Mary McPartlan is one of the most talented singers to come out of the Irish scene in recent years. Born in Drumkeeran, Co. Leitrim and now living in Galway, she started singing in the early 70s but it wasn't until 2003 that she decided to make music her full time career. She has been working for the last 12 years in the arts and entertainment industry, having been producer and director of many music and theatre projects. She developed the concept of the TG4 National Traditional Music Awards, and was co-producer of the award-winning music series FLOSC, also for TG4. She is founding member and the producer of the Galway-based theatre company Skehana. Mary, however, didn't come out of the shadows until January 2004 when she released the critically-acclaimed album The Holland Handkerchief.