RTE's Blathnaid Treacy shows off blossoming baby bump at Taste of Dublin launch
The Wicklow star announced she was expecting her second child with husband Charlie Moon earlier this month. The couple are parents to daughter, Nany, who was born in 2023.
Blathnaid stepped out at the launch of Taste of Dublin 2025 at The Leinster since making her baby announcement.
The evening themed around the 20th anniversary of this iconic festival provided guests with a sneak peak of what to expect at this year's event which will return to Dublin's Merrion Square from the 12th – 15th of June.
Blathnaid was joined by radio host Thomas Crosse; celebrity stylist, Corina Gaffey; TV Chef, Erica Drum; Norah Casey and celebrity chef Kevin Thornton.
Guests enjoyed music from saxophonist Conor McGrath and sipped on bespoke Taste of Dublin Glendalough Distillery gin summer drinks and enjoyed an array of delectable signature dishes from Taste of Dublin restaurants Shaku Maku, Parrilla and Dosa Dosa.
Taste of Dublin, CEO, Jo Mathews, said: 'Our 20th anniversary festival programme really does represent an eclectic mix of food connoisseurs, the very best of Irish and international chefs, wonderful pop-up restaurants serving flavour-packed dishes, incredible demos, inspiring masterclasses, fun musical acts and some extra special birthday surprises.'
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The Irish Sun
3 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
‘He opened doors for us', says Hollywood's Mel Gibson as he reveals who helped Braveheart film in Ireland 30 years later
HOLLYWOOD star Mel Gibson thrills fans as he returns to Meath, to celebrate 30 years since Braveheart was filmed there. Mel, 69, signed posters at the Trim Castle Hotel and posed for a selfie with fans, including Adam Walker and his son Nathan. Advertisement 5 Actor Mel Gibson attended the local King John Summer Prom festival Credit: � 2025 PA Media, All Rights Reserved 5 He was one of the main cast in Braveheart Credit: Alamy 5 Fans Adam and Nathan took pictures with the actor Credit: � 2025 PA Media, All Rights Reserved The event was held as part of the local King John Summer Prom festival, and the proceeds from the event will be donated to the Irish Equity Support Fund. Many fans were seen queuing at Trim Castle Hotel to meet the famous Gibson and other Braveheart cast members. And a young fan, Maksim Okhotnikov, aged 8, dressed up as Braveheart hero William Wallace in a costume created by his mother for the event. He revealed to PA News Agency that he didn't watch the entire film except for some clips due to the age cert, which is rated 16+. Advertisement But he also said that the thing he liked most from the clips was the character William Wallace, whom Mel played in the film. Adam and his son, Nathan, aged 7, were among the first people into the room to meet the cast of Braveheart. Talking to the PA, Adam said: "Obviously he's too young to watch the full movie, so I was trying to show him the quotes, the big freedom speech at the end of the movie. "We were watching that, we were watching the mad Irishman of course: David O'Hara who plays Stephen of Ireland. Advertisement "We were at the Q&A yesterday and a lot of the lads pointed out that the actors said the thing that it did was it really changed things, Ireland seemed to really latch onto it, there was a lot of similarities between the Irish and the Scottish, but it seemed to call out to everybody. "We were looking for a wedding venue 12 years back and we were looking everywhere and we found here, it was lovely, the prices were great, and then I read at the end the castle was where Braveheart was filmed. Pubgoers shocked as they spot Hollywood A-lister sinking pints outside London pub "I said to my wife 'we're doing it' so we got married in the room just there and we had the castle as the backdrop." Adam pointed out that it was unreal to return to the same venue and meet the very Mel Gibson in the flesh. Advertisement HOLLYWOOD STAR'S TRUTH The classic film had some of its key scenes filmed in Ireland, although the film is set in Scotland. This was due to the Irish government lobbying and offering to supply 1,600 army reserves as extras in order to help their film productions while gaining some potential tourism. Mel Gibson also revealed to RTE News that they struggled to film big battle scenes in Scotland due to the ground not being 'friendly' enough for the horses. This led the whole film production to relocate to Ireland to film the battle scenes, with scenes filmed in Kildare, Meath and Wicklow. Advertisement He also told how then Arts Minister Michael D Higgins helped get the flick made, adding: "He opened doors for us." It was said that the President welcomed the whole cast with open arms at the time, making their production more seamless and efficient. 5 Maksim Okhotnikov dressed up as William Wallace, a character that Mel plays Credit: � 2025 PA Media, All Rights Reserved 5 Many fans were thrilled to meet the cast at the event Credit: � 2025 PA Media, All Rights Reserved
