Queen of the Land Festival


The Queen of the Land Festival is an annual festival in County Offaly, Ireland, hosted by Offaly Macra na Feirme in which young women compete for the title "Queen of the Land" based on their "appearance, personality, energy, confidence, dress sense, rural knowledge and elocution".
The festival was initiated by the Irish Farmers Journal in 1964 as part of the Kilkenny beer festival. The competition was then taken over by Offaly Macra three years later.
County Meath has had six queens crowned over the years. County Laois, County Kilkenny and County Limerick come second with four titles each.
The competition has had to be postponed on a number of occasions, starting with 2001; owing to the foot-and-mouth disease crisis that hit Ireland that year. It was once again suspended between 2019 and 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As of 2026, the competition has not been held since 2023.
The host county has only won the competition twice; Michelle Cody won in 1994 and Sinead Mulcahy in 2009, both from the Shinrone Macra Club.
2005 was the 40th anniversary of the festival. As part of the celebrations, all former Queens were invited back to Tullamore to join in the festivities for the weekend.

Previous winners

1960s winners

1970s winners

  • 1970 – Jennifer McKenna – County Meath
  • 1971 – Moira Miller – County Laois
  • 1972 – Shelia Motherway – County Waterford
  • 1973 – Elizabeth Sharkey – County Wicklow
  • 1974 – Joan O’Keeffe – County Kilkenny
  • 1975 – Mary O’Connor – County Cork
  • 1976 – Philomena Byrne – County Meath
  • 1977 – Mary Monaghan – County Kildare
  • 1978 – Rosaleen Gallagher – County Meath
  • 1979 – Catherine Gorman – County Kilkenny

1980s winners

  • 1980 – Aine Kent – County Wicklow
  • 1981 – Ornagh Darcy – County Wexford
  • 1982 – Ann Dempsey – County Wicklow
  • 1983 – Ann Kavanagh – County Waterford
  • 1984 – Kathleen Murphy – County Laois
  • 1985 – Helena Connolly – County Monaghan
  • 1986 – Margaret McPaddan – County Donegal
  • 1987 – Eillsh Rahill – County Louth
  • 1988 – Clare Dillon – County Galway
  • 1989 – Ann Marie McHugh – County Kildare

1990s winners

  • 1990 – Chris Clifford – County Limerick
  • 1991 – Alice Lynch – County Sligo
  • 1992 – Marie Vines – County Cork
  • 1993 – Michelle Sheerin – County Sligo
  • 1994 – Michelle Cody – County Offaly
  • 1995 – Josephine Rodgers – County Roscommon
  • 1996 – Audrey Salley – County Kildare
  • 1997 – Caroline Glancy – County Roscommon
  • 1998 – Lorraine Morrissey – County Tipperary
  • 1999 – Mairead McEvoy – County Kilkenny

2000s winners

  • 2000 – Anita Meagher – County Waterford
  • 2001 – N/A – N/A
  • 2002 – Eimear O’Brien – County Wicklow
  • 2003 – Caroline Tuite – County Meath
  • 2004 – Catherine McCollum – County Cavan
  • 2005 – Elaine Murphy – County Kilkenny
  • 2006 – Breda Goulding – County Laois
  • 2007 – Yvonne Daly – County Cork
  • 2008 – Kate Harrison – County Dublin
  • 2009 – Sinead Mulcahy – County Offaly

2010s winners

  • 2010 – Sherine Prendergast – County Tipperary, South
  • 2011 – Bernie Woods – County Kilkenny
  • 2012 – Teresa Brennan – County Laois
  • 2013 – Geraldine Barrett – Carbury Region, County Cork
  • 2015 -–Christine Buckley – County Kerry
  • 2014 – Orla Murphy – County Galway
  • 2017 – Emma Birchall – County Kildare
  • 2018 – Louise Crowley – County Limerick
  • 2019 – Sinead Conroy – County Roscommon

2020s winners

  • 2020 – N/A – N/A
  • 2021 – N/A – N/A
  • 2022 – Rachel McNamara – County Limerick
  • 2023 – Sarah Baker – County Limerick
  • 2024 – N/A – N/A
  • 2025 – N/A – N/A