List of Irish Travellers

This is a list of Irish Travellers.

Politicians and activists

Laura Angela Collins, author of The Tinker Menace; The diary of an Irish Traveller, human rights activist, chairwomen to Justice 4 all women and children, attendee of the BRIT School^[1]
Mary Teresa Collins (born 1960s), Traveller human rights activist, a public survivor of the Irish state and church institutions and mother to the author Laura Angela Collins^[2]
Eileen Flynn (born 1990), Senator and first female Irish Traveller to serve in the Oireachtas^[3]
Nan Joyce (1940–2018), pioneering Irish Travellers' rights activist^[4]
Sindy Joyce, the first Irish Traveller to obtain a doctorate from an Irish university, human rights activist, Member of the Council of State^[5]

Musicians

Margaret Barry (1917–1989), singer^[6]
Felix Doran (died 1972), one of the most influential uilleann pipers in the history of Irish music, active during the first half of the 20th century^[7]
Johnny Doran (1908–1950), Irish Uilleann piper, brother of Felix Doran^[8]
Pecker Dunne (1933–2012), singer from County Wexford, Ireland.^[9]
Finbar Furey (born 1946), Irish folk musician. He is best known for songs such as "Campfire in the Dark" and "Sweet Sixteen".^[10]
Paddy Keenan (born 1950), piper, founding member of the Bothy Band in the 1970s and a key figure in the transition of Irish traditional music into the world of Celtic-dominated music^[11]
John Reilly (1926–1969), traditional Irish singer and source of songs^[12]
Mike Ward (born 1990), English singer and runner up/finalist from The Voice UK. He has Irish Traveller roots on his father's side and is also distant cousins with Shayne Ward.^[13]
Shayne Ward (born 1984), English singer and former winner of X Factor, whose parents are Irish Travellers who settled in England^[14]

Athletes

Francie Barrett (born 1972) represented Ireland at the Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia in 1996.^[15]
Hughie Fury (born 1994), professional boxer from Greater Manchester who won the British heavyweight title^[16]
Tyson Fury (born 1988), professional boxer based in Manchester, England and WBC heavyweight champion^[15]
Michael Gomez (born 1977), professional boxer based in Manchester, England, was born to an Irish Traveller family in County Longford^[17]
Bartley Gorman (1944–2002), self declared "king" of the gypsies and undefeated bareknuckle boxing champion^[18]
Nathan Gorman (born 1996), professional boxer from Cheshire who fought for the British Heavyweight title^[19]
Andy Lee (born 1984), former WBO Middleweight world champion^[20]
John Joe Nevin (born 1988), boxer, Irish International, two-time Olympian, and a London 2012 silver medalist^[15]
John O'Donnell (born 1985), boxer^[20]

Cinema, television, theatre

Michael Collins, actor (King of the Travellers)^[21]
Sean Connery (1930–2020), Scottish actor. He was the first actor to portray fictional British secret agent James in seven Bond films. Research revealed his paternal great-grandparents were Irish Travellers from County Wexford, Ireland.^[22]
John Connors (born 1990), actor, screen writer, documentary film-maker and human rights activist (Love/Hate )^[23]
Patrick "Paddy" Doherty (born 1959), former bare-knuckle boxer. He is best known as one of the interviewed Irish Travelers in My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding and the winner of Celebrity Big Brother 2011.^[24]
Hughie Maughan, runner-up of Big Brother 17, contestant on the Irish Dancing with the Stars^[25] he also partook in First dates ireland
Rosaleen McDonagh, playwright^[26]

References

^ "Awards ceremony celebrates achievements and contributions made by Travellers". RTE.ie. 30 May 2019. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
^ "Daughter begs for return of mother's body – buried in mass grave after 27 years in Magdalene asylum". mirror.co.uk. 16 July 2015. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
^ "Eileen Flynn: Irish Traveller makes history by becoming a senator". BBC News. 29 June 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
^ "Traveller Activist Nan Joyce". RTÉ Archives. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
^ "Sindy Joyce and Sinead Burke appointed to Council of State by President Michael D Higgins". Extra.ie. 16 April 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
^ Irwin, Colin (18 January 2017). "Margaret Barry: wild Irish woman of the British folk scene". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
^ david. "Felix Doran – The Last Of The Travelling Pipers". Topic Records. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
^ "Johnny Doran". John Kelly Capel Street. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
^ "Ballad Biographies of Irish Folk Singers". Iol.ie. 7 January 2010.
^ "Finbar Furey wins The Hit". 31 August 2013. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
^ "About Paddy". PaddyKeenan.com. 2002. Archived from the original on 18 April 2017. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
^ Reilly, John; Munnelly, Tom; Galvin, Rónán; Galvin, Rónán (26 October 1971), [False Lankum, sung by John Reilly, a Traveller, who was camped at Cloongrehan, Cootehall, County Roscommon], Cloongrehan, Cootehall, County Roscommon., retrieved 12 November 2020{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^ Fitzpatrick, Katie (23 February 2015). "@BBCTheVoiceUK star @MikeWardUK to become a dad". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
^ Fitzpatrick, Katie (12 January 2020). "Music, marriage and baby plans – Shayne Ward's 2020". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
^ ^a ^b ^c "BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
^ "Boxing – Tonight's stop for the Hughie Fury international express". 22 December 2015. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
^ "Back on track – Manchester Evening News". archive.vn. 21 April 2013. Archived from the original on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
^ "Eyewitness: Last great bare-knuckle champion is laid to rest". The Independent. 27 January 2002. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
^ "Dubois beats Gorman to win British title". BBC Sport. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Irish middleweight Andy Lee teams up with English trainer Adam Booth". IrishCentral.com. 24 November 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
^ "TheJournal.ie". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
^ "Connery's Wexford roots are revealed". independent. December 2005. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
^ "'I have a love-hate relationship with acting' – John Connors". independent. 26 February 2020. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
^ "'Celebrity Big Brother' star Paddy Doherty says he 'considered suicide' over pain of prostate cancer". uk.news.yahoo.com. 11 March 2019. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
^ McGowan, Sharon (20 October 2017). "Hughie Maughan to launch his own fake tan after Dancing With The Stars disaster". Irish Mirror. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
^ "Rosaleen McDonagh – First Traveller elected to Aosdána Pavee Point". 5 May 2017. Retrieved 16 November 2020.