Compiled by
JAMES GIBBONS
Search for a piano star - and a tortoise
There was no sign of Florentine the tortoise at the final of the Dublin International Piano Competition, in the National Concert Hall on Tuesday evening. Florentine went missing from the Eogan family’s garden in Rathgar, but returned a few days later covered in muck. The Eogans, who have owned the tortoise for the past 40 years, were hosting Chinese competitor Jiayan Sun, who helped in the search for Florentine.
Sun came second in Tuesday’s final, which was won by Russian pianist Nikolay Khozyainov. Florentine is 100 years old, and has eight years on adjudicator Dame Fanny Waterman, who, at 92, has promised to return in 2015 for the next competition.
Carmel Naughton sponsored this year’s event. She was joined by her daughter, Fiona Naughton, who lives in Killiney. The chairperson of the competition, Margaret Downes, accompanied by her daughter, the designer Lucy Downes, greeted President Higgins when he arrived.
The British ambassador, Dominick Chilcott, and his wife, Jane, attended but left at the interval; the Austrian ambassador, Walter Hagg, and his wife, Aglaë, stayed until the end.
Rubbing shoulders with the ambassadors was Phyllis Seigne, who lives in the heart of the embassy belt. “I’ve been a pillar of Ailesbury Road for 64 years,” the glamorous grandmother of the model Cha Cha Seigne told me, as she chatted to the chairman of Adam’s, Brian Coyle, and the former chairman of Eason, Harold Clarke.
Former MEP Gerard Collins travelled up to Dublin from Limerick for the final. His wife, Hilary, works as a volunteer at the event. “I was three times minister for justice, twice minister for foreign affairs, and served for two sessions as an MEP,” explained Collins. “Then I hung up my boots, like John Wayne, and walked into the sunset.” Now he’s polishing them again. “I am helping my organisation in the referendum campaign.”
The MC for the evening, Dr John O’Conor, was assisted by up-and-coming pianist Seán Óg Boylan. European Ombudsman Nikiforos Diamandouros accompanied Ombudsman Emily O’Reilly to the competition.
Happy holiday thoughts at Hilfiger party
Lorraine Keane enjoyed the rock ’n’ roll sounds of Fusion Family and Rosa Rory on the ground floor of Tommy Hilfiger on Grafton Street on Thursday evening. The shop threw a summer party in association with the Gloss magazine as models paraded around the store showcasing the latest collections.
Keane was looking forward to singing at the Kare4Kasey charity evening in Vanilla nightclub last night She is also planning a trip to Sorrento this summer. Her sister, Tori, is getting married and the whole family are travelling to Italy en masse. “It’s the first time we’ve all gone away together on a family holiday since we were young,” she said.
The manager of Lillie’s Bordello, Paul Smith, told me that he’s organising a trip to the Curragh for the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby on June 30th. Also enjoying the evening were Wayne Cronin of Quintessentially, who has recently moved house to Fitzwilliam Square, and Thomas Crosse of The Strawberry Alarm Clock on FM 104.
What we drankLong Island iced teas, cosmopolitans and homemade lemonade
What we ateMini hamburgers
Who we spottedThree generations of McCulloughs: Domhnaill McCullough, Denis McCullough SC and Jenny McCullough; former model Grace O'Shaughnessy and her friend Irene Fenton, from Cork; Kieran Tobin, chair of the NCH; Simon Taylor, CEO of the NCH; The Irish Arts Review's John Mulcahy and his wife Nuala; Former leader of the PDs Des O'Malley; Ib Jorgensen; former minister for foreign affairs David Andrews SC and his wife, Annette; barrister Richard Bourke and his wife, Danielle Ryan; Angela McGuire and Joan Martin from Dundalk; pianist Finghin Collins
Pulling power of Clooney's local
Patrick Power, who serves on the board of Harcourt Developments, reopened Power’s pub in Tullahought, Co Kilkenny, just before Christmas. Power’s was a favourite of Tommy Makem and the Clancy Brothers. Tullahought is the birthplace of George Clooney’s great-great-grandfather Nicholas Clooney, who was born in the village in 1829. Records suggest he left for America in 1847. It has been suggested that Nicholas might have been a regular in Power’s bar, which was opened in 1825. Word is that plans are afoot to try and get Bono to present George Clooney with a Certificate of Irish Heritage in the pub.
