Niamh Long to grace silver screen in Derry after starring role in ‘Titanic – The Musical’

The talented singer and actress is back in Derry after completing a whirlwind tour of Ireland, the United Kingdom and Asia last year.

‘Titanic’ follows the fortunes of some of the flesh-and-blood passengers of the doomed liner that foundered after striking an iceberg in the North Atlantic on April 15, 1912.

It was Niamh’s first role after graduating from The Urdang Academy in London.

“It was my first major contract. It was amazing. Not what I expected but it was fantastic. I went to places I never thought I would go to,” she says.

Niamh played two real-life passengers who were aboard the ship when tragedy struck over 100 years ago but survived: Kate Mullin[s], a third class passenger from Co. Longford; and Madeleine Talmage Dick, the wife of US business magnate John Jacob Astor.

The show was professionally filmed and is currently being released in cinemas worldwide.

Fans who didn’t get to the theatre last year will get a chance to see a screening in the Strand Omniplex on Thursday, March 7, at 8pm.

Niamh says she was struck by how the story of the Titanic transcended cultural differences when they toured China and Taiwan.

“The audiences absolutely loved it. It was amazing because obviously there is a language barrier but everybody just understood the story.

"We had screens up with subtitles. We had to translate the show into Mandarin Chinese but even the translations were so carefully thought out to make sure that everything came across the way the production team wanted it to come across.

“It was really, really beautiful and so well received,” she says.

Niamh’s proud father Stephen Long, better-known to many as the proprietor of The Crescent Bar, says the production was very much grounded in historical fact.

"Niamh plays a character called Kate Mullins. They are all real-life characters. There is no 'Jack and Rose' in this thing. They are all real-life characters based on actual people who were on the ship,” he observes.

The Derry singer has been treading the boards from a young age. Under the guidance of Michelle Conaghan, Niamh performed in many shows and competitions and won numerous trophies at feiseanna across Derry and Donegal

“When I was growing up I did all the wee youth shows in the town. Everything that was going I was in it.

“I started with the McLaughlin School of Music. Michelle Conaghan was my teacher. I went to Fresh Academy. I went to Sandra Biddle for a while. I went everywhere.”

Stephen said it will be great to see the production on the big screen in Derry.

“When they were over in England they spent a week with film crews in and filmed the show and edited it as a screenplay. It was bit like how they did ‘Hamilton’,” he says.

Niamh says the tour was a brilliant learning experience.

“It definitely helped with my confidence. You sort of think when you are younger, ‘oh I don't really know if this is a career path' but this has shown me that it is actually possible.”