AT the Alternative Miss World competition in Dublin last weekend, veteran chanteuse Agnes Bernelle entered her Old English Sheep Dog, Suzy. "She's Irish born and the entry form just said contestants had to be Irish born, they didn't stipulate that dogs couldn't apply," says Agnes with admirable reasoning.
Her partner Maurice Craig thought dressing the dog up was in extremely bad taste so the canine's swimwear rig out consisted of a snorkel and mask, and for evening wear, a diamante bow tie. Even with Agnes on the judging panel, the dog didn't win.
At 73, Agnes finds that as she gets older, her audiences get younger. She attributes this mainly to the fact that "old people wouldn't be seen dead in the venues I play. It's all that noise you see." But then she's not exactly stuck in an artistic rut. Future projects include a series of London concerts and an album on which she will sing a duet with her friend and biggest fan, Marc Almond, of the 1980s synth pop duo Soft Cell.
Tonight she pays the Da Club in Clarendon Street, Dublin, and then she's off to California tar a month at the Santa Monica Playhouse.