Irish men Niall Quinn and Brendan Pooley recorded a heartwarming tribute to one of Ireland’s most beloved residents, Fungie the Dolphin , after the male bottlenose disappeared in Oct 2020 from his longtime home in Dingle Bay off the coast of County Kerry. Fans of the American sitcom “Parks and Recreation” will be quick to recognize Quinn and Pooley’s “10,000 Candles in the Wind” as a riff on character Andy Dwyer’s “5,000 Candles in the Wind” tribute to mini horse Li’l Sebastian, who, much like Fungie, was a beloved resident of the fictional Pawnee, Indiana. "5,000 Candles in the Wind" is, of course, a play on Elton John's 1973 song "Candle in the Wind," which was a tribute to Marilyn Monroe and later Princess Diana.
“Up in dolphin heaven, here’s the thing,” Quinn and Pooley’s tribute opens, “Change your dorsal fin for angel’s wings." Fungie was first reported missing in October 2020 and sadly hasn't been seen since. The loss of Fungie is a story that gripped the hearts of Irish people around the world.
Quinn told IrishCentral: “To be honest my main worry with the song was whether it would offend people, especially the people of Dingle, due to its comedic nature. “While the song may be humorous, it is sincerely intended as a tribute to Fungie. “Fungie the Dolphin is loved by the Irish people and a bona fide national institution, I wanted to commemorate him in my own way.
" Quinn said that writing the tribute wasn't all too difficult: "I jus.