EMOTIONAL TRIBUTE: Daniel O’Donnell’s Surprise Graveside Performance Brings Comfort to Grieving Family in West Cork
At a time when the world feels distanced and moments of loss are marked with quiet rituals, one act of kindness managed to bring warmth and comfort to a grieving family in West Cork. Daniel O’Donnell, one of Ireland’s most beloved singers, has revealed how a spontaneous decision to sing over the phone during the funeral of one of his biggest fans “brought a smile to a very sad occasion.”
The funeral of Margaret McCarthy of Innishannon was attended under restrictions that left mourners longing for the comfort of tradition. Margaret, remembered as a warm, lively woman who loved her family, her grandchildren, and the joy of music, had long been an ardent admirer of O’Donnell. Her family joked often that there were “three in the marriage,” such was her devotion to attending his concerts, collecting his calendars, and treasuring his music throughout her life.
Speaking on Cork’s C103FM, O’Donnell explained how he had been watching the livestream of the funeral mass when he felt moved to do something more. “She was a lovely woman,” he recalled. “In Ann’s eulogy, she spoke about how much her mother enjoyed my music, and even the priest mentioned it. I thought, maybe if I rang the undertaker and asked if I could sing at the graveside by phone, it might give the family a little lift. It wasn’t planned at all — just on the spur of the moment.”
That moment transformed the service. As the coffin was lowered into the ground, O’Donnell’s voice came through the phone with “Beyond the Rainbow’s End.” The performance, though simple and remote, carried immense weight. Ann Phayer, Margaret’s daughter, said it created an unexpected sense of comfort. “It was very uplifting. At a time when lockdown funerals can feel bleak, it meant so much,” she said.
For Margaret’s husband, Jimmy, the moment was deeply moving. In the eulogy, Ann had joked about Daniel being “the third person in the marriage,” and the family was touched when O’Donnell personally asked to speak with Jimmy after singing. “He knew his name and everything, which was lovely,” Ann shared. “My father was very emotional. He couldn’t believe it when he saw Daniel’s condolence online, then heard he had called my sister, and finally sang at the graveside. It was very good of him to the family.”
Friends and neighbors had already shown their respect earlier, lining the Main Street of the village in a socially distanced farewell as Margaret’s hearse passed. The graveside performance, however, made the day unforgettable, turning grief into a memory softened by kindness.
Ann reflected that her mother, who died after a short illness, had always been full of fun and life. “She was bubbly, she loved her family and the grandchildren, and she adored music. If Daniel appeared on television, she would ring me, or I would ring her. She was mad about him,” she said. “If she had gotten a phone call from him when she was alive, she would nearly have fainted.”
For O’Donnell, the act was about offering something small but heartfelt. “It doesn’t take away the grief,” he said. “That will continue. But maybe it diverts it a little, gives people a smile in the middle of such sadness.”
What began as a spontaneous thought became a moment that lifted an entire community. For the McCarthy family, Daniel O’Donnell’s simple gesture turned sorrow into a memory of grace, reminding them — and all who heard the story — that compassion has the power to reach across distance, bringing light to even the darkest days.