Ennis man going behind the scenes in Tralee

THE Clare Rose won’t be the only local person taking centre stage at the annual Rose of Tralee festival next week. Ennis’ Colm Flynn is the host of a new ‘behind the scenes’ look at the Rose of Tralee, which will be broadcast around the world on Monday and Tuesday.

For the very first time, online audiences will be shown exclusive footage from the unique festival, giving viewers unprecedented access to the Red Room. With a sneak peek behind the scenes at all the glamour and personalities, audiences will join RTÉ Player host Colm as he interviews the roses, escorts, judges and celebrity guests, who range from fashion experts to Oscar nominees.

Colm, from Drumcliffe, mainly works for the John Murray Show on radio, as well as doing television work. “I got a call from the folks over in television asking would I be free to work at the Rose of Tralee. They didn’t say much about it at first but I said I could go down if they needed me and that’s when they came back with this great idea.

“What they want to do is produce something fun, edgy and exciting that will go out live online during the 9pm news on both nights of the Rose of Tralee. It’s a way of giving viewers at home in Ireland and around the world the chance to keep watching the excitement and great atmosphere from the Dome, even though they’ve broken for the news.”

He added, “I’ve always been really interested in live television and radio and so getting to work on a show like the Rose of Tralee is very exciting. It is normally in the list of the top five most watched television shows of the year in Ireland, regularly attracting well over a million views.

“When I’m standing in front of the television cameras and my producer starts to count down from 10 seconds in my ear piece I think I’ll be very nervous but those nerves are good and keep you on your toes.”

As well as the live webstream, there is also the opportunity to catch-up on demand on RTÉ Player, with festival highlights available for 21 days after the event. RTÉ’s Live from the Red Room exclusive will also be available on YouTube.