Music fans in Kinsale were treated to a special event on Saturday as Freda Kelly, former secretary of The Beatles, came to town. The 80-year-old music legend attended a screening of the documentary Good Ol’ Freda at the Lord Kingsale as part of Kinsale Beatles Festival, now in its second year.

Around 50 people turned out for the event, among them several of Kelly’s cousins who had travelled from across Ireland to see her. Her daughter Rachel was also at the screening. After the film, broadcaster Tom Dunne joined Kelly on stage for a lively interview and Q&A, where fans took the opportunity to quiz her about her years working alongside the Fab Four until 1972.

Looking back at her time working with the band and the height of their fame, Tom Dunne said Freda Kelly was said to have been the envy of Beatles fans, but that most of all The Beatles had been lucky to have her.

One story that struck a chord was Kelly’s pride in a memorial board at Sandymount DART station in Dublin, honouring her role as secretary and head of the band’s fan club. Warm, witty, and down‑to‑earth, she left the Kinsale crowd mesmerised by little known pieces of music history.

After the screening, Freda Kelly chatted with fans, took pictures and also received a copy of The Southern Star, including a recent interview with her ahead of Kinsale Beatles Festival.