The coming of Lee has upset John O'Donoghue's glam plans to launch the Oireachtas Family Day, writes MIRIAM LORD.
THE BULL shall go to the ball, but it won’t be today.
Ceann Comhairle John O’Donoghue had been all set to arrive at Leinster House this morning by horse and carriage. (It’s true. He was.)
Notice went out at lunchtime yesterday that the Ceann Comhairle, along with Seanad Cathaoirleach Pat Moylan, would be arriving in style at the Kildare Street gates at 11am.
Fair play to the Government for acting so quickly after the weekend’s stinging reprimand from the voters. No more making free with those State cars, and vehicle sharing to become the norm among Ministers and other office holders.
Eh, no.
The twin Chairs of Leinster House were hoping their fairytale entrance would add a bit of glamour to their announcement of the details of this year’s Houses of the Oireachtas Family Day.
Everyone was all set. Moylan had a new frock and the Bull was going to wear a diamond tiara borrowed from Nessa Childers for the occasion.
And what happened? George Lee, ex RTÉ, new FG TD for Dublin South. That’s what happened. The man is not even officially in the Dáil yet and he’s causing trouble.
You see, if the Bull O’Donoghue doesn’t get his timing right, his big arrival in a carriage pulled by lovely horses retro-fitted with dung-catchers in sympathy with the jarveys of Killarney, could be overshadowed by the arrival of George.
This will be the media event of the week around Leinster House, unless the Coalition falls as a result of Fine Gael’s motion of no confidence (which is unlikely) or the traumatised Greens walk away from Government (even more highly unlikely.)
Fine Gael, like the office of the Ceann Comhairle, issued a press release alerting the media to their new arrival today. They never seem to tire of showing him off, and he never seems to tire of being showed off.
Deputy Lee is not as flash as John O’Donoghue, but as the People’s Princess, George could have a horse and carriage if he wanted one.
But no. “George Lee, TD-elect, will walk through the gates of Leinster House with his family and meet Enda Kenny and his Fine Gael colleagues on the Leinster House plinth.” He’s just like the rest of us, really.
George will be available afterwards for a question and answer session with the media. Again.
This is getting ridiculous.
But back to the Ceann Comhairle and the Cathaoirleach, and the pair of them planning to glide down Kildare Street by pony and trapattoni. Well, they can’t now.
Because Maureen O'Sullivan, new TD for Dublin Central, is also making her Leinster House debut today. For all the Bull and his Seanad sidekick know, Maureen might be planning to march through the gates accompanied by the Emerald Girls' Pipe Band and the cast of Fair City.
Ceann Comhairle O’Donoghue has grown quite fond of the limelight since his first unhappy beginnings in the job.
He won’t want the two new deputies stealing his thunder. Not to mention frightening the horses.
Right enough, a second court circular arrived last evening. The horse and carriage, with the Bull doing his Queen of Tonga impression beside Moylan, has now been put off until tomorrow.
That might be wise. He could have opted to sparkle yesterday, only he might have been eclipsed by new MEP, Joe Higgins. Or rather, new MEP Joe Higgins’s Mammy.
While Joe’s dawn run in the RDS was thrilling, the undoubted star of the show was Ellen, his 91-year-old mother.
Talk about stamina. She arrived with her wayward child (60 last month) at teatime, and kept a watchful eye on him until the returning officer confirmed that he had wrested a European Parliament seat for Dublin from Fianna Fáil’s Eoin Ryan.
This happened at 5.10 in the morning, but Ellen was still flying.
Neither did she waste the day up from Kerry.
Joe took the mammy and five supporters to a slap-up lunch in the Dáil members’ restaurant yesterday to celebrate his victory.
Meanwhile, it can only be a matter of time before Fiona O’Malley takes her friend and new Dublin city councillor, Mannix Flynn, into Leinster House for a tour of the place. The only way is up.
Mannix was supported by many friends from the arts world during the count in his Dublin South East Inner City Ward. One of them, Vinnie McCabe (a member of the cast of Fair City, among other things) confided to us that he could imagine Mannix tilting his hat at the Lord Mayor’s job.
That would be fun.
George and Maureen will be arriving in the early afternoon.
Despite them ruining his plans, the Ceann Comhairle will be the soul of courtesy and give them a big welcome.
It should be a lovely day. (Unless you are a member of the Government. Maybe George can give them some advice. If he can be persuaded to talk . . .)