Cork's Patrick O'Sullivan is ‘Last Singer Standing’

A CORK singer has been crowned the first-ever winner of a new singing show on RTÉ.

Patrick O’Sullivan competed against six other musicians during the final rounds of Last Singer Standing, which was hosted by Westlife star Nicky Byrne.

Patrick was chosen among a total of 32 singers and had been voted through to the final from a previous episode of the show, which aired over eight weeks.

After impressing a live studio audience and judges Samantha Mumba, Joey Fatone, and Nadine Coyle with a rendition of Cher’s ‘Believe’ earlier tonight, the 27-year-old walked away with a €25,000 prize.

“Winning Last Singer Standing completely took my breath away,” Patrick said.

“Having not performed for almost two years due to the pandemic, it was just such a gift to even share the stage with the amazing finalists.

“The whole process was an absolute joy and I can’t thank RTÉ and Shinawil enough. I’ve always loved to sing but this feels like the start of a really exciting journey at home in Ireland and I can’t wait to share what I’ve been working on.”

Patrick currently lives in London and has toured the UK and Canada with on-stage productions including Carrie, Wind in the Willows, and Bat Out of Hell.

He has also appeared in the UK and Ireland tour of Dr Dolittle and is currently performing on the West End in London with The Book of Mormon.

However, he is hoping to start performing more at home next year.

Speaking with Patrick after the show, former Girls Aloud star Nadine Coyle told the performer: “It’s very obvious how talented you are. You are able to bring so much to it. You’ve really got it all.”

Singer Samantha Mumba added that she was “honoured” to watch Patrick’s performance, which brought fellow judge Joey Fatone to tears.

Another Cork singer, Caroline Bailey, from Castlemartyr, came second on the night. Caroline fronts the well-known band Sparkle with her partner Jen Bowler.