It’s the Rose... But not as you know it

RTE is planning a one off TV special to replace the Rose of Tralee this August.

With the loss of the pageant – always one of the station’s big ratings hits of the summer – leaving a huge gap in the broadcaster’s schedule RTE are examining their options when it comes to filling the yawning gap in airwaves.

RTE is hoping that a one-off Rose of Tralee TV special can give fans of the pageant their annual fix and help bring in some of the much needed ad revenue the world famous festival always attracts.

The COVID-19 crisis led the festival to be cancelled for the first time in its 61 year history leading to huge disappointment for fans and a €10 million loss for the local economy.

However with 53 years of archive footage to draw along with scores of famous former Roses and TV hosts available to wax lyrical about Ireland’s most famous pageant RTE has more than enough to fill several hours of TV.

While a virtual ‘online’ contest was considered RTE seems to be heading for a ‘greatest hits’ approach to the show which will likely be aired towards the end of August, during the festival’s traditional TV slot.

“It is kind of like our own Irish Eurovision. We did look at doing a remote pageant but it just wasn’t viable and it wouldn’t have done the show justice. A special will go out in August and will hopefully give people their annual Rose of Tralee fix,” one RTE insider told the media this week.

“We will be raiding the archives to get some footage that will bring back some fond memories for a lot of loyal viewers. Of course, Daithi is now part-and-parcel of the Rose fabric so it would be inconceivable to have this show without him playing a big part as well,” they said.

With decades of archive footage to choose from, if anything, the problem for executives compiling the programme will be what to leave out rather than what to put in.

Over 653,500 people saw Limerick’s Sinead Flanagan win the title last year, with an estimated 1.43 million viewers tuning in and watching part of the Rose of Tralee’s televised finals over the two nights of the boradcast.