Celebrity Hopes for 2022
Pondering your hopes for the future? We asked a few of our favourite celebrities to share their thoughts for 2022.
Don’t worry – we’re not talking about the sort of overinflated and unattainable New Year’s resolutions that only last about a week before getting binned (so last decade!) But everybody likes to think about their hopes and goals for the future, however big or small, personal or worldly.
So, as another pandemic year comes to an end and we prepare to usher in 2022, we asked some celebs to dish the dirt on their own aims and wishes for the new year and beyond…
LORRAINE KELLY
“I’m just hoping we can start to travel again safely. I love Africa, and my daughter was living in Singapore for a long time, so I used to go out there and spend a lot of time there. I’d love everybody (across the world) to get access to the vaccine - that for me is hugely important.
We are so incredibly lucky that we have that here, and to have the incredible scientists and volunteers who’ve done such a great job. So, I want to see countries like Africa and parts of Asia get that too. What we don’t want to do is leave some countries behind. That is my wish.”
LUCY KENNEDY
“2022 will hopefully be a more normal year, where our children don’t have to wear masks and we can all be more sociable again.
My plan for the New Year is to write my fourth children’s book in the series The Friendship Fairies. That takes a few months and I really, really enjoy writing them. My little characters are three years older now so their personalities have really developed.
Also, I’m living with more celebrities for a new series of Living with Lucy, while waking up the country every morning on Ireland’s Classic Hits. No wonder I spend my life losing my voice! (Colm Hayes, my radio partner, loves when that happens!) I’m very lucky though, I genuinely love what I do and while at times it can all be overwhelming, I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
ANDREA HAYES
“In 2021 I studied to become an ‘Integrative Forest Therapy Practitioner’ which was really enriching. This work involves nature based therapy which is grounded in mindfulness, nature connection, and sensory awareness practices. This New Year, I hope to have a deeper greening of my own nature connection through my writing and teaching work, while also building on my own daily practice of nature connection. During these uncertain times we are living in nature offers a refuge from the daily worries. Connection to nature has been proven time and time again as an important infl uence on positive mental and physical health which is something we all need to be mindful of. Nature will be both my office and free therapy in 2022.
ANNA DALY
“I think after everything we’ve all gone through with Covid and the world feeling like the most scary place at times during lockdown, I’ll take a bit of peace and quiet for the New Year please. The health and happiness of family and friends has never felt more important and maybe that’s because we’ve all seen how fragile life can be.
People will know I made a lot of changes to my life in 2021 professionally. Becoming a freelance broadcaster, launching my own Little Bliss Brand and managing my own diary has been hugely important to me. I’d like to build on all those elements but in a way that fits around my family. I’m ambitious, but my family comes first and I hope to get my priorities right in the new year!”
LENNY HENRY
“I have lots of goals. I’m trying to play the piano. I originally started to learn with my daughter but she raced ahead – she was only five.
She’s 30 now and she can jam. She didn’t do any grades, but I’m still doing mine. I’m in Grade 4, going into Grade 5 now, and it’s really hard – my hat goes off to anybody who plays the piano, because it’s very difficult. And I want to do more acting, I want to write more. I want to write children’s books that I can be proud of.”
LORRAINE KEANE
“My hopes and dreams are that Covid is a thing of the past, that my loved ones and I stay healthy. I also hope that the world recovers quickly so people’s livelihoods are restored. I am very lucky to have been able to continue to work throughout the pandemic on campaigns I am passionate about, like my charity fashionrelief.ie, women’s health with cleanmarine.ie, my first product (magichairbrush.ie) and various other wonderful brands that I was able to help promote because of my social channels.
I plan to make my annual trip (I’ve missed the last two years) to a developing country with Oxfam Ireland to highlight the work they do and help raise much needed funds for families living in extreme poverty and struggling to survive. I also look forward to continuing to support local businesses in hospitality, entertainment, and retail. They need us now more than ever.”
FRANCIS BRENNAN
“Given that I am in the travel industry here in Kenmare my wish would be that we can get back to some normality in the industry. I am of the mind that it will take some time for people to feel it is safe to travel abroad but my hope would be that we would all remain well and live for, what we used to call as children the ‘olden days’, to return sooner rather than later.
Meanwhile it is imperative that we all continue to remain vigilant and heed the medical advice as delivered.”
MARY KENNEDY
“I would like a renewed sense of freedom and I’d love everyone to be well. My son is getting married in May. It’s something I’ve been working towards, and I would love to get to the stage where there is a balance so I can spend more time with family and friends, which is something we’ve all been starved of for so long.
The pandemic has shown us that life is for living, life is for making things as joyful as possible, life is for reaching out to people and being there for those who are going through bad times. Life is for embracing opportunities that have nothing to do with money. It’s about being in the moment.
Journey to the Well, the book I wrote with my sister Deirdre explores some of these themes, through the prism of our rich Celtic heritage and is very much a reawakening and exploration of the Celtic calendar. It’s very apt for what we’re going through now post-pandemic and explores our Celtic DNA and uncovers just how strong and resilient we are as a people.”
BECKY ADLINGTON
“I have a number of different goals – one is to get back into some sort of exercise routine and get back into shape, definitely. Another is to keep developing my ‘learn to swim’ store, developing the baby products we’ve got, getting more kids learning this amazing life skill and opening up new venues. And, from a personal perspective, going away travelling again would be really lovely – obviously that’s not down to me, but I really miss travel, so hopefully we can get back to that. I miss seeing different places, people, cultures and food.”
