‘Everyone will listen to us – she’s one of us’: Jessie Buckley’s city buzzes ahead of the Oscars | Jesse Buckley

IIf Jessie Buckley wins the Academy Award for Best Actress on Sunday night, County Kerry will need no further proof of a truism: to be born in this corner of Ireland is indeed the greatest gift God can give. The prize will be for Buckley’s performance in Hamnet, but for Killarney, her hometown in the county nicknamed The Kingdom, the credit goes to her childhood, when she acted in local plays.

“Hollywood here we come!” Kerry’s Eye announced, confirming the feeling that Buckley’s path to Hollywood for the 98th Academy Awards was a collective journey driven by her talent, determination and roots.

It was writer John P. Keane who described Kerry’s heritage, ironically, as a divine gift bearing “a great responsibility” – a view that will seem confirmed if Buckley becomes the first Irish woman to win the award.

“Everyone will listen to her, she’s one of us,” said Sinead van Bladel, the supermarket worker who made Buckley masks for her colleagues.

Bookies rate Buckley as the favorite – ahead of Rose Byrne, Emma Stone, Kate Hudson and Renate Rainsef – for her portrayal of William Shakespeare’s wife, Agnes Hathaway, in the film version of Maggie O’Farrell’s novel.

The only Irish women to have won Academy Awards in the field of acting are Brenda Fricker in 1990 for Best Supporting Actress for My Left Foot, and Maureen O’Hara, who received an honorary Academy Award in 2014.

For Buckley’s family and friends, an unspoken question haunts the excitement: What if she doesn’t win? “Oh my God, the disappointment. Of course we will still be proud, but can you imagine the negative outcome?” One said. She refused to reveal her name. “I don’t want to be blamed for putting a hex on him.”

Radio Kerry offered a €1,000 (£864) prize for the most creative lucky letters, sparking a flurry of songs, iced cakes, paintings, poems, sand art, coffee foam and crochet wall hangings.

A group of children with special needs chose a word to express how Buckley felt. “Brave,” said one of them. Another said: “Inspiring.” “I saw,” said a third. Micheal Martin, Prime Minister, recorded a message.

The result will either fuel or dampen St. Patrick’s Day celebrations. If the Oscars complete Buckley’s sweep of the acting awards, some in Killarney believe Ireland should declare a new public holiday. Others suggest she should get Kerry’s freedom, plus free beer at every pub.

Well-wishers and TV crews flocked to the Arbutus Hotel, which was established by Buckley’s grandparents and is still in the family. “Everything is going all week,” said bartender Dennis O’Connor. “It’s great for Kerry and great for young people – she’s a role model. And in all her films, she never forgets her roots.”

Buckley’s aunt, Carol Dempsey, said Buckley’s neighborhood bar will close to the public at 7 p.m. on Sunday so relatives and close friends can gather inside and catch up on events in Los Angeles. “This is not a media spectacle for us,” she said. “We want to celebrate the essence of Jessie and this moment. We want to enjoy the beauty of it. We’re not shouters, we like to whisper.”

Whether she wins or loses, Dempsey said, Buckley will continue to excel and enjoy her career. “Awards are important, but they are not everything,” she said. “We have a beautiful phrase that I feel sums up the essence of Jesse. While many feel that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, we feel that for Jesse it is in the heart of the owner.”

At the tourism office, Finola White, who had created an exhibition of Buckley’s photographs, marveled at a Vogue photo essay of the star in baroque clothes. “The clothes are great, but she still looks like Jessie.”

Siblings and parents joined Buckley in Los Angeles. Coming from a musical family, she may have been destined for the arts, but according to local tradition, the production of Jesus Christ Superstar almost ruined that. When she was seven years old, she thought the man on the cross was dead, and she was so distraught that she took her backstage to meet the actor.

Teachers at her school described her as “rules– Full of heart, always volunteering for sport, singing and dancing. Buckley performed in the local music community, came runner-up in a BBC talent show, and trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London, which led to television and film roles.

Sipping a pint in Buckley’s pub, June Fitzgerald, 65, said being from Kerry gave her an advantage, but dedication to her craft also gave her an advantage. “It’s been on the move for 20 years.”