of the interview panel, Blathnaid encouraged them to be aware of their heritage, as the Irish language is under threat more than ever because of the economic recession. Presenters Olwyn Sheridan and Hannah Casey were praised for their professionalism.
Blathnaid next spoke of the fun she has had as a ‘celebrity’- as a bainisteoir, as a judge on the All-Ireland Talent Show and as a guest on the Late Late Show. Long term, her ambition is to focus more on her acting career. At the moment she appears in TG4’s Irish drama ‘Crisis Eile’, loosely based on the life of a European commissioner. On a more serious note, she visited Ethiopia last year as an ambassador for Charity Plan Ireland and was deeply affected by the ability of the people to laugh and smile despite their hunger.
The session concluded with some Irish dancing and renditions of ‘Grenade’ and ‘Mamma Mia’ – as gaeilge! The Bower girls were delighted by how charming and down to earth their guest was. Míle buíochas, a Bhlathnaid.
