Daniel O’Donnell is a legendary Irish singer, whose blend of country and traditional Irish music has won him millions of fans around the world.
O’Donnell was born in the small seaside village of Kincasslagh in County Donegal in December 1961, the youngest of five siblings. He began singing in local choirs before joining his oldest sister Margo’s band, which achieved success in the Irish country music scene. He went solo in 1983 and has released a new studio album every year since 1984 – 27 of which have been Top 20 hits in the UK.
Daniel O’Donnell is as well-known in Ireland as a television presenter and personality as for his music and appeared on Strictly Come Dancing in 2015, but continues to forge a strong community around his music – always making time for fans after his shows. In this new interview, O’Donnell looks back at his career so far, explains his close relationship with his fans, and talks about the happiest day of his life.
As he celebrates 40 years since his debut album, The Boy from Donegal, Daniel O’Donnell looks back over a life steeped in music and community in his Letter to my Younger Self.
At 16, I just loved music. I always sang. Anywhere I could get to sing, I would sing. We lived in a very rural part of Ireland, so there was lots of traditional music and ceilidhs. We used to go to them all the time. There was a great sense of community and whatever was going on, everybody was involved.
Every weekend there was music at a hotel here [in Dungloe] called Ostan na Rosann. It was a great gathering place and there was a local group called The Murray Family who would get people up to sing with them. Everyone went. I would get up and that was the main place I would sing. I was also in the church choir, so there was singing everywhere.
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1988: Daniel O’Donnell entertaining fans at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin. Image: Independent News and Media / Getty
At home, we listened to the same mix of music I sing now. It was always country singers and Irish singers. There is a great tradition of singing in Ireland – with the ballads and country music. My sister Margo was singing from when I was only two, so there was a great awareness of music at home.
We grew up beside the sea. My mother came from an island which was 10 minutes by boat from the mainland, but also a world away, you know? My grandmother lived there with my mother’s brother and his family, so we would spend our holidays there. It was terrific. I remember that endless freedom of being a child. On a sunny day like today we would spend all day at the beach.
My father’s death was traumatic for the family. But I don’t think it impacted me because I was so young. I was only six and although I was aware of the trauma, my older brothers and sisters, who were aged from 10 to 19, knew him better. He worked away from home as a labourer on the West Coast of Scotland. So it’s a very sketchy memory I have of him alive. It would have been nice to have had the chance to know him better, though, because people speak about him with great affection.
When I was younger, I thought I might become a teacher. I did accountancy, economics and maths – they were the subjects I had the best flair for – but before I went to college, I just had this great feeling about the music. I needed to try to make it work, so I joined my sister and her band in 1981. And from there, it all began.
2002: Daniel O’Donnell leaving the church with his wife Majella McLennan after their wedding in his home village of Kincasslagh. Image: PA Images / Alamy
You probably couldn’t do it now, but I worked in the local shop when I was at a primary school. I’d finish school at three and work in the shop for two hours, then work all day on Saturdays. Growing up in an environment like that, you interact with everybody. They had a van that went out to the outlying areas on Thursday and Saturday, so when I was off in the summer, I would go out with the man that drove the van and serve customers out in the countryside. It’s a very happy memory. I knew everybody because of that.
I was 16 when I realised I could maybe sing for my job. I was singing at the hotel and people were happy, singing along with me and dancing around. I remember very clearly thinking, wouldn’t this be a nice way to spend your life? And that feeling has never left me. I never dreamed I would get to the level that I did. That was never the plan. I don’t know if it could have been. But I have been very fortunate and done incredible things in my career.
My sister sang at the Wembley Festival in the ’70s with all the big stars – and got to know Dolly Parton. It’s quite something. When you come from where we come from, these people were way away in the distance. So to meet these singers from Nashville and rub shoulders with them was very special. I played the Peterborough Festival in 1987 and Johnny Cash headlined. I couldn’t believe we were part of the same line-up. Charley Pride has guested with me, Loretta Lynn came to be on a TV show I hosted. Meeting all these people I have loved and admired on a one-to-one level was beyond what I could have ever imagined.
When it comes to fans, I know that I can do things for people that other people can’t. I have the ability to make people happy by default – and that is a very privileged position to be in. In the beginning there was only a scattering of people at my concerts, so I would meet everybody. But I still do. I go out after shows and if anybody wants to say hello, that’s fine with me. Because I’ve always interacted with everybody from when I was a small child. I’d hope that other well-known people realise what they can do for people with very little effort. It’s not difficult and I get such pleasure from it. Some people have been coming to see me play for 40 years and I love that connection with my audience. You cannot put a price on joy.
I would tell my younger self to always be open to finding somebody special. If you find someone special, your life will be so enriched. I can’t say it any stronger than that. And I have been very lucky. I was 40 when I got married to Majella [McLennan, in November 2002]. But you can’t hurry love, as they say. One day at a time. And we have been very happy together. We have renewed our vows every 10 years. Maybe if we are lucky, we could make it to our 50-year anniversary.
I would remind my younger self to enjoy every minute. When you’re busy, you don’t always soak it up. We work so hard to get somewhere that we can forget to enjoy the journey. I don’t think I did badly along the way, you know? When I look back, I can’t believe all that happened. So if I was giving advice, I would say, be aware of where you’re at as much as you can.
I would never have believed it if you’d told me I was going to be on Top of the Pops. We watched it every week growing up, so to think that I would be on one day would be incredible. And it was very special. I had recorded I Just Want to Dance With You before going to Australia on tour. They released it as a single and we heard it was just bubbling under the charts, but that if it hit the Top 30, we would get on Top of the Pops.
2020: Daniel O’Donnell surprising residents at Shanaghan House sheltered housing in County Donegal. Image: Piere Bonbon / Alamy
We left Australia a day early, my manager found a payphone in Singapore on the way home and that’s when we found out we were going to be on the next week. I was on cloud nine. I was on with The Shamen [who performed Ebeneezer Goode] – and they were as amused by me as I was by them. We couldn’t have been further apart musically. But that was the beauty of Top of the Pops.
Politics has never entered into my career. My voice is not to make waves, it is to make people happy and enjoy themselves. But when I was asked how I was going to vote [in the vote on same-sex marriage in 2015], I told them I was going to vote for the amendment. The feeling I had was that for those it would make a difference to, it would make a huge difference. And for those who wouldn’t be affected by it, it wouldn’t make any difference. Why would you hold back a bus you don’t need?
I remember playing Cliff Richard’s records in the garden on summer’s days. Me and my friends would always play Lucky Lips and Bachelor Boy, so to sit in his company or go on holidays together has been mindblowing. When I got to know him well and we would chat about different things, I’d think back to myself being a fan, which I still am. I love Cliff’s singing and his music. His voice is extraordinary.
If I could relive one day it would be our wedding day. We had such a beautiful day that went on forever. But I don’t want yesterday back. I don’t want to be 20 again. I love today. And I am very happy where I am.
Daniel O’Donnell’s greatest hits album Through the Years is out now on Demon Music. Tickets for his 2025 UK tour are on sale on 1 November here.
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