This article is from page 6 of the 2013-07-09 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 6 JPG
A PROUD Cooraclare man has brought the attention of the European media to his home village this week, as more than 40 members of the foreign press visited the area on his invitation.
Professional sean nós dancer, and qualified block layer, Diarmuid Meade is the only brush dancer in the dancing troop Irish Celtic, Spirit of Dance.
The West Clare man has travelled all over France and Germany with the dance group, and the show has gained such popularity on the continent the French Press requested an opportunity to travel to Ireland to witness the Irish dance show in a traditional Irish setting.
The 21-year-old, who has been dancing with Irish Celtic for three years, quickly proposed an alternative to the usually tourist destinations and proposed Tubridy’s pub in Cooraclare.
And so for two nights last week Martin and Ann Tubridy wined and dined the members of the press, while Irish Celtic provided the entertainment supported by local acts and musicians.
Fáile Ireland prepared a full itinerary for the journalists taking them to local tourist attractions by day, in a bid to promote West Clare to French tourists.
Diarmuid joined the French-owned show after he was discovered by its producers on the TG4 show Jig Gigs .
“If I didn’t get it back then I would be in Australia now,” he told The Clare People .
Now he is working with a local builder in between tours with the show. He is currently preparing for a tour of Germany and an 11-week tour in France.
The son of Helen and Michael Meade, he has been dancing for years, providing entertainment at weddings and he was also a member of Hell for Leather with John Fennell’s School of Dance.
The Cooraclare man has not forgotten his roots as he is at pains to point out that he would not be where he is today if it were not for his local dancing teachers and support locally.