I joined hundreds of fans to meet Majella and Daniel O'Donnell in Newbridge — here's what I learned

On Wednesday, hundreds of fans and media flocked to Newbridge Silverware's Style Icons Museum, where a new exhibition honouring Daniel and Majella O'Donnell has been unveiled. Deirdre McArdle met the nation's most iconic couples before another history-making moment in their lives

Daniel O'Donnell and his wife, Majella, standing in front of their wedding outfits, which are now on display at Newbridge Silverware in Co. Kildare. Picture: Conor Healy / Picture It Photography

Newbridge didn’t know what hit it on Wednesday morning.

Daniel and Majella O’Donnell came to town for the opening of an exhibition of their outfits in the Newbridge Silverware Style Icons Museum in Kildare. The media and hundreds of fans followed.

Taking their place among icons such as Audrey Hepburn, Victoria Beckham, and Britain’s Princess Diana, Daniel and Majella O’Donnell were “surprised” when the request came in.

“It’s quite amazing, really that we’re here, and right next to The Beatles,” Daniel says.

TV personality Noel Cunningham, who dreamed up the idea and brought it to Newbridge Silverware owners William and Monica Doyle, never had any doubts about the O’Donnells fitting in.

“I remember being here in Newbridge with William and Monica years ago, and I said to them: ‘We will have to get Daniel and Majella O’Donnell in here one day’.

“They are so loved and so respected, I knew they would take their place here quite naturally.”

Daniel O'Donnell and his wife, Majella at the opening of the Daniel & Majella O’Donnell – Music, Style & Memories exhibition. Picture: Conor Healy / Picture It Photography

The couple, who have been married for 24 years this year, hold hands as they walk through the exhibition, stopping along the way to greet, well, everyone. Nobody is left out.

Daniel exudes a natural charm; when he greets you, you feel like there’s no one else around, his focus totally on you. I’m instinctively drawn to Majella too, who is more quietly impressive.

Seeing her wedding dress in the exhibition, she says she was struck by the detail.

Daniel and Majella O'Donnell on their wedding day

“I’d forgotten all about the pearls and the detail on the bodice! It brings back so many memories of that day, and it’s lovely to see it again,” she says

The blue dress Majella wore to her daughter Siobhán’s wedding is also in the exhibition.

“We were laughing, saying that Majella’s dress was designed by Julien Macdonald, and my knitted jumper in the exhibition was designed by Julia O’Donnell,” laughs Daniel.

The Aran sweater was created by Daniel’s mother, Julia. He wore it when he recorded his first hit My Donegal Shore.

Daniel O'Donnell and his wife, Majella at Newbridge Silverware. Picture: Conor Healy / Picture It Photography

“It’s so special to me because of the memories it holds. That my mother knit it and, of course, it’s tied in with the recording of my first song too.”

Daniel’s approach to clothes is very relatable.

“If I see something I like, I buy it.” Like the glittery shirt, which stands out in the exhibition, which he “picked up in Las Vegas”.

That and the leather trousers, cowboy boots, and Stetson hat “were a bit of tongue in cheek,” says Majella.

“Daniel wasn’t trying to make a statement with his leather trousers. It was all a bit of fun.”

While the permanent exhibition, Daniel & Majella O’Donnell — Music, Style & Memories, features stage costumes Daniel has worn over the years on stages from the Sydney Opera House to the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, it also includes memorabilia from his career, including gold discs, an honorary MBE, and the red book from the TV show This is Your Life.

“I was playing Sunday Night at the Palladium with other artists in 2000, when Michael Aspel, the presenter of This Is Your Life, came out on stage. I’d always watched the show, so I was interested to see who he was surprising on the night.

“In fairness, I thought it would be Engelbert Humperdink who was standing close to me. I nearly collapsed when Aspel came over!”

Daniel and Majella O'Donnell. Picture: Conor Healy / Picture It Photography

Despite his success, the country singer remains grounded. In 2002, when he received a phone call asking him if he would accept an honorary MBE from Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, “I didn’t know it was for real”.

Then, he realised that his fans “across the Commonwealth” had petitioned Buckingham Palace to honour O’Donnell for his contribution to music. “That’s how it came about. So I accepted it gratefully, because, you know, anything from the people is a great honour for me.”

The MBE and the night on This Is Your Life are core memories in a career full of achievements.

“Daniel has achieved everything he could possibly achieve, really, but for him, singing is what it’s about, and the people who support him,” says Majella.

Among the hundreds of fans in Newbridge that morning, most have a story or two, about when they met Daniel and what he means to them. But it’s clear it’s a two-way street. There’s a genuine warmth in how he greets people; these are fans, yes, but plenty of long-term fans have also developed friendships with Daniel and Majella.

Daniel O'Donnell sings for his fans after opening his and Majella's fashion exhibition at the Museum of Style in Newbridge Silverware. Picture: Eamonn Farrell/© RollingNews.ie

The couple don’t take the support for granted.

“I don’t know how many people are here today, but already we’ve seen people that have come from Omagh, from Waterford, from Antrim. We would know them, you know, and we’re so grateful that they would make the effort to be here. It’s amazing that people want to do that. It’s not a concert or a show, but they just want to be a part of something that’s happening in our lives.”

Away from the glamour and the stage, Daniel and Majella say they enjoy their time together just relaxing.

“We’re like everyone else really. Wearing trainers and jeans and just relaxing either in Donegal or in our place in Tenerife,” says Majella.

“We wouldn’t normally even wear outfits like what we’re wearing today,” laughs Daniel, indicating his three-piece suit and Majella’s green dress.

“Hobbies-wise we tend to go off and do our own thing, but then we’ll come together later and watch something on TV or go for a meal.”

In Tenerife, the couple have “a sofa each” where they can “stretch out”, says Daniel.

Now on “a long break” from performing, Daniel says the couple have some travelling in their sights.

Daniel and Majella O'Donnell meet Sister Mary Kinlan at Newbridge Silverware. Picture: Conor Healy / Picture It Photography

A couple of cruises are on the cards, and a trip to Croatia. That’s in between several commitments that Daniel wouldn’t miss.

“We don’t have another touring show until September 2027, so I’m enjoying the free time. Now, during the summer, I am involved in the Mary of Dungloe Festival. I also do work for Donegal Cancer for the Cancer Flights, and I’m involved in the Relay for Life event in Donegal in May. Oh, and the Oprey shows we do for TG4 at the end of June, and that’s it then, apart from a cruise with Gertrude Byrne in September.”

“So although he’s doing ‘nothing’, he’s doing loads really,” Majella adds.

As is clear once you meet Daniel and Majella, theirs is very much a partnership. Just as Majella supports Daniel in his career, he is clearly proud of his wife’s decision to use her voice to speak about her time in a psychiatric hospital two years ago, as well as her experience with breast cancer in 2013.

“We’ve acquired a position that gives you a platform. Not that there’s anything different about us. It’s just that more people can hear us. And especially for Majella, more so than me, because she’s lived the things that she’s talking about,” he says.

And sometimes people need somebody like Majella who is telling their story in the hope that it will help people.

“I feel it’s a duty, or a privilege really, that I can do that,” Majella says.

After meeting with the press, the couple make their way downstairs to greet the hundreds of fans who pack the restaurant in the Newbridge
Silverware Visitor Centre.

As they take to the stage, the excitement and warmth radiating from them and the devoted fans is almost tangible. Here, among the people, is the O’Donnells’s happy place.