A very short blog post today, just to share a preview of my upcoming talk for the Hackney History Festival. I'll be speaking on Sunday 10 May 2026 at 3 pm in Sutton House (2-4 Homerton High Street, London E9 6JQ), one of the few Tudor mansions still existing in London today. Tickets are selling fast but as of today, you can still book tickets (£3) for my talk.

Seeing #SnaG26 social media posts in March for Seachtain na Gaeilge [Irish Week], I decided to revisit my research to find evidence of how long Ireland's native tongue Gaeilge has been present in London's past. I hope you enjoy this chronological timeline which demonstrates just how much the Irish lanuage in London has always been about more than pub signs promising Céad míle fáilte [A hundred thousand] & Ceol agus craic [music & fun]!

Curiosity about London's connections with Ireland had prompted me to search The London Archives' online catalogue for all entries containing the word "Irish". That led to a file titled "Irish Distressed Ladies' Fund" which I automatically assumed was one of the many philanthropic ventures formed in London over the years in support of Ireland's poor and peasant populations. It turned out to be something very different indeed.

The day before the General Election of 1886, somewhere between six and ten thousand people gathered in London Fields to support the cause of Home Rule for Ireland.

Looking from Cartwright Street towards Blue Anchor Yard, Royal Mint Estate on the site of what was Rosemary Lane, Whitechapel E1....