MO FARAH
“My key goal is just to stay hungry, stay motivated, and keep putting in the work. Obviously, we don’t know what’s going to happen in 2022, but just to get through each month and hopefully by January, things will be a bit clearer as to where I am in terms of training – then I can plan better and see what races I can do.”
ADAM PEATY
“I’d say the biggest goals in my career are to do with what I need to do in Paris (2024 Olympics). I want to be proud of my performance in Paris and we’ll see how it goes, but I aim to go to LA 2028 and then probably retire, but it obviously depends on how Paris goes.
“There are so many different types of goals I have in my life, such as family goals, or goals with your house or where you want to be. I just want to be happy and enjoy the journey as much as I can, and make sure the destination isn’t one of those things which is always moving. And it’s a given that I want to be a good dad (to one-year-old son George). I want to have a great influence on him and allow him to be who he wants to be.”
CATHERINE FULVIO
“We’ve all been through so much in the last two years so my big hopes and dreams for everyone are good health and happiness because without these we really have very little.
A healthy environment is also critical for the future generations so in 2022 I would love to see us tackle our food waste more; we can reduce our food waste and lower our carbon footprint by supporting local producers, eating seasonally and only purchasing what we need.
Finally I look forward to welcoming back our customers to Ballyknocken House & Cookery School, especially our international visitors, now that would be icing on the cake.”
JOHN BRENNAN
“2022 is a year of much hope for everyone. I have my fingers crossed to get the time to sail to Sweden and the Baltic, while work wise I look forward to welcoming our many overseas guests back to Kerry.
I’m also excited to be looking after many rescheduled weddings in Dromquinna. To have to wait two years to get married was not easy on couples. 2022 will change that please God.”
NEVEN MAGUIRE
“I am fortunate to have been born with a happy disposition and to have managed to retain a fairly positive outlook on life. It is not always easy and for 2022, I would like much the same as most people would like. That it is back to the normal that we all enjoyed, and perhaps will enjoy with more appreciation of the good things than we did beforehand. We have to stay positive and help our friends and neighbours to stay in that frame of mind also. I know it is not always easy and we should all be ready to over a helping hand.
I have been interested to see how people reconnected with food when we reopened, though with limited numbers.
Lots of people told me how much they really appreciated being able to eat out again, when they might have taken it more for granted before. That was good to hear. I had a lot more people contact me who were cooking a lot more at home and long may that continue.
But like anyone in our business I long to hear the sound of a full happy buzzing busy restaurant with laughter and hugs and celebrations among friends and families.”
ALEXANDRA BURKE
“I’d love a holiday, but I’m in no rush. I just look forward to balancing my time between work and family. That, for me, is really important – I’ve struggled with that, because I’ve always put work first. My year is quite chocka already, by the grace of God – when the pandemic hit, lots of people couldn’t work, especially in the entertainment industry, so we don’t (want to) take an opportunity for granted. Not that I ever did before, but I think it’s important to acknowledge that now, more than ever. But balance is the biggest challenge for me and I want to make sure I spend as much time with my family as I do working.”
MARY MCEVOY
“During Covid when I couldn’t work, I sort of realised that I kind of have the life I want already.
So I don’t have any ambitions, which sounds odd; people admire ambitions and I don’t mean it in the sense of giving up hope, but I more prefer to let things unfold and dance with it a bit. Life is not linear, things hit you from different sides; good and bad.
You can say something like ‘I want to lose ten pounds or get a six pack in 2022’, but in the end, the journey is always the most meaningful part and it’s what you learn and what you take away from it that’s more important.
I’d love to learn more about the history of art, it’s something that really interests me. Acting is fun and you can have your moments, but it’s not something of late that has entranced me, other people’s acting has, but not my own.
I’ve learned a lot in the last two years about myself, I don’t have to have ambitions per say, but that doesn’t mean I’m hopeless, far from it. I think it’s more about turning up every day, it’s about living your life in the present, rather than looking too the future all the time.”
BLÁTHNAID NÍ CHOFAIGH
“For last year, I am firstly grateful that my sister has come through cervical cancer and is now great. I am also grateful that my family who were hit by Covid have come through it.
But for 2022 I hope for good health for me and himself. I appreciate more than ever that I have a partner who is still with me and always there for me. But my wish is happiness, peace of mind and my family are safe.
I hope to travel and celebrate my 50th properly as I didn’t get an opportunity during the lockdown.
On a selfish note, I wish for a little more space in my life, perhaps a strange ask, but I have four adult children in my home, and I want a shed perhaps! My back kitchen is my space and I love it. I pretend to do laundry, but honestly, I am sitting on the ironing basket and just pondering.”
MATT TEBBUTT
“I’d love to just get away more. I went to Argentina before the lockdown for work and I was blown away.
Buenos Aires and the surroundings is a very cool place. I’d love to get back there. I spent a bit of time in Mexico and I’d love to get back there too, and I went to China a while back – fascinating place – the food was incredible. I just like exploring, trying new stuff , seeing what’s out there. It keeps life interesting, you know?”
NADINE REID AND TARYN DEVERE
“In 2022 we want to build on the brilliant year of fun we had in 2021 by continuing to spread colour and joy. We’re hoping to start doing colour walks and to bring them around Ireland.
We’ve also been approached by a TV producer so it’s exciting thinking about what might come of that. Either way I know we’ll have lots of laughs in 2022.”
