Bambie gets the popular vote from Macroom jury

THEY may not have won the Eurovision but Bambie Thug got an emphatic douze points from the people of Macroom who came out in support at a family fun event in the town square.

Speaking to The Southern Star, James O’Sullivan, one of the organisers, said it was a phenomenal success, with more than 2,000 people turning up and making it a festival atmosphere.

‘It was only when Bambie qualified for the final that a few of us in the town, including business people, and others like the Lee Valley Enterprise Board got together and said we had to do something to honour them,’ said James.

‘We held a meeting on Thursday morning and it took a lot of work and help from a lot of people to make this event happen with such short time to plan it. The gardaí were great and Cork County Council also came on board, as did the local businesses and sponsors. Everyone came out to help to make it happen.’

He said the buzz in the town that night was ‘electric’. ‘It was fantastic to see children dressed up, too, for a fancy dress competition. The bars and restaurants were full and people really enjoyed it.’

The people of Macroom are now hoping the singer, who came sixth in the final, with the song Doomsday Blue will return for a homecoming in the near future.

Cillian Lynch of the Macroom Music Festival, which takes place next month, and also helped with the Eurovision party, said they will send out an invite to Bambie to sing at the festival.

‘It will all depend on schedules and it’s early days yet, but it’s out there now, so we will wait and see,’ said Cillian, who noted that sales for the festival increased dramatically since last Saturday night.

Cllr Gobnait Moynihan (FF) said there was a ‘fierce carnival atmosphere’ in Macroom.

‘We may not have won the Eurovision, but Bambie Thug definitely won the hearts of the locals who came out in droves to support them. I want to thank all those who worked on this,’ said Cllr Moynihan.