A Note from the Creator of Country Girl

The excitement is building as Country Girl prepares to hit the stage. I can't begin to tell you how excited I am as this has been a dream of mine for many years.

I think I was born a country music fan! Some of my favourite childhood memories are of my mum listening to the radio on a Sunday afternoon while she made dinner as my sister and I danced around in our 'good' dresses, singing along to old songs that have stuck in my memory ever since.

In the 90s I discovered a love of Nanci Griffiths and later Vince Gill, and who can forget (if you were around back then) Garth Brooks first coming to Ireland. I was there in the Point Theatre, now the 3Arena, to see his debut Irish show and I've seen him a few time since.

These days, I'm loving Ella Langley (aren't we all!), Riley Green, and Keith Urban will always be top of my playlist. But why Country Girl, and where did the idea come from?

Eye-level view of a theater stage set for a dramatic performance

I'm Emma Heatherington.

And I'm the author of eighteen novels, all set in Ireland and all exploring emotional real life themes such as love, loss and everything in between. My books make readers laugh and cry, with characters, I'm told, you feel like you know in real life.

As well as writing novels, I've always written song lyrics as well as many short educational films and plays. My very first song was called Mystery Man, and it was written on my Casio keyboard when I was about twelve years old. What do you mean you've never heard of it! If only we'd had social media in the 80s!

Since then, as well as novels I've dipped my toe into musical theatre on more than once occasion. Back in 2010 I wrote a youth musical called Punch! which featured new music by Jim McKeown and Rew Donaghy, then in 2013, I wrote a short musical called The History of You and Me for a school audience with music by Damian Cullen. A few years later, again I wrote a kids show called Who Cares for Scarecrows Anyhow? with music by my fiancé Jim McKee, so writing for the stage isn't new at all. It has always been a passion of mine.

Then came the memoirs...

In 2017, I was invited by Dublin publishers The O'Brien Press to ghostwrite the autobiography of Ireland's Queen of Country Music, Philomena Begley. It was such fun and a true honour to work with a legendary lady who has since become a great friend. I learned so much about Philomena's time on the road, including a stint at the Grand Ole Opry, as well as her life behind the scenes as a wife and mother to her three children.

The following year, I worked with Nathan Carter on his book, Born for the Road. I went on tour with Nathan and his band - then only twenty seven years old, Nathan's life was a whirlwind of tour bus travel, live gigs at night and all the buzz of being an idol to thousands of fans across Ireland and the UK.

Both of these experiences got me thinking of how life on the road can be so much fin, but it can also be tough. It can be lonely too. It can be a long time away from home. And although Philomena and Nathan are true stars who do it all in a way that very much suits their own individual lifestyles, having this behind the scenes look at their lives was enough to plant a seed in my ever curious mind. What would happen if one day, a country star needed a break from all the fans, all the frenzy - what if it wasn't fun anymore? What if they wanted, if only for a little while, to be anonymous again? Could that really happen?

I'm lucky to have grown up in a village where musical theatre was a huge part of my childhood via the Bardic Theatre, so I got thinking - instead of developing this idea for a story, how about I combine my love of theatre AND country music?

The lead character of Rosie Ryan sprung to life in my mind. Whereas Luke Adams is the country star who is longing for a chance to catch his breath, even if he knows his career might suffer, Rosie is very much the leading lady and the main story of Country Girl is anchored by her. Rosie has her own dilemmas in life. She is a strong willed young lady who has inherited her family's pub, but is torn between loyalty to her late mum and grandmother, and a life in Australia that is tempting her to leave home for good.

The story began to develop and themes emerged onto my page.

So, Rosie has roots but wants wings, Luke has got wings but he longs for somewhere to call home.

And so it began.

The script has taken many directions over the last few years, as has my approach to producing Country Girl, but after a few hiccups along the way health wise (that's putting it mildly), the time is now for my story to go from the page to the stage.

I am delighted to say I've got THE best creative team to bring Country Girl to life. I've also collaborated with some amazing musicians to bring some 'bangers' when it comes to the songs, and the cast - all I can say is wow.

If you're lucky enough to see the premiere in Armagh in November 2026, I hope you have a night to remember, that you sing your heart out, that you laugh your head off and that you maybe shed a few (cathartic) tears along the way too.

And I know that you'll love Rosie, Luke, Brenda, Blinky, Harry, Jazz, Mike, Peggy, Geraldine and all our ensemble as much as I do.

Who knows, maybe we'll need a tour bus to take our show on the road like the big stars do one day!

Sending you love, light and country music until then. And I'll see y'all soon!

Emma x