Faces of the Irish diaspora in Bristol

Ripton’s great-grandmother Maria was from Drogheda. She moved to Jamaica in the early 1890s. Ripton is a choreographer, dancer, tutor, DJ and poet. “I’m very proud of my Irishness,” he says. His t-shirt ‘More Blacks, more dogs, more Irish’ subverts a previously discriminatory message, which for Ripton is a hilarious but beautiful statement, “connecting us to the past, present and future in a positive way”.

Amelia helped form the Bristol Irish Society – the forerunner to WE Irish – in 1989. She was born and raised in North Tipperary before moving to Bristol, working for the parish office at St Patrick’s Church in Redfield for more than 30 years.

Amelia is wearing a traditional Irish ring known as a Claddagh ring

Brendan is a professor of medieval history at the University of Bristol. He was born to Irish parents in Newport and grew up in Ireland.

Brendan brought his Dublin Gaelic football shirt to Bristol when he moved here in 1993 and still finds opportunities to wear it

Gabriel is a medical doctor from Belfast who moved to Bristol in 1995 and served as the regional director of public health for the South West until 2012. He has a passion for traditional ballads and singing, and was a season ticket holder at London Irish.

Rubber bullets like this were used by both the police and the army during the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Gabriel says this object is emblematic of the division, violence and disruption that became part of everyday life. “I have seen a very positive change in the attitude towards the Irish since the peace agreement in Northern Ireland,” says Gabriel.

Marian moved from Ireland to Bristol more than 50 years ago after meeting her husband Alan, originally from Cork, at her cousin’s wedding in her hometown of Dundalk. Marian was an active member of Bristol Irish Society, organising numerous adult Irish dances to raise money for charity and becoming especially well-known for her dressmaking skills.

This framed photo of Marian’s daughter in a dress that Marian made has pride of place in Marian’s home

Niamh moved to Bristol from Armagh to study at the University of Bristol and now works for a reproductive healthcare provider. Last summer, she was in the Star pub in Fishponds to watch Armagh win the All-Ireland Gaelic Football Final.

This watch belonged to Niamh’s grandmother, who passed away in 2012. “It’s one of those comforts that remind me of her and my family at home,” Niamh says. “My granny may not be in Armagh anymore but I know her memories and my family are a short flight away.”

Dublin-born Paula was lord mayor of Bristol from 2022 to 2023, and as a member of the WE Irish committee has been instrumental in promoting Bristol’s St Patrick’s Day Parade and CultureFest. Away from politics, Paula spent most of her working life as a teacher and says she is pleased to have been able to “give something back” to the country she migrated to in 1981.

Paula calls this object ‘Peter’s Penny’. It is a memorial plaque that was issued after the First World War to the next-of-kin of all British Empire service personnel who died in the war. This plaque bears the name of her husband Colm’s great uncle, Peter O’Rourke. “It is important to note that many Irishmen died serving in the British Army and fighting for the ‘freedom of small nations’,” Paula says.

Sheila is an actor, producer, scriptwriter and researcher who was born in Liverpool to an Irish Catholic family. She has lived in Bristol since 1983 and co-founded Show of Strength theatre company, bringing the stories of both the great and humble from Bristol’s past back to life.

Sheila has recently been researching her Irish roots and spent last Christmas in Ireland. This postcard was written by her great-uncle Daniel, who migrated to the USA and wrote home for some years before losing touch.

Valentina is a photographer and multi-disciplinary artist who moved to Bristol to study at UWE. She has a mixed heritage background being Irish, British, German and American. This year, she has started Irish dancing for the first time and attends ceilidhs across the city.

Valentina’s father gave her this enamel pin as a teenager. the proceeds of the badge went to support Irish Olympics athletes. “I wear the pin regularly on my emerald green sweater as it openly shares that I am Irish and it’s a good conversation starter,” says Valentina.