At the unveiling of their sculptures in the National Wax Museum today, John and Edward Grimes, or Jedward, had one overriding concern. “Normally when you go to waxworks they say ‘please don’t touch’,” John explained. “Ours will say ‘please don’t touch the hair.’”
Head sculptor PJ Heraty had gone for the classic Jedward mono-spike style, eschewing the more moody, tousled look which has defined the latter stages of the pair's career. But, wondered Edward, "what if in a hundred years we lost all our hair and they had to make them bald?"
Such concerns were far from the mind of Paddy Dunning, the museum's owner, who reckons the new additions will bring in a lot more young people. "For a long time we've been asking the public what figures they want… and Jedward was up there," he said.
Today was also the day the museum's resurrected Popemobile took its maiden spin around the streets of Dublin. The gathered photographers had hoped John and Edward would be among its first passengers. Alas, the boys were too preoccupied with their waxy likenesses to get excited about John Paul II's old ride.
The statues, presumed Edward, will be “the most highest maintenance waxworks of all time”.
If the afternoon press briefing had lasted any longer, the boys may well have run out of superlatives to describe the importance of the occasion.
"A historical day for the news in Ireland," John declared as cameras flashed incessantly. The new statues, decked out in matching red Louis Copeland suits, were, the boys agreed, "totally awesome".
The pair expressed their delight at joining the museum's other wax immortals. "Michael Jackson is here, U2 is here, all the greats are here and finally Jedward is here." Van Morrison, or at least his image, looked on expressionlessly.
Why are you here today, one of the photographers asked. "We're here to celebrate Jedward and awesome and great," John replied. But it was obvious they were also pleased to have reached the end of a lengthy process. "It took like months to get these," they said.
But the wait was worth it, or so it seemed to John at least, who looked admiringly at the identical figures and observed proudly: "They're totally unique."
