The Irish in the UK
The story of Irish migration to the UK is often focused on Irish men. A new study uncovers the critical role that Irish nurses played in the creation and running of the NHS.
Laurie Taylor talks to Louise Ryan, Professor of Sociology at the London Metropolitan University, about her oral history of the Irish nurses who were the backbone of the NHS for many years. By the 1960s approximately 30,000 Irish-born nurses were working across the NHS, constituting around 12% of all nursing staff. From the rigours of training to the fun of dancehalls, she explores their life experiences as nurses and also as Irish migrants, including those times when they encountered anti Irish racism. They’re joined by Bronwen Walter, Emerita Professor of Irish Diaspora Studies at Anglia Ruskin University, who discusses the way that Irish migration offers an unusual opportunity to explore wider questions about the experience of immigrants and how ethnic identities persist or change over time.
Producer: Jayne Egerton
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Guests and further reading
- Louise Ryan, Senior Professor of Sociology at the London Metropolitan University
Irish Nurses in the NHS: An Oral History by Louise Ryan PhD, Gráinne McPolin and Neha Doshi (Four Courts Press Ltd)
- Bronwen Walter, Emerita Professor of Irish Diaspora Studies at Anglia Ruskin University
Book chapter: Migrants and Descendants: Multi-Generations of the Irish in London in the 21st century by Bronwen Walter in London the Promised Land Revisited: The Changing Face of the London Migrant Landscape in the Early 21st Century edited by Anne J. Kershen (Routledge)
Broadcasts
- Tue 1 Jul 202515:30BBC Radio 4
- Sun 6 Jul 202506:05BBC Radio 4
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