{"id":230930,"date":"2025-12-13T13:19:31","date_gmt":"2025-12-13T13:19:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/230930\/"},"modified":"2025-12-13T13:19:31","modified_gmt":"2025-12-13T13:19:31","slug":"meet-the-people-on-the-festive-frontlines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/230930\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet the people on the festive frontlines"},"content":{"rendered":"

The phrase \u2018send it to the woodchipper\u2019, which originated with 1996 cult classic Fargo, has become shorthand for something being unceremoniously discarded. Come January, it is the fate of many a Christmas tree, but it doesn\u2019t have to be.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always thought it was a bit of a shame that the Christmas tree doesn\u2019t last for longer than the Christmas period,\u201d says Blackrock-born Colm Crowley, 48, who\u2019s been in the Christmas tree business since 1988, when, fresh out of business school, he \u201cspotted a gap in the market\u201d for premium trees, \u201cand that\u2019s what we\u2019ve been doing ever since\u201d.<\/p>\n

\" Colm Crowley who runs a Christmas business selling Christmas trees at Mahon Industrial Park Cork. – Picture Dan Linehan<\/p>\n

While Crowley\u2019s cut trees do ultimately end up in the woodchipper (happily getting another life as compost or garden mulch) and are still the tree of choice for most, his pot-grown trees are now on their fifth Christmas and \u201clooking fantastic\u201d after the recent rainy spell. He launched the sustainable rent-a-tree option in 2021, and it\u2019s been a big hit.
Customers tend to book the same tree year on year and get very attached to the point of naming their tree (think \u2018Spruce Springsteen\u2019). For many, the annual tree collection has become an integral part of their festive family traditions.<\/p>\n

The pot-grown Norway Spruce was the traditional cut tree of the 1970s and \u201980s, but fell out of favour when the non-shedding variety came along. \u201cIt\u2019s a lovely tree, the Norway. There\u2019s a lovely smell off it and a lovely colour to it, and it\u2019s actually a nicer shape than your non-shed Christmas tree. They don\u2019t shed while growing, and will live happily inside in their pots for the duration of the Christmas period.\u201d<\/p>\n

\" Colm Crowley who runs a Christmas business selling Christmas trees at Mahon Industrial Park Cork. – Picture Dan Linehan<\/p>\n

While most customers just have one Christmas tree (a six-foot Nordmann Fir is the go-to), some buy a cut tree for inside and place a pot-grown one at the front door.<\/p>\n

He sells rented and cut trees to multiple counties, so it\u2019s all go at this time of year, but his shop in Mahon Industrial Park is always busiest around the weekend that falls nearest December 8, aka \u2018culchie Christmas\u2019. Bad weather that weekend can postpone people\u2019s tree purchasing, he finds, and while the aim is to finish up on December 18 \u201cto get a bit of family time\u201d, sometimes he\u2019s still selling trees on Christmas Eve.<\/p>\n

\" Colm Crowley who runs a Christmas business selling Christmas trees at Mahon Industrial Park Cork. – Picture Dan Linehan<\/p>\n

This year, he\u2019s launched a \u2018Sponsor a Christmas Tree\u2019 initiative, in which people can cover the cost of a cut or pot-grown tree, and a charity partner will ensure it goes to someone in need. For years, he\u2019s had requests from folks who would \u201clove to\u201d gift a tree to someone less fortunate. In true Christmas spirit, now they can.<\/p>\n

\n Christmastree.ie<\/a>, Mahon Industrial Park, Cork<\/p>\n

Frank Mackey, panto dame<\/p>\n

Of all the Nanny Nellie-isms, \u2018dirty-lookin\u2019 eejit\u2019 is a standout classic.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt came from mum,\u201d says panto dame Frank Mackey. \u201cNow it\u2019s a staple in the show. Kids say it when they go to school and teachers come in
sometimes saying, \u2018Frank, we\u2019re going to kill you\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s Aladdin this year and Mackey\u2019s 11th time doing Cork\u2019s legendary panto. The run is long and physically demanding, but Mackey prepares like a prize-fighter, hitting the gym three months in advance to get in peak shape. It\u2019s a full-on commitment, but he loves it.<\/p>\n

\"AladdinAladdin at Cork Opera House Taken by Shane J Horan. Frank Mackey as Nanny Nellie in Aladdin at Cork Opera House<\/p>\n

\u201cI go in and play,\u201d he says of performing. \u201cI mean, who can say that?\u201d<\/p>\n

Mackey and co-writer Trevor Ryan began pitching their panto ideas to Cork Opera House\u2019s CEO, Eibhl\u00edn Gleeson, in March, and from then on, it\u2019s all go, with storyboards, casting auditions in Cork, Dublin, and London, costume and set-design meetings, and callbacks and rehearsals.<\/p>\n

