Actor Colin Farrell to run Dublin marathon for special Laois friend

Colin Farrell has announced that he will run the Irish Life Dublin City marathon this October, just for a special Laois friend.

The Hollywood star has also paid a moving tribute to his pal, Emma Fogarty from Abbeyleix who is celebrating her "miracle" 40th birthday, despite battling a lifelong horrifically painful medical condition.  

On the day of Emma's birthday, the surprises began when the Banshees of Inisherin star presented her a special gift.

She told the Leinster Express / Laois Live about it, at an exclusive reception held in Killashee Hotel and Spa in Kildare on Tuesday, July 23.

"That was a great surprise, to get a call from Colin on my birthday to say he had five tickets for us to see Taylor Swift in Dublin. I'm a big fan so that was amazing," she said.

Now the actor, who stars in next year’s A Big Bold Beautiful Journey opposite Barbie star Margot Robbie and is away on location filming Netflix thriller The Ballad of a Small Player, is taking on Emma’s Run to 40 by completing the Irish marathon. 

For the last four kilometres, he will push Emma in a wheelchair to the finish line, an emotional journey representing a kilometre for every decade that Emma has defied all odds to survive.

Away on location in Asia, he praised Emma's strength in this moving message.

“Emma Fogarty is not only the strongest person I’ve ever met and a true warrior, I’m lucky enough to call her a friend. 

“For years now, I’ve been fortunate enough to bear witness not only to her courage and her vulnerability, but her humour, her stubbornness and her great, great heart too.  

“The fact that I’m getting to run the Irish Life Dublin Marathon with my friend to celebrate her 40th birthday is something I’m so excited about. She’s already won the whole day!” 

Emma Fogarty with Colin Farrell at the Irish premiere of The Banshees of Inisherin. Photo: Andres Poveda

Emma is Ireland’s longest-surviving person battling the most severe type of agonising skin condition, epidermolysis bullosa (EB).    Her parents were told she would not live a week beyond birth but she reached her 40th birthday in June and has survived cancer twice in the interim. 

Despite being in constant pain, Emma works hard as the public Patient Ambassador and a board member for Debra in Ireland,  to raise awareness and money for the charity. Colin who supports Debra has become a firm friend, regularly phoning for chats, and bringing her to his film premieres.

Her 40th birthday on June 25 last was one that nobody expected Emma could ever reach.   

She has the most severe form of the rare, genetic disease (recessive dystrophic EB), current life expectancy for which is 30-35 years.  It causes excruciating blisters on her skin at the mildest touch - hence the description ‘Butterfly Skin’.  80% of her body is covered in layers of bandages to prevent wound infection.   Changing them every second day takes four hours at a time, leaving her screaming in pain.  

Emma (right) with her parents Malachy and Patricia and sister Catherine at the reception in Killashee House, where a beautiful butterfly garden grows, named after Emma.

“No one expected me to survive for this long because people with my type of EB almost never do, but I’ve always been encouraged to be a fighter.    Reaching 40 shouldn’t be a miracle, but right now, it is.  

“I am so proud, honoured and grateful that Colin is doing the Dublin marathon with me and Debra Ireland. It's amazing, it's going to make a huge change to Debra. Joining Colin on the last four kilometres is really meaningful because each kilometre will represent a decade that I have lived and survived EB. I'll be really proud to cross that finish line," Emma told the Leinster Express / Laois Live

“Turning 40 has been amazing, certainly a milestone. It's been a long and hard road to get here, but I'm really proud to be here. I am the third person with my form of EB to turn 40. The celebrations have been great and are still ongoing. I've celebrated with close friends and family.

"I'm doing ok at the moment. Every day is different, but at the moment I'm doing well. You take it day by day, month by month," she said.

Also present at Killashee house was a film crew, Firepoint Films who are making a documentary about Emma and Colin as they prepare for the marathon, to be released next year. 

Her family were also there, parents Malachy and Patricia and sister Catherine.

"We are lucky to have her, she's a fighter, she's very strong, completely positive, never complains. She always has a positive outlook. Even now she is in severe pain. The amount of medicine she takes doesn't even touch the pain but she still smiles through it all," Malachy and Catherine said.

"I am so proud of her. She's such a resilient determined girl. Living through pain day and night. Still managing a smile every day," her mother said.

More 40th celebrations are planned in a well deserved birthday summer, when they return to Killashee House Hotel in August for a bigger bash with friends and family. 

Jimmy Fearon is CEO of Debra in Ireland.

"Emma has dedicated her life to making the world better for people with EB. She doesn't want any new baby born to go through what she went through. Being the patient ambassador means meeting up with ministers, major donors, doing publicity like this, purely motivated to close the gap between what families living with EB have and what they need, which is a wide gap. She's amazing. She does it with a smile on her face, despite the fact she spends three or four hours getting ready, getting bandages changed, going through immense pain, yet turns up with a big smile on her face, patient and calm," he said.

Though there is no cure or prevention for the rare disease, there is new hope Mr Fearon said of better treatment for EB, thanks to research part funded by donations to Debra.

"In the last few years an Irish company has made a breakthrough on treatment, another also has FDA approval for a gene therapy. There's a number of activites around the world so we're very excited, we're not there yet, but we think there will be a number of solutions to reduce the burden of EB. I don't think we will end up with a magic pill. Not a lot has changed since medieval times, it's about bandaging wounds, bar the bandages and pain management is better. It's still horrendous.

He said they split funding between "today and tomorrow", between family and nursing supports and funding research. 

"Breakthroughs happen when pharma pick it up and put in real money. To have a Hollywood A-lister like Colin Farrell, and a lovely man to boot, where would you get it? He's been with us for years, and always at the end of a phone and an email. He's become buddies with Emma, he'd do anything for her, and he absolutely jumped at this, he's a pleasure to deal with. It opens doors to have him associated with us, it's a gamechanger," the Debra CEO said.

Farrell hopes their run, with the public’s help, will raise €400,000 for Debra, the national charity helping 300 people living in Ireland with EB. 

“I’m asking everyone to donate to Debra, which has been like a family to me, so everyone with EB in Ireland can live the longest, fullest life possible.”  Emma said.

Funds raised during ‘Emma’s Run to 40’ on October 27 will be used to fuel pioneering research which could transform the future for everyone with EB in Ireland.  

If you can support the initiative or want to join Emma in the Run to 40, visit: debra.ie/runto40