Buncrana Father-Daughter Duo Receives Praise from Shane MacGowan‘s Widow for ‘Fairytale of New York’ Rendition

A Buncrana father and daughter’s rendition of ‘fairytale of New York’ has received high praise from Victoria Mary Clarke, the widow of the late Shane MacGowan.

The performance was part of Hugh P and Maria Doherty’s Musical Christmas Countdown Advent-ure, a daily series of festive videos shared on social media in the run-up to christmas.

Filmed in Carndonagh, the Fairytale of New York video featured Hugh’s friend Albert Cunningham playing the role of a New York police officer, complete with a vintage cop car.

“It’s the most iconic christmas song ever,” Maria tells Donegal Daily.”To have Victoria say that she approved and not only that, but she loved it, was very cool.”

Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOfJRmWpPgw

the Dohertys’ idea to post just a couple of Christmas songs this year quickly grew into a full countdown, with 25 videos and several bonus performances released over the season.

Almost every video has earned tens of thousands of views.

“We wanted to put up a couple of Christmas videos to try and bring people into the meaning of Christmas,” Maria explained. “It can be a hard time for some people, maybe they’re feeling lonely or maybe it’s just so busy! All about shopping and it’s hard to get into the feeling of what Christmas is really all about.”

The duo admitted they had not fully realised the scale of the commitment when they decided to post a video every day, but say it was all worth it in the end. The videos where recorded as they went along, with no long-term planning or rehearsals. Maria, who holds a master’s degree in Music, handled the recording and sound herself, while her brother helped with filming.

“People really seemed to get a lot of joy from it,” Maria said. Messages of thanks and support have arrived in all languages from Japan, Canada, Australia and, of course, all over Ireland.

Many viewers said the videos became part of their daily Christmas routine, with comments describing the music as peaceful, comforting and homely.

The backdrop of each performance was as cosy as the music. The family chose a range of scenic local settings, including Cockhill Chapel, the Red Door Country House, Inishowen gateway.

Publication Date: 2025/12/30 07:07:22