Once you reach a certain age, it's like you don’t count in Ireland

If you're over 65, you're assume to be not just past it, but past everything, writes Terry Prone

Wally Funk, pictured with Jeff Bezos, is well respected. But adults in Ireland are treated with a type of demeaning kindness. Picture: Blue Origin via AP

Headed for the stars, she was, from the outset. She had everything going for her, right down to the memorable boyish first name. But the important stuff was also in place. Ambition. Brain power. Hard work. Physical strength and flexibility. She completed tests faster than any of the seven men on the programme and won better results. 

But when push came to take off, Wally Funk was gently told she had a problem. Yes, NASA had taken on 13 women to be trained alongside the Mercury 7 guys as potential astronauts, and it had made for great pictures, especially because Wally and her female peers were young — she was 22 at the time — good looking and well presented. But they were girls, you see, so they couldn’t be sent into space. They must understand that.