Actor Paul Mescal's mum revealed how she was folding the washing when her son was nominated for an Oscar.
The Maynooth man picked up a nomination for Best Actor for his role in Aftersun yesterday. The news came as a delight to the Mescal family who celebrated over a video call.
Mum Dearbhla said: "I don't watch [Oscar nominations]. It’s way too stressful. So I was folding the washing and Paul was obviously at work. Nell is in London and Donnacha is in New York so he was only just up.
Read more: Irish success at Oscar nominations with Farrell and Mescal up for Best Actor
"I just wait for the WhatsApp and that’s what we did. We have this magic WhatsApp, shocked faces, and crying eyes." Dearbhla said the five-hour wait before the nominations were announced was "nerve-racking".
She told the Ray D'Arcy Show on RTE Radio One: "I presumed that people always knew before it got announced. Nobody knows. It’s crazy. Sick emojis going through the family WhatsApp."
Paul's sister, Nell, who wowed the country on last Friday's Late Late Show, posted a string of ecstatic tweets after the announcement. She said: "I'M SOBBING. How on earth did this happen? I am so proud it is making me sick."
She posted a screenshot of a video call of the Mescal family looking overjoyed at the news. She added: "I would post the video of my reaction but those tears were UGLY."
The news, however, was bittersweet for the family as Dearbhla was preparing for her chemotherapy. Nell said: "My mum got a haircut today in prep for her chemotherapy and then Paul got nominated for an Oscar. Life is so crazy."
Dearbhla had previously revealed she was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a type of bone marrow cancer in July last year.
Ireland saw major success yesterday with a total of 14 Irish nominations for the Oscars being announced. Martin McDonagh's The Banshees of Inisherin was one of the big stars at the announcement ceremony. It was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Film Editing and Best Original Score.
Colin Farrell was nominated for Best Actor for his role in the film while Barry Keoghan and Brendan Gleeson received nominations for the supporting actor category and Kerry Condon was nominated for best supporting actress.
An Cailín Ciúin (The Quiet Girl) has been nominated for Best International Feature Film. Irish editor Jonathan Redmond is nominated for Best Editing for his work on Elvis while Dubliner Richard Baneham is among the nominees for Best Visual Effects for his work in Avatar: The Way of Water's.
The Northern Irish film An Irish Goodbye was nominated for Best Live-Action Short.
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