News & Press Room
Announcing the Queen of the Land for 2011
The Queen of the Land Festival and FBD were proud on the 13th of November to announce Bernie Woods as the Queen of the Land for 2011. Bernie Woods hailing Mullinavat Macra in Co. Kilkenny was overwhelmed when the announcement was made. Bernie paid great tribute to her fellow contestants who had made it the “most memorable weekend ever” and especially thanked the Queen of the Land committee for making each one of them feel special.
Bernie said that one of the highlights of her weekend was the treasure hunt and she remarked about the clues for the hunt “would have had the locals confused never mind a few blow-ins”. Speaking about being on stage on Saturday night, she said she was a little nervous but was put very much at ease by the interviewer MC Deric Hartigan
Bernie comes away from Tullamore with the prestigious Queen of the Land title and the tiara that accompanies the title and €1000 and a voucher. Claire Walsh took 1st runner up and Maria Carey took 2nd runner up.
Contestants were judged on a range of attributes. The event is primarily a personality contest with marks also on offer for appearance, dress sense, rural knowledge and elocution. In addition, contestants underwent an interview encompassing a discussion on one of two pre-chosen topics.
The festival, which has grown from humble beginnings, is now one of the most prestigious events on the Offaly social calendar. This year it attracted over two thousand visitors to the Tullamore at an otherwise quite time of year for tourism with hotels and guesthouses in the area fully booked over the weekend.
