Dublin TD Barry Heneghan appears as contestant on Irish-language dating show Grá ar an Trá
Ellen O'Donoghue
Barry Heneghan, Independent TD for Dublin Bay North has been announced as one of the latest contestants on Virgin Media's Grá ar an Trá.
The 25-year-old Dubliner announced, through a post on Instagram, that he would be on the TV show, which was filmed before he was a TD or "had even sat in Dublin City Council" in June.
"Right now, I’m in the office, not the house (though politics has its drama too)," he said in the post.
Heneghan is in the Regional Technical Group alongside Michael Lowry and Mattie McGrath.
The Dublin TD added that he had "no regrets" about appearing on the show, just "great craic agus Gaeilge."
Fianna Fáil general election candidate for Galway West, Gráinne Seoige, co-hosts the show.
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Barra Ó hÉineacháin🇮🇪 ( Barry Heneghan TD ) (@barcare)
The TD goes by his Irish name Barra on the show, and in his Instagram post on Tuesday night he explained that the show was filmed just two days after he was elected as a councillor.
"Before I was in politics I was a presenter for TG4 and I did a lot of online creation for the Irish language. Did I think I'd be a TD? No. Do I regret it? Absolutely not, it was great crac and you'll have to watch the show and find out if I found grá," Heneghan said.
"Now I'm in the office working, I'm not down in the house, as some people think it was live, so if you have any issues in Dublin Bay North, I'm working, I'm not chasing love down in the site this was filmed."
In a release by Virgin Media on Thursday night, Heneghan said that he has a grá (love) in life for "the little interactions with people in everyday casual scenarios".
"The biggest buzz I get in life is making someone who is upset or looks stressed happy, at the end of the day we all just want happiness and to be at ease and you'd be surprised how a quick hello or stupid observation can do so."
He described his perfect partner as "Enthusiastic, happy, confident," and he said that he feels the biggest red flag is "Nastiness, bitterness," and people who are "not energetic."
Heneghan added that his favourite Irish phrase is "Is minic a bhris beál duine a shrón - Sometimes it’s better to keep your mouth shut."
The TD joined alongside fellow Dubliner Aisha, who works as a filmmaker and curator.
She comes in as a foghlaimeoir, someone who aims to learn Irish, while Heneghan comes in as a Gaeilgeoir, having learned Irish from his sister, Ciara Ni É.
New episodes of Grá ar an Trá air every night this week at 9pm on Virgin Media Play and Virgin Media One, and they are available to view anytime on Virgin Media Play.