Housewife of the Year

Housewife of the Year was an annual contest for

Candidates were judged on the basis of "cookery, nurturing and basic household management skills."[2]

A series of regional heats produced six finalists. The main task in the final was cooking a meal for four within a two-hour period. The host would then interview the contestants, with personality, appearance, sense of humour, interests and civic spirit all taken into account by the judges. Contestants would also list achievements, such as charity work.^[3]

History

The first event was held in the Shelbourne Hotel on 4 November 1968.^[4] Among the judges were Frances Condell, former Mayor of Limerick, and athlete Noel Carroll. Brendan O'Reilly of RTÉ hosted the 1969 contest.

In 1972 it was incorporated into the Irish Food Fair in the Mansion House, Dublin.^[5]

It was first televised in 1982, with

Some winners parlayed their success in further celebrity and business success, most notably the 1990 winner, Margaret Browne (1954/55–2010; Killeagh, County Cork), who ran Ballymakeigh Country House and later the Green Barn Lifestyle Store Garden Centre and Restaurant, wrote a cookbook (Through My Kitchen Window) and regularly appeared on Derek Mooney's radio show.^{[9][10][11][12][13][14][15]} She argued for the need to advance the status of women in agriculture: "a woman must be paid as a staff member for the work she does. That way, women will have the recognition that they deserve."^[16]

List of events

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (August 2019)

Sponsorship

In the early years it was simply called Housewife of the Year and was sponsored by the

Reception

The Housewife of the Year contest attracted controversy from its inception; a 1968

However, in 1977, it was defended by Senator Mary Harney, who pointed out the importance of housewives and their work to society.^[34] Similarly, in 1979, politician Síle de Valera said "a woman whose chooses to stay at home should not feel undervalued or pressurised into thinking that she is less intelligent or less valuable to the community."^[35]

In 1986, the Federated Workers' Union of Ireland, representing many RTÉ staff, criticised the show, saying "costly variety productions such as person/nurse/housewife of the year, etc. — sponsored by commercial interests […] [undermine] the editorial integrity and independence of RTÉ."^[36] Dave Mulhall of The Irish Times said that the competition's "only reason for existence lies in the promoter's wish to advertise his products," and it was thus inappropriate for a public service broadcaster.^[37]

The contest was last held in 1995; it had been criticised by feminists as sexist, while others had complained that too many women with jobs outside the home were taking part: one caller to a radio show complained that contestants "would never get down on their knees to scrub the floor."^[38]

After its cancellation, the Housewife of the Year was often cited as an example of an old, pre-Celtic Tiger Ireland, where women's horizons were limited; an "icon of down-home naffness" as Pat Stacey called it in the Irish Independent.^[39][40]

Fintan Walsh wrote on Irish "

It was cited by Arthur Mathews as partial inspiration for the Lovely Girls contest in the Father Ted episode "Rock a Hula Ted" (principally inspired by the Rose of Tralee pageant).^[43]

A 2016 episode of sitcom Bridget & Eamon revolved around Bridget's attempt to win the Housewife of the Year.^[44]

The contest featured in a 2019

• Housewife
• Feminism in the Republic of Ireland
• Status of women in the Constitution of Ireland
• Wages for housework

References