During a recent podcast interview, Joe McCaul who represented Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005, opened up on the highs and lows of fame and how that non-qualification impacted his mental health.
🇮🇪 Joe McCaul reflects on his Eurovision experience
Often we focus on the positive career boost that comes with representing the hopes of a nation on the Eurovision stage. However, this is not always the case for some artists. Recently, Joe McCaul who performed, ‘Love?’ with his sister Donna in Eurovision 2005 has opened up on his struggles with that burden of expectation and the dark side of the Irish media who turned on the pair following their non-qualification. The dream of buying the family out of council housing, soon turned into a nightmare of bills for expenses from RTÉ.
During a podcast interview for ‘The Comeback’, Joe talked to Brenda Dennehy about his feelings of shame at the result and lack of support.
“I remember when we didn’t get in, the devastating effect that had on me. I went back to my room, I was only 17, and I struggled very hard because that was more shame, more embarrassment, more rejection. Everyone was going out, and they [sister Donna and the Irish delegation] went to the finals on Saturday night, I didn’t go I just stayed in my hotel room because I just didn’t want to go out.”
Other Irish Eurovision representatives also took to the media, with Linda Martin declaring the pair, “childish and inexperienced”. This level of mocking and trolling manifested into the public conscious and had a deep impact on Joe’s wellbeing,.
“I think over the years, I was nearly taken advantage of. I was made an eejit out of by people, people in the media. That was hard because I was saying, ‘Where is my self-worth, why can’t I be assertive?”
Joe’s revelations of his personal mental health story come at a time when the EBU has questioned its own welfare and safeguarding policies for the protections of the artists and personnel backstage. Over the last year, the EBU has now implemented new structures in its safeguarding procedures. This came following numerous complaints from artists and broadcasters in the aftermath of Eurovision 2024.
Joe McCaul in the Eurovision Song Contest
Joe rose to fame with his sister Donna as part of the double act The McCauls. The pair were selected to represent Ireland in the 2005 Kyiv contest after their success on, You’re A Star. Due to Ireland’s past result in Eurovision 2004, Ireland were not pre-qualified to the 2005 Grand Final and had to participate in the Semi-Final for the first time. During the Semi-Final Ireland placed 14th with 53 points. Missing the Final by 33 points.
After a long hiatus, Joe eventually returned to music, making his comeback on the hit TV series The X Factor. As part of the ‘Overs’ category, Joe advanced all the way to the ‘Six Chair Challenge’ in 2015. Now in a better place following his MS diagnosis and seeking help for his mental health, Joe has taken his skills to the classroom as a qualified music teacher and special education needs (SEN) teacher in Dublin.
Should the EBU and national broadcasters provide more after care for the artists? Let us know! Be sure to stay updated by following @ESCXTRA on Twitter, @escxtra.bsky.social on Bluesky, @escxtra on Instagram, @escxtra on TikTok and liking our Facebook page for the latest updates! Also, be sure to follow us on Spotify for the latest music from your favourite Eurovision acts. As well as YouTube to see interviews and reactions to the latest Eurovision news.
