AN EXHIBITION documenting the history of the Irish community in Britain has opened in Dublin following a successful tour of England.
Launched last November, the heritage exhibition Look Back to Look Forward: 50 years of the Irish in Britain toured the country until earlier this year, where it drew vast crowds at every stop.
Thousands came out to see it when it pulled up in London, Liverpool, Leeds and Birmingham.
The exhibition is part of a heritage project created by the national Irish in Britain (IIB) organisation to celebrate its 50th anniversary, which was funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund as well as a range of sponsors and donors.
The Look Back to Look Forward: 50 years of the Irish in Britain exhibition has opened in Dublin
The ambitious exhibition – which is the largest ever oral history project to document the lives of the Irish community in Britain – is now on show in the Irish capital at EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum, where it will remain for three months.
“There has never been a more important time to celebrate our diaspora history and we are very proud to bring these stories home to Ireland after a successful tour of Britain,” IIB CEO Brian Dalton said this week.
“With the help of community volunteer historians and our member organisations, we have faithfully captured the stories and individual histories that have shaped the last 50 years of the Irish in Britain, creating a research and educational legacy for generations to come,” he added.
The project documents the history of the Irish community in BritainNathan Mannion, Head of Exhibitions and Programmes at EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum, said the exhibition offered an “incredibly timely” look at “the highs and lows of British-Irish relations since the early 1970s from the perspective of the Irish community in Britain”.
“As the rate of Irish emigration to Britain declines, and the Irish diaspora there matures, it has never been more pressing to record and celebrate the stories of those who have made it what it is,” he added.
“This is an exhibition not to be missed.”
EPIC CEO and Museum Director Aileesh Carew claims the project offers a “truly remarkable snapshot in time”.
“Visitors to this exhibition will be able to see the dramatic contrast in the experiences of the Irish community in Great Britain from the 1970’s to the present day through the dozens of photos featured and hear about their experiences in their own words, through the oral histories featured,” she explained.
The exhibition features contributions from Irish cultural figures such as actors Siobhán McSweeney, Adrian Dunbar, Aisling Bea, broadcaster Terry Christian, musician Jah Wobble, and Moth Poetry Prize Winner Laurie Bolger, who composed a bespoke poem for the project.
It runs at EPIC: the Emigration Museum in Dublin until July 14, 2024.
The online version of the exhibition can be found here.
