Meet the girl who can talk sdrawkcab

IT’S gnizama. Well, it is if you are only 10 and can talk backwards with amazing speed.

Jane McCauley discovered she had the quirky talent a couple of years ago, but kept it from her family until last month.

“It is easy and it is great fun,” said Jane yesterday after delighting RTÉ presenter Gerry Ryan on his morning radio show with her mind-bending language skill.

“Hello, my name is Yrreg Nayr,” said Gerry, obviously enjoying himself when the quietly spoken girl quickly gave him her tongue-twisting translation.

Jane, from Greencastle, Co Donegal, also gave a new backward slant to Taoiseach Bertie Ahern’s appearance before the Mahon Tribunal.

Prompted by Gerry, Jane said Bertie Ahern was a big man at the tribunal and wondered when it would all end, all backwards.

“You are a genius,” said Gerry. “It’s the way it should be done — backwards.”

But Jane did not have to think twice about her reply when Gerry asked if she would like to see Westlife in Croke Park in June.

“Yes,” she said, barely containing her excitement.

Jane, who has a twin sister, is one of a family of five children, including two sets of twins. Her mum, Mary, and estate agent dad, Leo, only discovered on New Year’s Day that their daughter could speak backwards.

“We were all at the table having dinner when one of my nephews said he could spell ‘carrot’ and Jane said she could say it backwards,” said Mary.

Since the discovery the family has been having great fun.

“Some of her back-to-front words that she fires right back at us are hilarious,” said Mary.

Mary has also discovered that Jane, who is a good at reading and spelling words, can also read books backwards. Since discovering her daughter’s unique skill, Mary has been trying to learn more about it. So far, she has only managed to find out about an entertainer who appeared years ago on the Johnny Carson Show in the US.

“I decided to call The Gerry Ryan Show to find out if there was anybody else who could speak backwards like Jane,” she said.

“I would love to know if there were other people out there like her,” said Mary.