Modern audiences demand pace, tradition, and newness, which is a tough ask, but Mackey is part of a talented team that\u2019s masterful at getting the mix right. \u201cIt\u2019s about keeping the storyline factual, keeping the characters real, and then adding layers
of modern music and dance, and a fast pace; you move along quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"CorkCork Opera House Panto Aladdin 2025 Picture: Gerard McCarthy<\/p>\n

He loves playing Nanny Nellie, and audiences adore her. \u201cThey believe in this lady, this granny, this aunt, this lovable rogue\u201d who can be \u201ca little bit saucy\u201d, but \u201cshe\u2019s very humble and lovable, and I\u2019ve always tried to encapsulate the realness of her\u201d.<\/p>\n

Once Mackey puts on \u201cthe makeup and the wig, it\u2019s like a little switch goes on, and I become her\u201d.<\/p>\n

Panto remains \u201can intrinsic part of people\u2019s Christmas\u201d, Mackey says. \u201cWhat people do now is they give gifts, a family ticket, or they say, \u2018look, we\u2019re going to bring you, we need this. It\u2019s a tradition and we\u2019re going to do it\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey know they\u2019re getting value for their money, he says. \u201cYou\u2019re going to a show that gives you the spectacle of what you pay for in the West End, and I\u2019m not being big-headed about that, but there is a level we\u2019ve hit here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Panto also allows adults to reconnect with their inner kid. \u201cThey\u2019re being silly and they\u2019re believing in the magic, and they\u2019re seeing the magic in the child\u2019s eyes,\u201d he says. \u201cI love that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SomeSome of the cast of Cork Opera House’s upcoming Panto, Aladdin, pictured at The Mitchelstown Caves. Aladdin opens at Cork Opera House on Wednesday November 26 and runs until Sunday January 18, 2026.<\/p>\n

He also loves the uplifting boost an evening at the panto can give people. Earlier this year, he lost \u201cthe light of my life\u201d, his beloved mother. \u201cYou go out on <\/p>\n

stage and think, \u2018who else is out there going through pain tonight?\u2019. If I can make someone laugh or escape for an hour or so, that\u2019s worth it a million times to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Frank Mackey stars in Aladdin at Cork Opera House, corkoperahouse.ie<\/a>\n <\/p>\n

Tom Durcan, spiced beef provider<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s bordering on reckless the amount of business we do at Christmas.\u201d So says \u2018accidental\u2019 butcher Tom Durcan, 60, whose name is now synonymous with top-class spiced beef. Durcan\u2019s butchering career began at 18 with a summer job \u201cto keep me out of trouble\u201d. He \u201cfell in love with\u201d the craft and a couple of years later, opened his own shop.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s now 40 years in business and about 30 of those have been spent in Cork\u2019s English Market. At this time of year, \u201cit\u2019s full-on\u201d, he says, and his 25-year-old twin sons are drafted in to help. He sells a staggering \u201cseven tons\u201d of spiced beef at Christmas, with the average customer buying a kilo-and-a-half.<\/p>\n

\"CraftCraft butcher Tom Durcan with his famous award winning Spice Beef at his stall in the English Market, Cork. – Picture: David Creedon<\/p>\n

A centuries-old Cork tradition, spiced beef is served alongside the ham and the turkey, although Durcan says festive pints can mean \u201cit tends to get murdered on Christmas Eve late at night\u201d. Making it is labour-intensive; for Durcan, the prep begins in late September. \u201cGood food takes time,\u201d he says. \u201cThe magic is you start with good meat and you do it properly.\u201d The good meat is the eye of the round, which is hung for 21 days. Then, the aged beef sits in a spice mix for a couple of months. Durcan\u2019s blend is a secret, but he will disclose that pimento, cloves, nutmeg, and pepper are all in there.<\/p>\n

Part of the annual stress comes from trying to estimate how much spiced beef (and every other meat) is going to be needed that year.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you let someone down for Christmas, you\u2019ll never see them again,\u201d the Douglas native says. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to make sure everyone gets exactly what they want.\u201d Durcan is not in the habit of letting people down. He recalls getting a call from a neighbour one Christmas morning, enquiring \u201cis there any chance I\u2019d have a spare turkey?\u201d. Her dog had demolished theirs. Durcan had a spare bird \u201cup his sleeve\u201d and saved the day.<\/p>\n

\"CraftCraft butcher Tom Durcan at his stall in the English Market, Cork. – Picture: David Creedon<\/p>\n

