Des and Rosie make Gaiety walk of fame

Legendary Irish performers Des Keogh and Rosaleen Linehan will join stars from the acting world today when their handprints are…

Legendary Irish performers Des Keogh and Rosaleen Linehan will join stars from the acting world today when their handprints are taken for the boardwalk at Dublin's Gaiety Theatre.

The pair's prints will join those of Maureen Potter, John B. Keane, Anna Manahan, Niall Toibin and Luciano Pavarotti in the bronze castings on the capital's street.

The impression of the handprints is taken in grey potter's clay, which will then be cast in bronze and placed in the plaza.

John Costigan, managing director of the Gaiety Theatre, said: "I have known and worked with Des Keogh and Rosaleen Linehan over 28 years and have enjoyed working with them on many productions.

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"I am delighted that they have both agreed to have their handprints taken - they are the personification of Irish theatre and performance."

The duo often starred together, with seven different shows between 1975 and 1985, and they are due to perform their latest show, Des & Rosie on the Luas, at the Gaiety from September 5th until September 24th as part of The Bulmer's Comedy Festival.

Keogh said: "I am delighted, Rosaleen and I have worked so closely together on so many projects, it is fitting that our handprints will be recorded together and we are honoured to join the distinguished gathering outside the Gaiety Theatre."

Keogh recently enjoyed massive success with his one-man show The Love-Hungry Farmer, which he adapted from the letters of John B Keane. After two runs in New York's Irish Repertory Theatre, he took it on a sell-out tour of Ireland and appeared at the 2004 Edinburgh Festival.

His success in John B Keane's The Matchmaker, which he starred in with Anna Manahan, earned him a nomination for Best Actor at the Edinburgh Festival.

Linehan has toured hundreds of venues across the world - as both a comedian and an actress. Earlier this year, she starred as the mother in the international production of Blood Weddingby Lorca at a London Theatre, which opened to critical acclaim.

Recent performances include the The House of Bernarda Albaat the Abbey Theatre, and Brian Friel's Dancing at Lughnasa, which took her to the West End and Broadway, where she picked up a Tony nomination.

PA