If you’re accused of having ‘notions’ in Ireland, it means you’re getting a bit above your station - having delusions of grandeur.

It’s an affliction which has infected the political landscape over this silly season, with a plethora of people coming forward to suggest that they should be elected president on 26 October. Follow the news from abroad and you’d think pretty much anyone can have a pop.

Irish presidential elections weren’t always like this. In the past, there have been few entrants for a largely ceremonial job seen as a retirement present for elder statesmen. Only recently, through the tenure of Mary Robinson and Mary McAleese, has this been reimagined.

Then the first truly modern contest came in 2011, in which a record seven contestants piled on, only to be subjected, one by one, to brutal character assassinations - as if the whole thing was being scripted by Agatha Christie.

By the end, all that remained was the elfin Michael D Higgins, who was duly elected, quickly became beloved by the nation, and is now seeking a second term.

Because of this particularly nasty episode in our political history, many in Ireland think you’d have to be mad to run for president - and there’s no shortage of people showing that they’ve got what it takes.

With all the main parties supporting Higgins (bar Sinn Féin, who will run their own candidate), independents must seek the support of 20 members of the Irish parliament, or four county councils to get on the ballot.

This has led to a motley crew of individuals showing up at various council meetings around the country to give presentations which have been anything but dull.

Donegal-born artist Kevin Sharkey wants to be the country’s first black president, but his ‘Ireland First’ platform is not proving popular. He is calling for stricter immigration, and even bringing back the death penalty for crimes against the elderly.

Investigative journalist Gemma O’Doherty wants to use the platform to tackle corruption, although she is routinely accused on social media of being a glorified conspiracy theorist. In a recent tweet, she said her presidency would honour Madeleine McCann, saying “those who conceal the truth about what happened to her must be held to account.”

Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Show all 55 1 /55 Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis celebrates the Holy Mass at the Phoenix Park, in Dublin AP Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis arrives at Phoenix Park for a Papal Mass of the World Meeting of Families in Dublin EPA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures A vigil takes place at the site of the mass grave which contained the remains of 796 named babies from the Bon Secours Mother and Baby home in Tuam. The vigil coincides with the Phoenix park mass which is taking place in Dublin held by Pope Francis. Excavations at the site in 2017 revealed underground structures which held babies bodies with ages ranging from 35 weeks to three years old with most of the dead buried in the 1950s when the facility was run by the Bon Secours Sisters, a Catholic religious order of nuns who received unmarried pregnant women to give birth Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures An aerial view of the crowd at Phoenix Park Getty Images Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Children queue for communion during Pope Francis' closing Mass PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures The Stand4Truth rally gathers outside a former Magdalene laundry in Dublin as part of the demonstrations against clerical sex abuse PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis leads the Holy Mass at Phoenix Park AFP/Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis arrives to celebrate the Holy Mass at the Phoenix Park AP Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures The names of the victims are read out as a vigil takes place at the site of the mass grave which contained the remains of 796 named babies from the Bon Secours Mother and Baby home Getty Images Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis leads the Holy Mass at Phoenix Park AFP/Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures A member of the clergy carries a bowl of incense PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis celebrates the Holy Mass at the Phoenix Park, in Dublin, Ireland, Sunday, Aug. 26, 2018. Pope Francis is on the second of his two-day visit to Ireland. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham) Matt Dunham AP Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures A vigil takes place at the site of the mass grave which contained the remains of 796 named babies Getty Images Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Members of the public pray as they watch Pope Francis deliver a Papal Mass of the World Meeting of Families at Phoenix Park EPA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis attends the closing Mass at the World Meeting of Families at Phoenix Park in Dublin PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis passes by a banner of a protester as he leaves St Mary's Pro-Cathedral AP Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis speaks during his visit to the Capuchin Day Centre for Homeless in Dublin AP Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis waves to the waiting crowds on Christchurch PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis waves to the waiting crowds on College Green PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Members of the public wave at Pope Francis as he travels through the city Getty Images Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis laughs as he leaves St Mary's Pro Cathedral during his visit to Dublin Reuters Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Two boys wave flags after climbing a post as they wait for Pope Francis Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pairs of baby shoes are hung from black ribbons on Gardiner Street in Dublin in memory of the children who died at the Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, Co Galway PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Crowds on O'Connell Street PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures DUBLIN, IRELAND - AUGUST 25: (NO SALES) In this handout image provided by Maxwell Photography for 2018 WMOF2018, Pope Francis and Taoiseach Leo Varadkar greet a child at Dublin Castle on August 25, 2018 in Dublin, Ireland. Pope Francis is the 266th Catholic Pope and current sovereign of the Vatican. His visit, the first by a Pope since John Paul II's in 1979, is expected to attract hundreds of thousands of Catholics to a series of events in Dublin and Knock. During his visit he will have private meetings with victims of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy. (Photo by WMOF2018/Maxwell Photography via Getty Images) Handout WMOF2018/Maxwell Photography/Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis memorabilia on sale on O'Connell Street PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis arrives at St Mary's Pro-Cathedral during his visit to Ireland to attend the 2018 World Meeting of Families AFP/Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis waves to the waiting crowds on O'Connell Street PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis addresses the congragation at St Mary's Pro-Cathedral AFP/Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Stephen O'Brien selling bottles of holy water from the St Mary's Pro Cathedral PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis prays inside St Mary's Pro Cathedral Reuters Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures A man waves a rainbow flag behind a model of a pope which stands in the window above a bar Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures People hold a banner against Pope Francis on the way to St Mary's Pro-Cathedral AP Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Nuns wait by the side of the road for Pope Francis Reuters Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures A model of a pope is placed in the window above a bar as crowds wait for Pope Francis to travel through the city Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Crowds on O'Connell Street, Dublin waiting to see Pope Francis as he travels in the Popemobile PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis waves to wellwishers as he arrives at Dublin Airport Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures His visit, the first by a Pope since John Paul II's in 1979 is expected to attract hundreds of thousands of Catholics to a series of events in Dublin and Knock PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis talks to journalists aboard a plane flying from Fiumicino aiport to Dublin AFP/Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures LGBT protestors from Dublin Pride and We Are Church with flags and umbrellas on Ha'Penny Bridge, Dublin to remember the victims of clerical sex abuse ahead of the start of the visit to Ireland by Pope Francis PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis disembarks from the aircraft as he arrives at Dublin Airport Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Woman wait for Pope Francis to drive past, in Dublin Reuters Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis arrives at Dublin International Airport, at the start of his two-day visit to Ireland, August 25, 2018. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne CLODAGH KILCOYNE Reuters Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Taoiseach Leo Varadkar delivers a speech watched by Pope Francis in St. Patrick's Hall at Dublin Castle WMOF2018/Maxwell Photography/Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Protesters hold banners during a demonstration against clerical sex abuse, in Dublin Reuters Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis plants a tree during a meeting with Irish President Michael D Higgins, at Aras an Uachtarain PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis walks with the President of Ireland Michael Higgins at Aras an Uachtarain WMOF2018/Maxwell Photography/Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis arrives at Dublin International Airport, at the start of his two-day visit to Ireland, August 25, 2018. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne CLODAGH KILCOYNE Reuters Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis, center, is flanked by Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, right, as they arrive to meet authorities, in Dublin AP Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Protestors wearing baby shoes, to signify the children who died in mother and baby homes in Ireland, protest in Dublin ahead of the start of the visit to Ireland by Pope Franci PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis exchanges gifts with Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar AFP/Getty Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Pope Francis speaks with President Michael D Higgins in his study during a visit to Aras an Uachtarain in Phoenix Park, Dublin PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Navy band march prior to the arrival of Pope Francis at the Presidential residence in Dublin AP Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures Eddie McGuinness from Dublin LGBTQ Pride carries a rainbow flag across Ha'Penny Bridge, Dublin ahead of the start of the visit to Ireland by Pope Francis PA Pope Francis visits Ireland – in pictures A message left by Pope Francis in the visitors book at Aras an Uachtarain in Phoenix Park PA

