Michael Collins is Number One

It's official (well kind of) Michael Collins is the greatest Irish person that ever lived according to the results of this week's Examiner Vox Pop.The quest is on to find the nation's best loved person and while Michael Collins is at this stage heading up the national poll and looking set to take the title, Bono, Ronan Keating, Michael O'Leary and even our own Joe Dolan also featured high on the list.But the people of Mullingar find historical and cultural figures more appealing than mere pop stars and alongside Collins, Maria Edgeworth and Daniel O'Connell were the other people chosen as icons.Mullingar man Keith Gibney supported Mullingar and said that our own Joe should top the poll but his friend Ian Burke thought that Michael Collins should be named number one."Bono?" he laughed. "No of course not! I am joking, I can't stand him. It has to be Michael Collins, I couldn't say anyone else after everything he did for Ireland."Martina Hughes, who lives in Fore, agreed wholeheartedly: "He was very influential.He did a great job and Dev sent him over to do something that he couldn't achieve and that wasn't his fault."Next up was Jason McKevitt from Mullingar who also turned out to be a Michael Collins fan: "He turned a nation of farmers into a fighting army and that was some achievement. Remember that the Brits were more of a super power than the US is today and he brought them to their knees.His legacy would still be working if he hadn't been murdered by that long b*****d. I've said enough now," he laughed.Shauna Corroon said that she couldn't think of anyone and then showed her X Factor T-shirt and pointed to John and Edward."I'm only joking! They are really terrible."But mum Bernie had a very definate idea of who should be voted the greatest Irish person ever."Maria Edgeworth: she was really something. She really stuck it to the Rackrents. She was way ahead of her time especially in the relationship that she had with her father which was more like a father and daughter of today. She shone out from the whole family at a time when only the boys would usually have got that chance. She just had a great appreciation for life."Mullingar man Derek Kiernan felt that the number one spot should go to land reformer Daniel O'Connell."He was just the ultimate Irish man and did so much for Catholic rights. It has to be O'Connell."And last but not least James Bannon TD gave his vote to Michael Collins. "He was a visionary, look at all he did at such a young age. If he had lived Ireland would be a very different place than it is. Did you know that he actually bought Leinster House?"