‘That’s my own,” Marietta Doran jokes, after the photographer compliments her smile, just as the rain clouds part to make way for glorious sunshine for our shoot. Naturally enough, Marietta, a big supporter of Irish fashion had just been quizzed on every aspect of her outfits. It’s an occupational hazard, I guess, but that beaming twinkle is uniquely hers.

The fashion guru and popular TV personality, who has styled Christina Aguilera and Britney Spears in the past, is standing beautifully framed by an arch of pink roses, in a little piece of garden heaven at the rear of Magmell Townhouse in Baltinglass, Co Wicklow, a town she now calls home. Indelibly linked with racing style, Marietta has enjoyed a busy summer at race meetings up and down the country judging, or presenting best-dressed competitions before the biggest gig of all at Galway Races from 27 July-2 August.

“I’ve always been passionate about fashion. I’ve always been passionate about work. Even if I won the lottery in the morning, I’d still be working. I’m a worker; I don’t know anything else,” she tells Irish Country Living, throwing her head back to laugh uproariously.

The fashionista derives great satisfaction out of being organised and doing a job she loves well, something that has served her well in over 25 years as a stylist and presenter from the very beginning working for high-end couture brand WORLD in New Zealand to Off the Rails, The Today Show and everything in between. It’s something she never takes for granted either.

She places great store on grooming, good manners, pleasantness and being hard-working, something Marietta says she learned from her days working in Aer Lingus. Her advice to anyone who is trying to break into the fashion business, which she concedes is difficult, is to go the extra mile, prepare well, and “be open-minded and ready to rock”.

“Always do your best; stand out for a reason, for good reasons. Your work ethic, you were great to work with, you always pushed, and you always did little extras.”

Marietta admits to being shy in ways, she likes “being part of the attention, but not the centre of attention”, and she always wanted to be on television. She even did a TV presenting course while working in Aer Lingus, where she used to style fellow staff. When asked to talk about something on screen, she leaned into her passion for fashion and some chance opportunities came her way.

If you’re determined, you’ll find a way; say yes to everything, and a sense of humour really helps, she points out.

Countryside influence

Having recently turned 51, it’s clear Marietta’s drive is undimmed, something she traces back to growing up on a farm in Borris, Co Carlow, with three sisters and three brothers.

“We milked cows, I fed calves, and I saw how hard my parents worked. They were entrepreneurs; they still are. And it gave me a love for the countryside.

“I’m very much into art, and I love poetry, and I love cinema, and black and white movies. And I suppose with farming, when you come from a farming background, it gives you a whole appreciation for the world around you.”

Her childhood also gave her a love of good food (because she knows the length farmers have to go to produce it), and a faith – she regularly drops into a church in Cork, where the Today Show is filmed, to light a candle as a thank you. It also shaped her fashion career trajectory.

I’m very much into art, and I love poetry, and I love cinema and black and white movies. And I suppose with farming, when you come from a farming background, it gives you a whole appreciation for the world around you

“It’s a beautiful place and we had a great upbringing. My parents Edward and Patricia gave us the best, I suppose, from a fashion point of view,” she recalls. “My mother is very glamorous, and Daddy was always into very good clothes. If he gave you money to go and buy something for an outfit for Christmas, he’d say ‘come back with something nice now’.”

A lively conversationalist, Marietta is warm with lots of stories from a varied career here, in the UK for Channel 4 Racingand in New Zealand. It’s easy to see how she connects with people so well.

Again, it’s something she attributes to a country upbringing, where “you could turn your hand to anything”. She is delighted that she was also able to give that to her daughter Mia (25) who she brought up as a single parent in Borris with her own parents. They are still her “strongest support” and more recently, her partner Joseph Jermaine.

She recalls fondly her time with WORLD, an avant-garde fashion house in Auckland New Zealand, founded by Dame Denise L’Estrange-Corbet and Francis Hooper. Initially, she started working in their outlet before progressing to manager and then a buyer working at Sydney Fashion Week.

“I used to do all these big shows with them. I used to style the celebrities. Billie Piper was over, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. I styled them all,” she says, smiling. Another stand-out memory was working with Eddie Izzard, also known as Suzy Izzard, and then randomly bumping into him 20 years later in London.

While she doesn’t generally get starstruck, she was wowed after she spent the day with the late Larry Hagman and Linda Gray aka JR and Sue Ellen from Dallas, some years ago and designer John Rocha, purely because the first designer trousers she ever bought were his trademark wide-leg linen pants. She spent nearly a week’s wages at the time and had to tell him how much she loved them.

Head-to-toe glamour

To many, the fashion business seems youth-obsessed, but Marietta believes quite the contrary. Since COVID, she retrained and upped her social media game and features runway, racing and style videos to her 30,000 followers on Instagram. Another thing she learned from the pandemic was to embrace her age.

“Every birthday is a gift, so I became very grateful for my age, and every birthday is to be celebrated, so I started telling the truth that actually my date of birth is 1974,” she explains, adding that there is a place in fashion for all ages. “I think the wonderful thing about this day and age is there’s more of an appreciation [of all ages], and there’s no shelf life now.”

While she doesn’t necessarily feel the pressure of getting older, she keeps fit. Marietta also admits to a little botox to soften the lines. Asked jokingly if she ever puts away the glamourous clobber, Marietta says that she loves dressing down.

“If I’m at home, I’ll stick on a pair of shorts. I love being nice and comfortable. I’m a real walker now, I go to the gym, and I’m enjoying yoga.”

With the Galway Races only around the corner, Marietta has the outfits picked and is looking forward to “head-to-toe glamour” – her big nugget of advice for anyone participating in the best-dressed or style competitions. That, and the crowning glory of a hat or fascinator.

“Galway is very special because our family and my father [who is 90] love horse racing,” she explains, saying they have been going to Ballybrit since she was a child.

The joke, she says, is that she was the least into horseracing out of the whole family growing up, but she is the one that has ended up working there. Queried on her future goals, Marietta has a surprising reply. She’d love to write a play inspired by the fashion, something she had discussed with the late actor and comedian Jon Kenny. “I believe I have a book in me too. A trilogy,” she jokes.

See @marietta_doran on Instagram