That wasn\u2019t his only Christmas miracle. One year, just before Christmas, he got a call from Hong Kong. The woman on the line told him about her husband, a Cork man, who was in hospital, dying of cancer. He had a longing for some spiced beef. Could Durcan help? At such short notice, the postage cost was prohibitively expensive, \u201cand then a customer of mine, Paul Cunneen, who comes in every year for three
turkeys, three hams, three spiced beef for families, came in and said, \u2018I only need two this year because I\u2019m going to Hong Kong for Christmas\u2019. I said, \u2018when are you going?\u2019. He said, \u2018tomorrow\u2019. I said, \u2018will you bring a bag over for me?\u2019. He met this lady and gave her the spiced beef for Christmas, no delivery charge. Her husband got his spiced beef. I got a beautiful letter from the lady afterwards.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tom Durcan Meats, English Market, Princes St, Cork, tomdurcanmeats.ie<\/a>\n <\/p>\n

Donard McGreevy, toy shop owner<\/p>\n

\u201cLast year, it was the Hex Bots wall-crawler gecko,\u201d says toy shop owner Donard McGreevy. \u201cAfter The Late Late Toy Show, we sold out within an houronline.\u201d<\/p>\n

Always on the ball, the savvy Mayo man had further stock of 2024\u2019s must-have in his Westport store, saving the day for anyone who\u2019d missed out online.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s TikTok that largely dictates the trends these days, though, and virality on socials can send a toy from zero to hero overnight. Clutching at Straws, a drop-stick reaction game, had been sitting on shop shelves for a couple of weeks, but when it went viral on TikTok, McGreevy\u2019s stock was cleared out in a day.<\/p>\n

\"DonDon McGreevy in his Toy shop in Westport, Mayo McGreevy’s Toys Direct. – Picture: Paul Mealey<\/p>\n

The 36-year-old dad of two is the fourth generation to be involved in the family business, which began life as a grocers back in 1904, and has evolved over the years to incorporate a toy shop. <\/p>\n

\u201cMy dad took over at 16 when his dad passed away. He gradually brought in more and more toys.\u201d<\/p>\n

Don, 72, still plays a role. \u201cHe loves seeing what\u2019s going on, talking to people,\u201d McGreevy says. \u201cIt\u2019s a part of the day for him, it\u2019s not work.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pandemic forced the business to adapt, and \u201cwith a shop full of stock and no way of selling it\u201d, they pivoted to online, a smart move that ultimately helped them grow their business.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe brought our local toy shop to the whole country,\u201d says McGreevy. His wife Laura oversees the website, while he divides his time between the warehouse and the shop, where they have three full-time staff and five part-timers. At this time of year, it\u2019s \u201call hands on deck\u201d.<\/p>\n

Planning for Christmas begins in mid-January, with a massive toy trade show in London, and toy-buying starts in earnest in early summer.<\/p>\n

Lego, which McGreevy says is currently the number-one toy in the world, remains a perennial favourite, with its Formula One sets this year\u2019s hot ticket. For Christmas 2025, interactive toys are big, he says, \u201cespecially the Little Live Pets\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"DonDon McGreevy in his Toy shop in Westport, Mayo McGreevy’s Toys Direct. – Picture: Paul Mealey<\/p>\n

Toys can be a big expense for families, and while Santa always delivers, McGreevy has noticed the cost-of-living crisis kicking in. Last year, he saw a \u201cbig spike in sales\u201d around the time of the double child benefit in November, a payment that wasn\u2019t repeated this year. \u201cLast year, they had that little bit of extra money to spend; they didn\u2019t this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

The shop has always run a Christmas Club layaway option, and he\u2019s noticed more people availing of it in the last couple of years. \u201cIt gives people the peace of mind that when they pick their toy, it\u2019s put away.\u201d<\/p>\n

The shop on Bridge St is where the magic happens, and integral to the festive vibe are their winter wonderland-themed windows, complete with elves and a polar bear, while on the shop floor, a 30-year-old robotic singing Santa adds to the enchantment.<\/p>\n

McGreevy loves his job, and especially loves Christmas, despite the extra stress it brings. \u201cIt\u2019s the joy of Christmas really, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

McGreevy\u2019s Toys Direct, Bridge St, Westport, Co Mayo, toysdirect.ie<\/a>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The phrase \u2018send it to the woodchipper\u2019, which originated with 1996 cult classic Fargo, has become shorthand for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":230931,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[111994,79,18,19,2902,17],"class_list":{"0":"post-230930","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-christmas-features","9":"tag-business","10":"tag-eire","11":"tag-ie","12":"tag-insight","13":"tag-ireland"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/115712464723179634","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230930","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=230930"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230930\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/230931"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=230930"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=230930"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=230930"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}