THE widow of Seamus Heaney was asked to attend Joe Biden's Oireachtas address as the US President is "absolutely besotted" with the late poet's verses.
Mr Biden gave a joint address to the Houses of the Oireachtas in Dublin on Thursday, the second full day of his visit to Ireland, which was attended by a number of northern political leaders including the SDLP's Colum Eastwood and Sinn Féin's Michelle O'Neill, along with former Taoisigh Enda Kenney and Bertie Ahern.
It was revealed by Dáil Ceann Comhairle Sean O Fearghail that Mr Biden personally requested that Marie Heaney attend the event, in recognition of his love for the poetry of her late husband, who died in 2013.
The president has often expressed his admiration for the work of the Co Derry writer, including upon accepting the presidential nomination for the Democratic Party in 2020, when he quoted lines from Heaney's 1991 work, The Cure at Troy.
In 2013, while addressing the US-China Business Council in Beijing as US vice president, Mr Biden told attendees: "My colleagues always kid me about quoting Irish poets all the time. They think I do it because I’m Irish.
He added: "I do it because they’re the best poets."
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Mr O Fearghail said Ms Heaney was a "special invitation" from the president.
An accomplished author and journalist originally from Co Tyrone, Ms Heaney has written extensively on Irish myth and legend during her career.
"He was most anxious that she would be present as part of his delegation because we know he is absolutely besotted by the work of Seamus Heaney, and has quoted him extensively over the years, and we would expect to hear him quoted on a number of occasions today," the Ceann Comhairle added.
