Just when it seems that all we hear in the media is bad news, a story comes along to brighten all our days. This is a mystery and a detective story, one of a missing doll, an Irish school and a royal visit.

Princess Grace and the doll

On a trip to Ireland in 1960, Her Royal Highness Princess Grace made a visit to a fledgeling school in Cork, Southern Ireland that was struggling with a debt of £90,000. After she returned to Monaco she posted a child-sized porcelain doll to help raise funds for the school.

On Sunday 18th December 1960 a raffle was held at the school for the Princess Grace Doll. Here is the programme that featured the raffle.

The winner of the raffle was 80-year old Mrs. Margaret O’Sullivan, who as can be seen from this newspaper clipping had quite a choice of granddaughters from whom to pick the lucky recipient of the doll.

A professional photographer was hired by the family to take the photo of Margaret with some of her granddaughters, as nobody in the family owned a camera at the time.

Forward to the present

To mark the 50th anniversary of the school, a book has been written that includes references, photographs and newspaper clippings relating to the late Princess Grace, her visit to the school and the donated doll. The editors of the book have offered to sign the very first copy off of the printing press and hope that it will be be added to the collection in the Princess Grace Irish Library, situated a short walk from the Palace on the Rock of Monaco. The library was opened in November 1984 by Prince I Rainier III of Monaco as his tribute to the attachment Princess Grace (1929-1982) felt for her Irish origins. The 25th anniversary of the library neatly coincides with the 50th anniversary of the founding of the school and the presentation of the doll.

The doll has not been seen for 49 years since it was won in 1960. In the Irish Examiner of 25th September an appeal was launched to locate the doll. More recently a new photograph has surfaced:

The Riviera Woman hopes that this fairy-tale story will have a happy ending. The Royal Family of Monaco have long had a strong attachment to Southern Ireland, owing to the roots of the late Princess Grace, and the current Prince Albert continues this attachment. In this respect the doll could be seen as a long-lost member of the family and a reunion would be both warm and full of nostalgia.

Special thanks to Michael Murphy from Cork for all these pictures and news clippings.