He may be 71, but Bernard McGrath is feelin’ 22.
The senior Swiftie from Ireland will be in attendance when Taylor Swift takes her Eras Tour to Dublin this weekend and some of his fellow fans want him to receive the most coveted honor of all.
At shows throughout her tour, Swift, 34, has donned a black fedora during her hit song “22.” As she performs, she dances down the catwalk toward a lucky fan waiting at the end. Swift then takes the hat off and hands it to that fan, along with one of her famous friendship bracelets.
Swift signs each hat, designed by Mexican-American milliner Gladys Tamez, with a metallic sharpie.
Since the tour began, videos have flooded social media of fans in tears as they meet their idol, exchanging hugs and a few quick words. It’s an honor reserved for the most die-hard Swifties, and it seems like McGrath qualifies.
“I listen to her every day. I think she’s a fantastic songwriter,” McGrath told the Irish RTE News via TikTok.
X account SwiftsTikTok, which has over 64,000 followers, shared the video, which has already racked up more than half a million views.
McGrath isn’t a bandwagoner, either. He’s been a fan since a teenaged Swift put out her debut, self-titled album in 2006, which produced her earliest hits, like “Teardrops on My Guitar” and “Our Song.”
“All her songs are about her experiences in life and they just resonate,” McGrath said. “They resonate with a lot of people, they resonate with me as well, even though I’m an old fella.”
While other Dublin concert goers could be forgiven for wanting the hat for themselves, fans who saw the video seem determined to give McGrath the experience of a lifetime.
“Hey @taylornation13! You are planning to find this man on Sunday to make sure he gets the 22 hat right?” wrote one fan.
Another added, “A worthy recipient of the 22 hat and all the friendship bracelets in the world. 🥹 @taylornation13 #TSTheErasTourDublin.”
While McGrath said he’s looking forward to the show, he’s already seen her perform in London. He even has some requests for Swift’s surprise songs portion of the concert.
“My favorite albums are Speak Now and Fearless so I’d be very happy if she played some surprise songs from those,” he said.
