Miss Ireland hopefuls flaunt `beauty with a purpose'

"We like to say it's about beauty with a purpose. The winner will be doing a lot of charity work. A lot," explains Ms Roisin McQueenie, "is about what's up here." The co-ordinator of the Miss Ireland pageant for the past eight years taps her forehead knowingly.

"A lot is riding on their ability to speak, because, you know, whoever wins is going to have to be able to talk to the media."

So the judges, she continued, would be looking at deportment, poise, personality, charm, "lots of things".

The Miss Ireland competition, which has been running for "well over 50 years", took place in Dublin's Burlington Hotel last night.

Yesterday morning Ms McQueenie was co-ordinating the final preparations and practice runs. Some 30 women, from both sides of the Border, took part in the 31/2-hour event, during which they demonstrated their deportment, poise, personality, charms and "lots of things" before nine judges, including the Boyzone manager, Mr Louis Walsh, the Corrs band member, Jim Corr, and the broadcaster, Maxi. Messrs Walsh and Corr, however, did not have to take in all that poise in one sitting. As part of yesterday's preparations, the exuberant young hopefuls moved from evening wear to day wear to swimwear, and filed in batches of 15, in and out of the Leinster Suite, where the judges made their first appraisals.

The nine deliberated over a tremendous variety of styles - apparel of many hues, hair with differing degrees of highlights and limbs of various length and shades of orange.

Ms Jacintha Hurley (23), from Cork, said she had had her evening dress specially made for the event. "It's the exact same as the one Posh Spice wore the evening of her wedding," she said. "Purple, with roses on the shoulder."

The Belfast representative, Ms Orlath McAllister, was getting used to her high-heeled sandals before being called to show how charming she could be in her slinky black swimsuit.

Her boyfriend, Paul, had entered her in the Miss Belfast pageant. "The first I knew was when the letter came through the post. I had just two days to get ready. I nearly died."

All 30 contestants had been in Dublin since Sunday, "getting to know each other, jelling as a team", said Ms McQueenie.

The "jelling" seemed yesterday to have been a success, with much twittering and giggling, roundly supported by all with hugs and demonstrative shows of affection.

Ms McQueenie and her colleagues were on several occasions compelled to quell the over-enthusiastic expressions of team spirit. "Ssssh!", "Quieten down" and even "Shut up, girls!" they exhorted as the young women filed noisily from the Leinster Suite.

A rapturous Sheila Fallon (18), from Co Clare, was checking her lipstick. "I haven't a hope, but sure it doesn't matter. I'm just so happy to be here."

Ms Emer Holahan-Doyle from Galway was the eventual winner of the pageant and was crowned Miss Ireland 1999 last night at a function at the Burlington Hotel.