How to track down an international celebrity

Interviewing Fiona Shaw and Cillian Murphy was no problem, writes Sophie Gray, 12.

MY NAME is Sophie Gray and I am 12 years old. I am in sixth class in Scoil Mhuire Junior School and I live in Ballinlough in Cork. I play violin and do musicianship and orchestra. I love to sing and have already toured and recorded with my mum’s international youth arts company. I have travelled to Japan, Hungary, and Malaysia and next year I will be a featured performer at the Milan World Expo 2015.

This year, because I love music and singing and performing so much, and because I want to become an actor when I am older, I decided to learn about famous Cork actors and musicians who have made it on the international stage. I thought that through speaking to them I could learn from their experience and achievements and be inspired in my own career.

For my first interviewees, I decided on Cillian Murphy and Fiona Shaw. They had similar dreams to me and they have made them come true. I thought that it was going to be challenging to get their interviews but I didn’t think it would be difficult. All I had to do was find a way to make contact with Cillian and Fiona, and nowadays the internet makes it very easy to track people down.

I found out that Cillian started his career with CorcaDorca, one of Ireland’s leading independent theatre companies, based in Cork. CorcaDorca’s offices are in Civic Trust House and I asked my mum and dad if they could contact them for me. They told me to do it myself and so I started by emailing them and asking if it might be possible for me to get in touch with Cillian and to do an interview with him. They were so good to me and within a few weeks Cillian emailed me and agreed to give an exclusive interview over the phone.

Ringing Cillian Murphy was really nerve-wracking. At first I could barely speak, but once I calmed down, it was really enjoyable. He was so normal and nice and kind and I felt grateful to him for being so generous to me.

Fiona Shaw went to my school and it was immediately clear to me that I had to try to interview her. I knew that Fiona Shaw was working on a project in New York and I knew it would be harder to contact her because she was working in a different time zone, still I wanted to try. First, I found her agent and I sent a simple email. I emailed more than once and was beginning to feel like a full-on stalker. Then, one night while I was doing my homework my mum’s phone rang and to our surprise it was Fiona Shaw!

I was unprepared and started to panic, but once I had my questions and paper to take notes I was fine. I had butterflies in my tummy because I was so nervous. Just as I asked my third question my mum’s phone died, it was out of battery! I rushed around the house looking for the charger, but it was too late. I thought I had missed my chance to interview Fiona Shaw and that isn’t something that happens everyday. I was annoyed with myself but what could I do? When the phone switched on I was relieved to find several voice mails from Fiona saying that she would keep trying. I couldn’t believe the support and attention that I was being given and I promised myself that if, when I am older, a little girl comes looking for me that I will give her my time and attention too.

These experiences have inspired me to write. I love thinking up the questions I might ask and especially love hearing the answers. While people might say that it was an amazing achievement for me to interview Cillian Murphy and Fiona Shaw, what was amazing is that I learned that they are normal people who have worked hard to fulfill their dreams, who are grateful to the people who have helped and inspired them and who very often want to encourage younger people such as me.

Now I am a junior journalist with the Evening Echo and I do interviews and write about things that I am passionate about, usually at the weekends, and submit them to my editor after tea on a Sunday. I am always looking out for interesting interviews that I could do. I am especially interested in actors and musicians from Ireland who have an interesting story to tell. I would love to work for The New York Times as a journalist one day.

So far my celebrity interviews have taught me that anything is possible.