Rose of Tralee 2024: Everything you need to know about the festival ...

29 days ago

Independent.ie

The long-running Rose of Tralee Festival, which celebrates Irish culture and heritage is returning to Irish television screens tonight.

Rose of Tralee 2024 - Figure 1 — Photo Independent.ie

Now 65 years running, the annual festival, which first started in 1959, will see 32 International Roses take to the stage today and tomorrow.

The two televised nights will take place live from the Dome at the Kerry Sports Academy at MTU and for the second year will be co-presented by Dáithí Ó Sé and Kathryn Thomas.

What time and channel will the Rose of Tralee be televised on?

The Rose of Tralee will be available to watch for free, live and on-demand by audiences in Ireland and around the world on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player.

Coverage tonight and tomorrow night begins at 8pm and will run until 11.25pm.

And don't forget, there's a break for the Nine O’Clock News at 9pm.

A total of 18 roses will appear on stage tonight, with the remaining 12 on Tuesday night (see the end of this article for which nights each will appear)

Presenters Dáithí Ó Sé and Kathryn Thomas at the launch in Dublin of the Rose of Tralee Festival. Photo: Andres Poveda

What is the festival all about?

The heart of the festival is the selection of the Rose of Tralee which brings women of Irish descent from around the world to Co Kerry, Ireland for a global celebration of Irish culture.

A total of 32 International Roses come to Tralee, supported by friends and family, as well as being accompanied by their escorts.

All eyes are on the Roses, who travel from the UK, America, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Europe, the Middle East and of course Ireland to take part in the festival.

How will the winning Rose be selected?

The 32 Roses, who were selected from either their counties in Ireland or their city abroad, will take to the stage over two nights.

Each contestant will chat with Dáithí Ó Sé or Kathryn Thomas on stage about their life and their links to Irish culture.

Following the chat, most of the Roses will perform – whether that be singing or dancing or showing some sort of unique talent.

Last year saw line dancing, leg waxing and one Rose even gave a demonstration on how to resuscitate a baby.

After all 32 Roses have met the hosts, judges will choose someone, who they believe, is a good representative of the ethos of the festival and someone who can confidently communicate in a variety of settings.

Last year saw the New York Rose, Roisin Wiley crowned the 2023 Rose of Tralee.

Ms Wiley, who’s parents are from Co Limerick, then represented the festival throughout the year at various charity and promotional events.

She will pass the baton to the newly crowned 2024 Rose of Tralee, which will be decided on Tuesday night and who will then act as the new ambassador for the festival for the next 12 months.

Seachtain: Rose of Tralee: Na heachtraí is conspóidí

Who is on the judging panel this year?

The judging panel will take on the job of selecting the next Rose of Tralee.

The fate of who will become the next Rose of Tralee lies in the hands of the four distinguished judges, made up of a former Rose of Tralee, an RTÉ star, a councillor and an international fashion designer to the stars.

The 2024 Selection panel will be chaired this year by 1998 Rose of Tralee, Luzveminda O’Sullivan.

Luzveminda O’Sullivan, a native of Castlebar, Co Mayo, is a chemist in the pharmaceutical industry with more than 20 years’ experience and still returns to the Festival as often as possible since her win 26 years ago in 1998.

Nuala Carey of RTÉ Weather and National Lottery fame is a returning judge from last year. Having worked in broadcasting all her career, and been a lifelong fan of the Festival, Nuala understands just how difficult a task she and her fellow judges have ahead of them.

Dáithí Ó Sé and Kathryn Thomas meet this year’s 32 International Roses at the launch of the Rose of Tralee International Festival 2024 at Airfield Estate, Dublin. Photo By : Domnick Walsh © Eye Focus LTD .

Another returning member of the Judging Panel for 2024 is Ollie Turner – a Galway broadcaster who has been head of Sport with Galway Bay FM since 2000 and was recently elected as a local councillor in Co Galway. He has been involved for 20 years, acting as compere at county Rose Selections all around the country

The final member of the 2024 Judging Panel is international fashion designer to the stars and proud Kerryman, Don O’Neill. He recently relocated home to Ireland with husband Pascal Guillermie, having spent 30 years in New York.

Looking back, how did it all start and when was the first festival?

An Tóstal was a series of festivals around the country launched in 1953 to celebrate all that was great and good about Irish life .

From this concept emerged the inaugural Rose of Tralee Festival (or Festival of Kerry as it was then called) in 1959.

Before The Tóstal Festival was phased out in 1958 it inspired the founders of the Rose of Tralee Festival to create an event that would attract ‘Roses’ from expatriate communities.

The first Rose of Tralee Festival was held in 1959 with Rose representatives from Tralee, London, Dublin, Birmingham and New York.

At the time each Rose had to be a native of Tralee, but this was relaxed in the early 1960s to be a native of Kerry, and in 1967 just “Irish birth or ancestry”.

The First Festival

Organisers said the first Festival in 1959 cost just IR£750, and by 1965 the budget had grown to IR£10,000.

The 1959 Festival was a "resounding success” with Alice O’Sullivan from Dublin becoming its first Rose.

The organisers extended their sights to include setting up Rose Centres in other areas, beginning with the United States.

As well as Ireland, the UK and the US, the Festival now has centres in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and Europe.

Original titled the ‘Festival of Tralee’, it was in the 1970s that then-editor of The Kerryman newspaper, Seamus McConville, suggested that the title Rose of Tralee International Festival be used to strengthen the link to the song and to reflect the growth of the event worldwide.

On which nights will the contestants appear on TV tonight and tomorrow?

Alphabetical order

Monday, August 19

1. Cork

2. Dubai

3. Galway

4. Kerry

5. Kilkenny

6. Leitrim

7. Louth

8. Melbourne

9. Monaghan