And he could have been writing about Dunedin pharmacist Louise Thomas.
The green-eyed, flame-haired beauty will represent Otago at the New Zealand Rose of Tralee competition in Wellington this weekend.
The winner will qualify for the International Rose of Tralee Festival, which was named after Mulchinock's love song and has celebrated Irish womanhood at an annual festival in County Kerry, Ireland, since 1959.
"I'm very excited about it. I've never been to Ireland before and my brother Sam is living in Dublin at the moment," Ms Thomas said yesterday.
"Words couldn't explain how I'd feel if I got to go."
The 23-year-old qualified for the contest through her Irish-born great-grandparents. Contestants must be single, between 18 and 28 years and of Irish birth or descent.
"It's really about personality and talent, though. I'll be performing a jazz dance to a U2 song. I thought U2 would put a bit of Irish in it."
A well as working as a pharmacist, Ms Thomas is completing a research paper on neonatal antibiotics and is a medical officer in the New Zealand Territorials.
"I suppose the Territorials is a bit of a contrast to the Rose," she said.
The International Rose of Tralee Festival will be held in Tralee, County Kerry, Ireland, from August 17-21.
