Rage before beauty ... Irish contest in doubt

ONE of Ireland’s top beauty contests is in an ugly mess.

There is a major doubt about the selection contest for a girl to represent us at this year’s Miss Universe Contest.

With just days to go before the original date for the Miss Universe Irish grand final, the contestants’ world appears to have come crashing down.

Girls from all over the country and their parents are anxiously awaiting news from the organisers, Limerick-based Irish Beauty Pageants, about whether or not the contest is going ahead.

Doubts about the contest arose following news that organiser Kieran Murray’s pub The Brazen Head on O’Connell Street in the city centre had gone into receivership with debts thought to be in the region of €4 million.

A spokesperson for the organisation said they hope to run the contest two weeks after the original date of March 26 at a venue yet to be decided.

“Our winning contestant must leave Ireland by May 12 for the Miss Universe Pageant in Ecuador on June 1,” the spokesperson added.

However girls in the Irish final are still in the dark and are unsure if the contest is going ahead.

“My information is that none of the girls has been contacted and with days to go to the original date, they are livid with the organisers,” a spokesperson for one of the contestants said.

A bust-up earlier this year resulted in a split in the awarding of the franchise for the Miss Ireland competition. This means there should be two Miss Ireland title-holders this year, Miss Ireland Universe and Miss Ireland World.

This year girls had the option of slipping on swimsuits and hitting the catwalk to try and capture, not one, but two national titles run by the two opposing camps. Former Miss Ireland, Dublin-based Andrea Roche and colleague Mags Humphries, are now responsible for the selection of Ireland’s Miss World contestant.

And if the Miss Universe mess isn’t sorted out soon they might well end up running both again in the not too distant future.

The awarding of the Miss World franchise to Assets Model Agency owner Ms Humphries and her colleague, Clonmel girl Andrea, earlier this year was a major coup for them.

And the pair have big plans for the event later in the year. “We’ll have new girls, new venues, a new look and new sponsors including VIP magazine,” Ms Humphries said.

The Miss World Irish final will be held at Citywest on August 1. Miss World organiser Julia Morley will fly into Dublin with the current Miss World for the Irish final.