First Mr Gay Clare eyes title

IRELAND’S first Mr Gay Clare has been named, following a dramatic decision by organisers of the Mr Gay Cork competition at the weekend.

 

Timmie Murphy from Ballybeg had to compete in the Mr Gay Cork competition in his bid to make it to the finals of Mr Gay Ireland, as there were no local heats.

Two other competitors were named winners in the weekend competition. However, judges were so impressed with Timmie that they made the unprecedented decision to name him Mr Gay Clare and send him through to the national finals.

Timmie told The Clare Champion, “I am absolutely delighted to be in the finals and it is even better now that I can represent Clare. After they announced the winners, I was taken aside by the judges and was told I had done a great performance and that there was only a few points in it between me and the winner. They told me I deserved a place in the final and said they would make me a wild card and put me through as Mr Gay Clare.”

The event, at Chamber’s Bar in Cork City, saw lots of Timmie’s friends and family from Clare travel to support him. While the competition involved fun events such as the talent portion and swimsuit round, there was also a serious side.

Funds raised from the competition went towards St James’ HIV care in Dublin. Timmie, a retail fashion manager in Dublin, is planning to organise a fundraiser for the cause in Ennis and Dublin in the coming weeks.

“I have no idea what the fundraiser will be but since I work in fashion it might be something to do with that. Over the next few weeks, I will be very busy getting my name out there and raising as much money as I can for the charity. When it comes to the national final of the competition, it’s a lot more serious than the heats and it’s more about the interview and how much you can do to promote the charity,” he said.

Timmie believes he can win the national title and go on to the Mr Gay World competition. “I am going to win this thing, I’m really positive about it. It was a great boost that the judges in Cork sent me through. It’s amazing to be the first Mr Gay to come from Clare and winning the national title would mean the world to me. The Mr Gay World competition was held in South Africa last year and I don’t know where it will be this year but it would be fantastic to represent both Clare and the country.”

Organiser of the competition in Chambers, Dermot Hickey, said Timmie received lots of support from the audience and the judges. “There are certain areas of the country that can’t have a heat because there are no gay bars in their town or city. So it can often be a case where people travel from different parts of the country to compete. It’s important that people should know that if they are interested in entering the competition and there are no heats in their county, they still have a chance.

“The competition is not just down to looks, personality is a big part of it and what they can bring to the charity, St James’ HIV care. When the judges found out that Timmie was from Clare, they saw him as a really good candidate to represent the county. When it came to the question rounds, Timmie really brought forward his reasons for entering the competition and the fact that he would be a strong representative for where he is from and that he would do everything he could to help the charity.”
The finals of the competition will be held in Dublin’s Arlington Hotel on October 28.