'O 62, turn the screw': Taoiseach Micheál Martin and New York mayor Zohran Mamdani call bingo
Micheál Martin and Zohran Mamdani on the Subway in New York.
“O 62, turn the screw!” Taoiseach Micheál Martin called out.
“Are you making these up?” New York mayor Zohran Mamdani asked the workers at the New York Irish Center.
No, Martin was not suffering jet-lag-induced visions; he was calling bingo for senior citizens at the venue with the mayor of New York, rhymes and all.
Aged just 34, Mamdani became a sensation during last year’s mayoral race, offering a vision to change the city that never sleeps.
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As the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) High Level Week consumes the city this week and requests to meet Mamdani from the world’s leaders were no doubt coming in thick and fast, he found time to make his way to the Irish Centre in Long Island City to call bingo with the Taoiseach.
There was no doing it by halves. As they diligently pulled out the balls, the two men leaned over to someone who was clearly more experienced at calling bingo to get the rhymes.
They mentioned all the classics: “74 candy store”, “27 gateway to heaven”, and “up to tricks 46".
However, “I 30 feeling flirty” was a step too far for the mayor.
After a near seven-minute game of bingo, Kathy Doherty and Mickie Shiels called “bingo,” and picked up their $5 prize.
And then Martin and Mamdani were out the door to take a ride on the subway.
Before they departed, however, the always entrepreneurial Irish press pack managed to nab Mamdani for several questions, while handlers scolded their brazenness.
In the process, the Taoiseach ensured the New York mayor received a brief education in all things Cork.
“It is a pleasure to be with the Taoiseach,” Mamdani told reporters.
“We also not only have celebrated Cork and Cork FC, but now we are going to get on the Subway.
“Part of the Subway’s heritage is a celebration of Cork, because John McDonald was one of the original conductors and creators of the IRT.”
But when asked if he would support Irish unity, Mamdani was the consummate politician.
“What I would say is that I trust the Irish to make that decision,” he said.
“I believe in self-determination. That should be extended to the Irish. It is for them to decide 26 plus six, what it answers.”
Mamdani said that while he would love to visit Ireland, for now, it was all about New York City.
Those words reflected how many in the New York Irish Center were feeling. While Ireland will always have a part of their hearts, it is all about New York now.
This includes Kathleen Doherty, the bingo winner, who is originally from Mallow, Co Cork, but has lived in New York for over 60 years. She never lost her accent.
“It was tough times in Ireland, and we weren't asked, ‘Could we come here?’ or ‘Do we want to?’” she explained.
“I just got a ticket to come here. A one-way ticket. My uncle met me at the airport with a card and a $20 bill. The most money I ever had in my life.”
Did she ever think about moving home?
“Never! Even if I won $20m. The weather would be the blockage for me.”
Naturally, the Taoiseach had to mention Cork during his speech.
“I want to say a warm congratulations to anybody who is from Mayo on winning the All-Ireland, and indeed Limerick on the hurling,” Martin said,
“Because you know I come from Cork. We have the very generous spirit, we Corkonians.”
Of course, there was a Mayo woman in the crowd. Mary McGee moved to New York in 1961.
She admitted that she never thought she would see the day when Mayo would win Sam But, when they did, the party at the Irish Center lasted all night.
As George Heslin, executive director of the centre, welcomed Mamdani, he noted that it “felt like welcoming you home”; they had screened his mother’s film two years ago.
“I would like to say how lucky we are that your mom and dad, a professor of anthropology at Columbia University, brought a young seven-year-old boy to New York City,” Heslin said.
“Only 28 short years later, he would lead our great city and remind us daily [that] New York will remain a city of immigrants.
“A city built by immigrants, powered by immigrants, and as of 2026, led by an immigrant.”
After the Irish Centre visit, Mamdani and Martin rode the Subway for seven stops, an event referred to as "splitting the G-train" in his daily diary.
The Taoiseach said he explained that Ireland was planning to build a €19bn MetroLink, adding that "any expertise we can get from the United States in building tunnels, we'll take”.
While Mamdani did not express any interest in taking on that mammoth task, he said he was keen on attending an All-Island final.
Back at the Irish Center, the seniors were still reeling from the surprise of having the New York mayor arrive in the middle of their lunch.
You could say it was not on their bingo cards.
- Louise Burne, Political Correspondent, in New York
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