Dearbhla's homecoming is a real Tubbercurry triumph
Monday October 26 2009
FLAMING sods of turf held high on pitchforks flanked the award-winning director Dearbhla Walsh as she stepped from a vintage Rolls Royce onto a red carpet.
Hollywood had come home to Tubbercurry and the glamour was turned on in style as a town that is steeped in theatrical tradition welcomed home its most famous daughter.
Hundreds defied wind and rain in the south Sligo town on Saturday night to show their pride in the local girl who had brought home a trophy.
Clutching the glistening Emmy she received last month for her role as director of the BBC's award-winning series 'Little Dorrit', Dearbhla was overwhelmed by the tumultuous reception.
"This is a small town but it has a huge heart," she said. "There has been an angel on my shoulder for some time and tonight that angel is golden.
"It is just very, very exciting to come home and I feel very proud of where I'm from."
A garda escort led the 1937 Rolls Royce carrying the acclaimed director and her family the short distance from the family home to St Bridget's Hall.
At the church, an escort of men carrying blazing sods of turf on pitchforks took over and led the motorcade around the square and on to the hall, where the red carpet was at the ready.
Children from the local drama group, wearing masks, formed a guard of honour as she walked into the hall.
"It was just overwhelming," admitted Dearbhla afterwards. "My legs were like jelly. It was more nerve-racking than LA."
Addressing the large crowd that had crammed the hall, including many local schoolchildren, Dearbhla told them: "Dare to dream and dare to follow your dreams. Everything is possible with hard work and commitment."
In less than three weeks, she is due to begin shooting a four-part thriller for the BBC, 'The Silence'. Although set in Bristol, it will be shot in Dublin with an all-Irish crew.
One of the organisers of the homecoming, Peter Davey, said it had been a truly memorable occasion.
"This was the night the paparazzi came to Tubbercurry," he said. "The most emotional moment was when Dearbhla got out of the Rolls Royce at the hall.
"We had seen it all on TV but now here was our own Dearbhla, back with what she said herself was her golden angel on her shoulder."
- Anita Guidera
Irish Independent