Sunday World
5 hours ago
- Sunday World
Mel Gibson becomes emotional as he recalls ‘joy' of making Braveheart
The Oscar-winning director and actor posed for selfies with fans and signed posters before attending a musical performance of movie songs in Co Meath Mel Gibson has said it was a 'joy' to make the film Braveheart as he spoke at an event to mark 30 years since the historical epic was filmed in Ireland. The Oscar-winning director and actor posed for selfies with fans and signed posters before attending a musical performance of movie songs in Co Meath. Gibson starred in Braveheart as Scottish rebel William Wallace, as he sets out to challenge King Edward I of England. The film won Oscars for best director and best picture. Speaking after the score from the 1995 film was played by an orchestra in a tent in Trim on Saturday, Gibson told the audience that composer James Horner was inspired by Celtic music. He said this allowed him to relive parts of his Irish heritage, and Gibson became emotional as he spoke about Horner. 'This film was a joy to make, and my mother was born in Longford so I was raised on this kind of music myself, so it was a real treat for me to explore this culture and the sound of it,' he said. Mel Gibson signs posters in aid of the Irish Equity Support Fund (Conor O Mearain/PA) News in 90 Seconds - Aug 9th 'In the Braveheart score, you can hear bits and pieces of old tunes that he borrowed from. He drew from a very rich source of music and poetry that's part of this country, as well as Scotland.' He also retold a story about meeting three of the four Beatles at Abbey Road, where the score was recorded. The Scottish epic was mostly shot in Ireland after the Irish government lobbied and offered to supply 1,600 army reserves as extras. Gibson said that while filming in Scotland was 'fantastic', the ground was not firm enough for the big battle scenes. He said then arts minister Michael D Higgins, who is now Ireland's president, made the film possible. Mel Gibson poses for a selfie with Antoinette Dillon, from Finglas, Dublin (Conor O Mearain/PA) Fans travelled from all over Ireland to get a chance of meeting the Lethal Weapon and Mad Max star. People queued at Trim Castle Hotel to meet Gibson and other Braveheart cast members, including Angus Macfadyen, John Murtagh and Mhairi Calvey. The event raised 10,000 euro for the Irish Equity Support Fund as part of the local King John Summer Prom festival. Maksim Okhotnikov, eight, dressed up as William Wallace in a costume created by his mother, who also sketched a charcoal drawing of Gibson. 'I didn't watch all of the film, I just watched pieces because it's (rated) 16+,' Maksim told the PA news agency. Asked what he likes about the film, he said: 'I like himself.' Actor Mel Gibson meets fans Adam Walker and his son Nathan, from Dublin (Conor O Mearain/PA) Adam Walker and his son, Nathan, seven, from Dublin, were among the first people into the room to meet the cast. 'Obviously he's too young to watch the full movie, so I was trying to show him the quotes, the big freedom speech at the end of the movie. We were watching that, we were watching the mad Irishman of course, David O'Hara who plays Stephen of Ireland,' Mr Walker told the PA news agency. 'We were at the Q&A yesterday and a lot of the lads pointed out that the actors said the thing that it did was, it really changed things, Ireland seemed to really latch on to it, there was a lot of similarities between the Irish and the Scottish, but it seemed to call out to everybody. 'We were looking for a wedding venue 12 years back and we were looking everywhere and we found here, it was lovely, the prices were great, and then I read at the end the castle was where Braveheart was filmed. 'I said to my wife 'we're doing it', so we got married in the room just there and we had the castle as the backdrop. 'So it's very interesting to be able to come back 12 years later and actually meet Mel Gibson here, and this little lad wasn't even alive at the time.' Maksim Okhotnikov wore a costume created by his mother (Conor O Mearain/PA) Elaine Coyle, who travelled with her mother from Dublin, said watching Braveheart was a family tradition. 'My dad would be a big fan, it's what we grew up with. It's a Christmas tradition in our house,' she said. She said of the film: 'You can relate to it as an Irish person a little bit too, it's iconic. 