In an exclusive talk with the legendary Irish folk band The Wolfe Tones, they have confirmed their interest in representing Ireland on the Eurovision stage.
Around Christmastime, we at Meanwhile in Ireland put out an article titled ‘Wolfe Tones to represent Ireland in Eurovision with ‘Up the Ra’ remix.
While it was a satirical article, the response on social media proved that people would genuinely love to see the band take to the Eurovision stage to represent the Emerald Isle.
The band themselves shared our article, so we decided to reach out to find out for ourselves – would the Wolfe Tones REALLY be interested in performing for Ireland at the Eurovision Song Contest?
The Wolfe Tones – edging towards retirement
In November 2023, The Wolfe Tones announced that they would be retiring after shows in Belfast and Dublin in 2024.
Naturally, fans around the world were devastated, and general admission for both concerts quickly sold out. Speaking to the Irish Sun, the band said they wanted to “go out on a high” after a very successful career.
Well, what better way to “go out on a high” than to represent their country at the Eurovision Song Contest? We recently spoke to the band, and they confirmed they would absolutely be interested in the job.
Ireland and the Eurovision Song Contest – once so successful
Ireland was once the most successful country of all time at the highly popular Eurovision Song Contest, having triumphed in first place seven times between 1970 and 1996.
Since Swedish representative Loreen’s win last year with ‘Tattoo’, Sweden joined Ireland with a shared joint record of seven wins.
After Ireland’s success in the 70s, 80s, and 90s at the contest, the country’s luck, or talent, took a turn for the not-so-successful.
There are a number of reasons why Ireland stopped winning Eurovision, and since 1996, the most successful the country has been was with Jedward in 2011 and their song ‘Lipstick’ when they finished in eighth place.
The Wolfe Tones and Eurovision – not just a pipe dream
As 2023 came to an end, we at Meanwhile in Ireland put out a satirical article about The Wolfe Tones representing Ireland at Eurovision with an ‘Up the Ra’ remix as the song of choice.
The band shared the article, and with thousands of likes, comments, and shares from approving fans on social media, it’s clear that the band actually has the backing of the nation behind them.
So, we reached out to the band’s official Facebook page to find out the answer to the burning question: would they really consider representing Ireland at Eurovision? As it turns out, wholeheartedly yes.
When we asked the trio if they would represent Ireland at the contest if the opportunity presented itself, and if so, what song they would sing, one of the band members told us, “The Wolfe Tones would never pass up an opportunity to represent Ireland, and would be honoured to do so on the Eurovision stage.
“‘You’ll Never Beat The Irish’ would be an appropriate song”.
So, there you have it. Could the Wolfe Tones represent Ireland at Eurovision in 2024 or in one of the years to come? I guess we’ll have to wait and see.
