Dáithí Ó Sé has revealed who he is backing to be the next Rose of Tralee.
The West Kerryman has hosted the competition since 2010, succeeding Ray D'Arcy.
This year, there will be 32 roses, representing a variety of Irish counties and the diaspora in places as diverse as Arizona and Yorkshire.
On Newstalk Breakfast, Mr Ó Sé was asked who he thought might win the competition.
“I was on the judging panel years ago and this friend of mine texted me, right,” he recalled.
“And he said, ‘Just give me one rose, please.’
“So, I text him back ‘Tokyo’, right? He was on a golf course in West Kerry. So, it obviously took around 15 or 20 minutes to get from the golf course into Dingle to back to the Tokyo Rose.
“I won't tell you the message, he texted me after when he realised that there was no Tokyo rose and he was after leaving a lovely game of golf halfway through it.
“So, that might answer your question.”
Dáithí Ó Sé in 2017 outside Malahide Castle. Picture by: Sam Boal/Rollingnews.ie. Mr Ó Sé also had high praise for the male escorts - or ‘Cortinas’ - who he said “remind me of cattle” when they get down to Kerry.
“Did you ever see cattle being left over the first time in spring?” he said.
They go straight for the electric fence, right? That's the first thing they do.
“So, that's what the Cortinas remind me of; anybody could win that one now as well.
“But to be fair to the escorts, they're always in great form and they get down into the spirit of Tralee down here and they have a great time all together.”
The Rose of Tralee starts this evening on RTÉ 1 at 8pm.
Main image: Dáithí Ó Sé in 2017. Picture by: Alamy.com.