One person, named only as Candidate X, submitted a presentation in absentia in which they proposed doing two things: closing all the mosques in Ireland, and going to Downing Street to demand the six counties of Northern Ireland back.

Then there’s performance artist Sarah Louise Mulligan, who says she’ll dress up as Marilyn Monroe for President Trump if elected. He’ll be visiting Ireland on the week of the inauguration in November.

Amidst this chaos, of course there are candidates who should be taken more seriously. Businessman and Dragon’s Den star Gavin Duffy was a surprise entry, who already has one council nomination under his belt, as has psychologist and mental health advocate Joan Freeman - even though he has no political experience, and she has only been a senator for two years.

The real spanner in the works came last week when another Dragon’s Den tycoon entered the ring - Sean Gallagher, who ran in 2011 and came second.

He had been the favourite to win until the final TV debate just days before the election, when an embarrassing anecdote about a signed photo, a rogue tweet, and his incensed reaction brought the whole thing crashing down around him. ‘Notions’ were quickly quashed.

The entry of a third Dragon - US-based Peter Casey - was baffling even to the other two, and has made for a curious dynamic to proceedings. A reality TV businessman as president - what could possibly go wrong?

There is one more candidate yet to come and that is the Sinn Féin choice, who won’t be announced until 16 September. Having led calls for Higgins to face challengers, the party has remained largely silent over the summer, perhaps waiting for the more colourful characters to burn themselves out before getting down to business.

When their Irish speaking MEP Liadh Ni Riada was given a prime time RTE radio interview in July, it was fairly clear she was being road tested for the job.

Whoever it is, Sinn Féin's candidate is the only person Higgins is guaranteed to face at the ballot box. The independents have until 26 September to try and get the required backing.

At this point, a betting man might put money on Joan Freeman and Sean Gallagher making the cut, with the latter being the strongest challenger to Higgins out of the group.