THERE WAS disappointment among those who had purchased tickets to this evening’s premiere of Brooklyn at The Riverside Park Hotel when it emerged that the lead actress, Carlow native Saoirse Ronan, will not be in attendance at the screening.

When the premiere was initially announced and tickets went on sale, organisers said: “Saoirse Ronan who plays the lead role of ‘Eilis’ in ‘Brooklyn’ has already confirmed her attendance at the Wexford Premiere.” Tickets were priced at €25 and many people were up at the crack of dawn queuing outside the Riverside Park Hotel to ensure they got tickets.

However, in an email circulated the day before the premiere, a spokesperson for the event said: “Please note that Saoirse unfortunately cannot attend now.”

On her appearance on the Late Late Show on Friday, in response to a question from host Ryan Tubridy, Ms Ronan said that she had attended “the last” of the Brooklyn Premieres.

It was confirmed that cast members Eve Macklin and Gary Lydon would be in attendance on the red carpet, but many of those who bought tickets were still disappointed as they believed they would get a chance to rub shoulders with Ronan, who is hotly tipped for an Oscar for her role in the film.

Work on turning the Slaney ballroom into a state of the art cinema worthy of hosting such an event began this morning. The fact that Ms Ronan will not be in attendance, however, has definitely taken some of the buzz away from the event for many.

Saoirse Ronan filming outside St. Aidan’s Cathedral. Pic: John Walsh