A FAMILY from Andersonstown are among the stars of the hugely popular TG4 series.
The fifth season of the reality show Turas Bóthair launched last month and includes Irish speakers from all over the country. The audience are introduced to many different characters as they drive around their hometowns and discuss a range of topics.
Emer McNally and her two children Joe and Niamh are staring in the show for the first time and bring Belfast into the spotlight as they drive around the city showcasing the Gaeltacht Quarter at the heart of the Irish language community.
Emer, Joe and Niamh McNally in the car
Emer, who is the vice-principal at Coláiste Feirste, drives with both her daughter and son in the hit show and have audiences laughing with tears in their eyes as Joe hilariously explains the phrase ‘Hot Girl Summer’ to his Mother. The characters cover a wide range of topics such as marriage, religion and relationships, to more contemporary concepts such as what a Brazilian Butt Lift is and Only Fans.
“Myself and Niamh are on and myself and Joe are on together as well,” explains Emer. “We drove all around Belfast and the city centre.
“We’re just so happy to have a role and it was lovely to speak as we normally do. It was a great opportunity for me to spend time with my children as well, we got to go to some lovely places and cafes.”
On the urban Gaeltacht in Belfast, Emer said: “I don’t think everyone in the country knows we’re here and we’re growing, there are so many speakers here and fluency.
“We’re just taking part in a small part of that process, so that’s great and it was a bit of craic.”
The show’s producer Aoife Nic Con Midhe is a former pupil of Coláiste Feirste.
“I think she is a first class TV producer,” adds Emer. “She has great ideas, she’s passionate about promoting the language. She was just a pleasure to us.”
Turas Bóthair is on TG4 every Thursday at 8pm, or you can catch up on previous episodes on the TG4 Player.
