Dubliner to compete for 'Culchie' title

After 20 cold years in exile a Dubliner has finally been granted permission to compete for the title of King of the Culchies.

Michael "Maxi" McConnell from Ballyfermot will travel to Ballyjamesduff in Co Cavan later this month to square off with 21 other competitors for a title which has resided outside the pale since its inception 20 years ago.

Paddy Rock, organiser of the Original Irish Culchie Festival, said in previous years the competition, which he considers the male equivalent of the Rose of Tralee, had three simple rules: competitors must be 21 or over, male and from anywhere but Dublin.

"We have decided to let a Dubliner in but the female thing is still a definite no," he said. "We based that on the fact the ICA [Irish Countrywoman's Association] refuses male members and until they drop that neither will we."

The competition, open to all "country characters and natural entertainers", will pit contestants against one another in age-old culchie contests such as turf cutting, sandwich making, welly throwing and wheelie bin racing.

The eventual winner of the contest will be selected by a panel of five female judges. "So at the back end of the day the women do get their say," Mr Rock said.

In the present day, Mr Rock said, being a culchie, or "rustic rural as the dictionary puts it" is something to be proud of. "A culchie years ago might have been seen as a derogative term but now being a culchie is cool."

He said things have changed in rural areas and that "rustic rural" folk need a platform on which they can be celebrated.

"The culchie was a character who was always out front. You look at it today with Sky Sports and music in pubs there's no platform for the culchie to be himself. The festival give that platform."

Being crowned culchie royalty comes with its privleges, said the inaugural winner of the competition Cowboy Jack Holian from Co Mayo.

"I was the first Mayo man on the Late Late Show when I won in '89," he said. "It's great thing for impressing the ladies as well."

Cowboy Jack said some things have changed in the culchie community.

"The culchie was a normal country fella who could break into song or tell a joke at the drop of a hat," he said.

"They're more modern now. We were old fashioned. We didn't know how to work a laptop or anything like that and those modern guys are always on the phone."

On account of its location this year, the festival will pay tribute to Percy French, who wrote the ballad "Come Back Paddy Reilly to Ballyjamesduff". Mr Rock hopes Paddy Reillys from across the globe will come to the festival to set a world record for the largest ever gathering of Paddy Reillys.

The festival takes place from October 23rd-25th and aims to raise funds for the Irish Motor Neurone Association and the Alzheimer Society of Ireland. Further details are available from www.culchiefestival.com.