A MARINE biologist from Belgooly was the driving force behind the first-ever St Patrick’s Day parade in the South Pole.
Gráinne Keogh, whose parents own the popular Huntsman Bar in Belgooly, has worked at the Rothera research station for the British Antarctic Survey in the Antarctica since last November.
The UCC graduate and her 135 colleagues at the station organised what was a very cold Patrick’s Day parade complete with seven or eight floats which they all designed.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland ahead of the parade, Grainne said they thought it might be nice to bring a touch of home for St Patrick’s Day.
‘It began as a joke, but we decided to make it real and make floats,’ she said, roping in her Donegal colleague, Sean McLaughlin to help organise it.
The festivities also included the Antarctic’s first ever Gaelic football match over the bank holiday weekend.
Gráinne has been working there since last November, and isn’t due home until June.
