Kilkenny Rose Orla O'Shea emerged as winner of the 46th International Rose of Tralee Festival. The 20-year-old teacher was voted ahead of 27 competitors hailing from Ireland, Europe, America and Australia to claim the silver crown. She dedicated her achievement to her mother who died four years ago from cancer. "She made me what I am today," said the emotional winner, who … [Read more...] about News: Kilkenny Rose Wins in Tralee
Rose of Tralee
War of the Rose
Elizabeth Kee addresses the controversy about her past. ℘℘℘ This year's Rose of Tralee festival has been grabbing headlines over the controversy surrounding New York's Rose Elizabeth Kee, who will compete in the festival at the end of August. Kee is a former star of the reality television show Temptation Island, in which she was acting like a true temptress. Kee was also … [Read more...] about War of the Rose
Rose Festival Saved
The future of the Rose of Tralee Festival, which features girls of Irish ancestry from around the world competing for the festival crown, was in grave doubt at the end of 2003, when Siobhán Hanley, the event's chief executive admitted that they needed to raise Euro250,000 to save the annual event. The Irish government refused to bail out the festival, saying that Euro500,000 … [Read more...] about Rose Festival Saved
Less than Rosy
By Oistin MacBride
November/December 1994
Despite the air of innocence that overlays the Rose of Tralee Festival, a distinct lack of sentimentality, hard business acumen and scandalous trivia are the order of the day, as Oistin MacBride discovered when he attended this year's festival, now in its 36th year. The Rose of Tralee, one of the biggest and oldest of the burgeoning number of festivals now dotting the Irish … [Read more...] about Less than Rosy
