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.facebook.com/reel/1589851302331489/
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 were 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 perfomance 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, Wild Ireland, and by the fireside at home to create the festive feeling.
Hugh P and Maria Doherty
Hugh P and Maria are multi-instrumentalists, playing guitar, piano, accordion, whistles and more, all of which feature throughout the advent series. They have been performing together for over 17 years, beginning with church music in their local parish before expanding into weddings, funerals, concerts, dances and community events.
The Christmas project was partly inspired by some surprise awards won by Hugh P. and Maria earlier this year.
They were honoured with three awards at the Red Carpet Music Awards in the Netherlands, winning in the categories of Gospel and Christian Music, Extraordinary Voices Duo, and Wedding Singing for their performances of I Heard the Bluebirds Sing, A Living Prayer and Massachusetts.
Those accolades helped them realise that there was an eager audience out there, and the Christmas series is part of that upward trajectory to treat fans to new material.
Their social media spaces are creating a growing family of fans and helping people connect from all over the world.
Victory Mary Clarke isn’t the only celebrity to get in touch.
In fact, their performance of I Heard the Bluebirds Sing has reached 10 million views on YouTube, and reached a member of The Browns who told them they loved the version.
Fans new and old will be delighted to know the duo have also been working on a new album, which will be completed in the New Year, with a release date to be confirmed.
Fairytale of New York praise crowns incredible Christmas ‘advent-ure’ for Donegal dad and daughter was last modified: December 29th, 2025 by Rachel McLaughlin