Ruth Reynolds

A London Irish Story as told to Anna Johnston

“I grew up on the Tyrone-Monaghan border. My dad is from the Republic of Ireland and owns a farm just south of the border and Mum is from Northern Ireland and worked in the Civil Service, so being just on the border worked out well for them.  I moved to London over 10 years ago for university and have been here ever since. I'm an only child so Mum and Dad were sad to see me go but have always been supportive of me following my interests over here.  

My aunt introduced me to London on a holiday when I was sixteen and I loved the energetic vibe of the city. That trip was when the seed was planted that maybe someday, I would like to live here.  I was the academic type in school, I wouldn’t say I was a massive nerd, but suppose I was a bit. When it came to picking a university to apply for, I went for Biomedical Engineering in Imperial College London and was over the moon when I got in. Coming from rural Ireland and an all-girls’ school, there weren’t many that wanted to go into technology and engineering.

I always liked maths and fixing things, so it made sense to me to go for it. I think the fact that it was outside of the expected choice spurred me on to want to do it more. It’s not always straightforward for women in technology but I think it’s great to see more girls going into it.  

Imperial College was very multicultural, it was amazing to make friends with people from all over the world and learn about everyone’s cultures when I was studying there. However, I did find myself gravitating towards Imperial’s Gaelic Athletic Club and Irish Society when I was there too. It was great to have a ‘home from home’ and be with people who understood where I was coming from. I played Gaelic for the girls team, and I was the captain at one stage and also was the social secretary for the club. We played against other Universities in the UK and had summer tours playing Gaelic teams in cities across Europe too.

I ended up chairing the Irish Society and organising Céilís and events for the society. It’s the case of becoming more Irish because you’re living abroad. However, being away from home does make you appreciate and embrace being Irish in a new way.  

After uni I took on an internship working for a technology start up in the advertising space. From there I made my way into a technology consultancy role for an advertising agency. I’ve been in the company for seven years now and I've gradually worked my way up the ladder. The company has a good vibe about it and there’s always new technologies to learn so I enjoy it. I am keen to stay in the technology sector but also at some stage I think I would like to get into creative writing as I’ve always had an interest in that too.  

I no longer play Gaelic but a few years ago I joined a tag rugby league and by chance I ended up in a team with a lot of first, second and third-generation Irish people. Tag rugby is a great way of meeting new people in London, I would recommend it to anyone. People are always coming and going in London so it’s nice to have something like tag rugby where you feel part of a team and community and can have a run about.  

A lot of my best friends over here are second or third generation Irish, there is an interesting cross over between us - where in ourselves we feel Irish but for some people we would not be considered ‘proper Irish’ e.g. from the South. You start feeling like you have to prove your Irishness to the people who think that and you end up listing anything stereotypically Irish about yourself - ‘I have ginger hair, I have been to the Gaeltacht 4 times, play Gaelic, love trad, etc,’. I think the Irish identity has shifted a lot over the last few years, it was great seeing changes around gay marriage and abortion rights. I think we’re open to re-defining what a modern Ireland is whilst also protecting the best traditions of music, poetry, looking after each other and having the craic.

Growing up in Northern Ireland, I was brought up to not be super overt about being Irish and to be mindful and considerate of your surroundings when expressing yourself. I remember walking around South Kensington in a Gaelic jersey and realising that growing up I would never have worn that in my local town.

I guess in London you can express yourself anyway you want, and no one passes any remarks either way which is something that is great and very freeing about being here.

In my experience, my British friends weren’t really taught about the troubles and colonialism in school and ‘Derry Girls’ has been great for explaining the troubles in Northern Ireland in an easy to digest way. I have a lot of respect for that show. I’m very interested in politics and proud of where I’m from so I’m always happy to discuss the troubles and the flaws of Brexit and its impact on the border. I always joke that maybe I will go into politics instead just to try and sort it out- who knows! 

I do love London and enjoy the opportunities it offers. But I also love being home and I try to get back as often as I can, but for now the craic is good in London so for now it’s home.”