'It definitely opened the door to the Irish economy around films, it completely changed how the industry worked going forward, but I think in general people recognise that it made such an impact on Ireland, and we can also relate to the history of it. It's generational.' Cousins Eileen Shields and Anita McGrath travelled from Galway at 6am to meet the star. They said they are fans of Gibson's films Lethal Weapon and Daddy's Home 2. Actor Mel Gibson records a video message for Rian Egan, from Gorey, Co Wexford (Conor O Mearain/PA) 'He has a wicked wink in his eye,' Eileen Shields said. 'It was lovely to meet him, short and sweet, but it's nice to have the opportunity. 'Hopefully we see a lot more of him in Ireland. You know his family are from Longford, he was named after St Mel's Cathedral.' Anita McGrath said: 'I crocheted a shamrock for him, for good luck, so I gave it to him and he said 'thanks very much'. Just something different.' Ms Shields added: 'He wiped his brow with it.' Sevinc Ozogul, who lives across the road from the hotel, said she was excited to see the castle from Braveheart when she moved to Trim. She said Gibson is one of her favourite actors, adding: 'I was so excited to see him.' She added: 'He was a bit tired but he looks great.' Gary Downes and Vinny McConnell, who worked as extras on Braveheart, reunited with Gibson at the poster signing and took memorabilia from the filming. Gary Downes (left) and Vinny McConnell, who worked as extras on the film Braveheart, pose with memorabilia from the production (Conor O Mearain/PA) As part of the King John Summer Prom festival, Gibson and his family joined people in a red and white tent on the outskirts of Trim on Saturday to listen to the Irish Philharmonic Orchestra play themes from famous movies, conducted by Niall O'Sullivan. Irish actor Patrick Bergin introduced the music from Sleeping With The Enemy, in which he starred in opposite Julia Roberts. He told a story about how, after auditioning for the role, he tried to leave the room and walked into a broom closet. 'As I came out of the closet (director) Joe Ruben said 'it was the look in your eye that got you the part'.' Actor Kate O'Toole told the story of how her father was away for two years to film Lawrence Of Arabia, before introducing the theme from the film played by the orchestra. 'One of the weird things about it that still stays with me is that scene with the quicksand, I really thought when I was a child that going to the beach was dangerous,' she told the crowd. Singer Leah Barniville performed Ennio Morricone's Ecstasy Of Gold from the Good, The Bad And The Ugly, as well as the Titanic Suite.
Irish Post
5 hours ago
- Irish Post
Eddi Reader and the Alan Kelly Gang at the Irish Cultural Centre
WHEN Scottish singer Eddi Reader first teamed up with Irish accordion virtuoso Alan Kelly in 2010, it was meant to be a one-off collaboration. Fifteen years on, their partnership has become one of the most captivating live acts on the Celtic music circuit. Former frontwoman of Fairground Attraction, Reader's recent decades have seen her turn increasingly to folk and traditional material. Backed by the Alan Kelly Gang — a formidable collective of Irish and Scottish musicians — Reader delivers shows steeped in musicianship, but presented with warmth and energy The music blurs the lines between tradition and innovation: jigs, rich harmonies, original songs, and favourites from both the Irish and Scottish songbooks. THE ALAN KELLY GANG, led by Roscommon-born Alan Kelly, are one of Ireland's most respected contemporary trad ensembles. Kelly, widely credited with 'making the piano accordion hip in Ireland again' ( Folk Roots ), has carved out a 25-year career blending traditional Irish music with global textures — from jazz to Latin rhythms — without ever losing sight of the heart of the tradition. The ensemble produces a full-bodied, dynamic sound that honours tradition while embracing the unexpected. EDDI READER has long been regarded as one of the most expressive and versatile voices to emerge from Britain in the past four decades. Following her success with Fairground Attraction, she turned to the folk repertoire of her native Scotland, interpreting the work of Robert Burns with remarkable intimacy. Reader and the Alan Kelly Gang have toured extensively across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Their collaboration has sold out Irish tours, and they've headlined festivals including Celtic Connections, the Galway Arts Festival, and Celtic Colours in Canada. Eddi Reader & The Alan Kelly Gang. Friday, September 5. Irish Cultural Centre. 5 Black's Road, Hammersmith, London W6 9DT.