The chief executive of the Irish National Stud, John Osborne, told me that the Irish National Stud Entertainment Troupe is putting on a production of Gilbert Sullivan’s The Mikado on June 26th, 27th and 28th in the adjoining Japanese Gardens.
“Yum-Yum will be chased around the garden,” said Osborne.
The musical pokes fun at the pomposity of people in high office and has never gone out of fashion. Osborne is expecting a scramble for tickets, since it is 27 years since it was last staged in the gardens. He advises people to dress for the weather.
It's a real Vogue's gallery at BT
Suzanne McDougald of Solomon Fine Art took a trip down memory lane on Wednesday evening when she opened Art Style at Brown Thomas on Grafton Street. The exhibition features 17 artists who were selected by artist Stephen Morris and the creative director of Brown Thomas, John Redmond.
“This store has featured prominently in my life,” McDougald informed invited guests, “from shopping with my mother to modelling as a young woman.” The model-turned-gallerist reminded us that Wednesday’s exhibition was not without precedent. Brown Thomas opened a small gallery in the 1950s. McDougald said that Robert Ballagh held a one-man show there in the 1960s.
Cecily McMenamin, who sits on the board of directors of Brown Thomas, said that, like McDougald, she was also a model. “It was hard to know what do with women from a certain background,” she told me. In any event, McMenamin started out on her career working with the couturier Irene Gilbert.
McDougald’s friend, Norma Smurfit, told me that she’s travelling to London on June 2nd to view the Queen’s flotilla on the Thames, which will include over 1,000 boats. It will mark the Queen’s 60th year on the throne.
Smurfit was catching up with the chairwoman of Goffs, Eimear Mulhern, who is looking forward to a short break in her house in Kerry. Mulhern is the daughter of Charles Haughey, and she hopes that whoever buys Abbeville will be happy living there.
The artist Kitty Moss was delighted that her work was on show in the store. She was joined by her friend Rebecca Bourke, who is a niece of former president Mary Robinson, and a twin sister of Richard Bourke, who is married to Danielle Ryan.
What we drankBrown Thomas champagne and Peroni beer
It's nice to be in Smock Alley again with a Eurovision alumna
The former minister for arts, Mary Hanafin, was at pains to point out that her government invested €1.8 million in Smock Alley Theatre, which was relaunched on Thursday with a performance of She Stoops to Conquer. “I remember being here with Patrick [Sutton] in the dust, and he told me his dream,” she said.
Sutton, who runs the Gaiety School of Acting, is the director of Smock Alley. His daughter Rebecca, an arts student at NUI Maynooth, was there along with his son Sam, who studies graphic design at Athlone Institute of Technology. Sutton’s niece Emma King also turned up to lend her support. She’s a conservation consultant based in Cork.
The filmmaker Viko Nicki arrived with his wife, Doireann Sheridan, and their two-year-old son, Ari. Sheridan is a daughter of the playwright Peter Sheridan. Also enjoying the play, which was last performed at the theatre in 1773, were Paula Carroll from Dalkey and her sister, Alma Carroll-Ryan, who represented Ireland with The Swarbriggs Plus Two in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1977, singing It’s Nice to Be in Love Again.
Alma is married to Arthur Ryan, the founder of Penneys. Her daughter, Jess, who owns Mimi’s Beauty Room in Sandymount, married Rory McGuigan last month and the couple held their reception in Killarney’s Europe hotel.
Who we spottedActors Pat Laffan and Mark Lambert; historian Diarmaid Ferriter; Pat Moylan, chair of the Arts Council
What we drankProsecco and elderflower cordial