OUR ST. PATRICK'S WEEK AMBASSADORS
Interview our Irish Characters
The following personalities are available for interview. Contact Bernard McMullen at Tourism Ireland 212-418-0847 or email bmcmullan@tourismireland.com to arrange your interview
DR. TIM CAMPBELL
Director of the Saint Patrick Centre, Downpatrick Tourism Ireland is thrilled to announce that one of the world's leading experts on St. Patrick is available for interview this year. The delightful Dr Tim Campbell is a wonderful ambassador for Ireland and with St. Patrick's Day fast approaching, he will provide all the necessary insights to ensure you know everything there is to know about the world's favorite saint.
Dr Tim Campbell is the director of the Saint Patrick Centre in the town of Downpatrick, where the saint is buried. It is the only permanent exhibition in the World dedicated to Ireland's Patron Saint and one of the top tourist destinations in Ireland. Situated in the heart of Saint Patrick's Country, beside Down Cathedral and Patrick's Grave, it is the central hub worldwide, for all things St. Patrick.
DARINA ALLEN
Chef & Owner Ballymaloe House and Cookery School, Cork
Tourism Ireland is thrilled to announce that one of Ireland's top chefs is available to interview St. Patrick's Week. Darina is a wonderful ambassador for the Irish Culinary scene and with St Patrick's Day fast approaching, she will provide all the necessary ingredients to cook up a memorable Irish feast. Darina Allen is executive chef and owner of Ballymaloe House and Cookery School, Cork, Ireland.
For more than twenty-five years, Chef Allen has been one of Ireland's most beloved and prolific culinary representatives. In 1983, she established the Ballymaloe Cookery School, which is a member of the prestigious Ireland's Blue Book. The school draws students from throughout the world.
NOEL MCMEEL
Chef, Restaurateur and Author
Noel received a scholarship to study at the prestigious Johnson & Wales and Boston Universities and recently launched his first book called an ‘Irish Pantry.’ Noel’s professional training includes stints with Jean-Louis Palladin at the Watergate and Alice Waters at Chez Panisse in San Francisco.
Now based at The Lough Erne Golf Resort, Noel has earned critical acclaim for his use of carefully sourced ingredients and his modern Irish cooking style. He was head chef for the visiting G8 Leaders of the world at their recent summit in Northern Ireland and famously cooked for Paul McCartney and Heather Mills at their wedding at Castle Leslie in Co Monaghan.
DONAL SKEHAN
With ten years under his belt as a TV host & award winning food writer, Donal Skehan provides his audience with do-able meals that anyone can master. Donal has released 10 cookbooks, with his most recent, Everyday Cook, having won Ireland’s cookbook of the year in 2021 and reached number 6 in the Amazon UK book charts.
Donal’s numerous television series have aired in over 40 countries worldwide and his profile continues to grow. Donal has filmed hit TV series on BBC, Food Network, RTE & FOX. More recently, Donal starred alongside Rosana Pansino on HBO Max’ Baketopia. He is a regular host on Saturday Kitchen on BBC One in the UK as well as hosting regular cooking slots on ITV’s This Morning, NBC’s TODAY Show, Rachel Ray Show and Home & Family on Hallmark Channel in the US. Donal’s YouTube channel is the fastest growing Irish food channel in the world with over 45 million views and over 1 million subscribers! The channel is entirely managed by Donal and focuses on promoting accessible home cooking to a dedicated audience of almost a million food fans.
SHANE O'DOHERTY
Shane's Howth Adventures
Guide and Owner, Howth Adventures, Dublin Coastal Trail, Ireland Tourism Ireland is thrilled to announce that one of Dublin’s top sustainable tour guides is available to interview St Patrick’s Week. Shane is a wonderful ambassador for Howth and Dublin’s Coastal Trail where he connects the stories, people land sea and sky outdoors in a kinder safer world. A native of Howth in County Dublin, Shane goes out of his way to create meaningful and authentic adventure experiences.
As well as being part of the Dublin Coastal Trail, Howth is part of the Dublin Bay UNESCO Bioshpere and Shane’s is passionate about providing sustainable adventure eco tourism to secure the coastal beauty and wilderness of Dublin while sharing it’s beauty, leaving no trace and keeping it a unique and glorious sustainable treasure where nature, people and culture can thrive. Dublin’s Coastal Trail extends from Skerries to Killiney along the 46 kilometre coast of Dublin and each of the 11 villages on the trail has its own story to tell which often stretch back centuries and explain why every step along the Trail is unique, all united by their direct connection to the sea.
NIALL GIBBONS
Chief Executive of Tourism Ireland
Tourism Ireland is the organisation responsible for marketing the island of Ireland overseas as a holiday destination. Since his appointment in 2009, Niall has overseen the marketing of the island across the world, leading a team of over 60 staff in 23 markets. He has also steered Tourism Ireland’s development in the digital arena, including the launch of Ireland.com, and the organisation’s emergence as a leader in digital marketing and in the social media space. He led the development of Tourism Ireland’s Global Greening initiative, which has brought tourism to the heart of St Patrick’s Day celebrations across the world – in 2019, well over 470 sites in 55 countries went green, generating extensive positive media coverage for the destination overseas. In the area of screen Tourism, he developed ground-breaking partnerships with LucasFilm and HBO, which allowed Tourism Ireland to leverage the global phenomena that are Star Wars and Game of Thrones to showcase the island of Ireland, in a new way, to hundreds of millions of fans across the world. Niall is a business graduate of Trinity College Dublin and an Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Hospitality in Ireland.
ALISON METCALFE
Head of North America, Australia and New Zealand
Alison has responsibility for leading Tourism Ireland’s Marketing Strategy and Operations in the USA and Canada. In June 2017, Alison also assumed responsibility for Tourism Ireland’s operations in Australia/New Zealand. Prior to moving to New York, she was responsible for Tourism Ireland’s operations in Canada based in Toronto. Alison has extensive destination marketing experience and a record of achievement in building and leading high-performance teams.
Her career has spanned strategy development, brand management, integrated consumer marketing, communications and stakeholder management. Alison has worked in the UK, Europe and North America. Alison also serves as Chair of the European Travel Commission, USA Chapter.