No Irish Need Apply? The Economic History of the Irish in England - EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum in Dublin

graphic for temporary exhibition at EPIC No Irish Need Apply

Date: 8th April – 30th June 2026
Time: 10am – 6:45pm (last entry 5pm)
Location: Celebrations Gallery at EPIC
Cost: Entry to the No Irish Need Apply? temporary exhibition is included with general admission into the museum

About The Exhibition

This new temporary exhibition within EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum asks how the millions of Irish people in England have fared over the past 200 years. Based on landmark economic history research using new big data analysis, it tracks the wealth, health, and living standards of Irish migrants and families of Irish descent, showing that the Irish were substantially poorer than their English neighbours for generations.

No Irish Need Apply? highlights the extraordinary contribution Irish women and men have made to the English economy and wider society, through their hard work, vibrant culture, and political activism. The exhibition also includes the words and music of Irish migrants in England captured in Philip Donnellan’s 1965 film “The Irishmen”, in collaboration with the Irish Film Institute.

The exhibition has been developed by the Department of Economic History at the London School of Economics & Political Science from research by Professor Neil Cummins (LSE) and Professor Emeritus Cormac Ó Gráda (UCD). It has been curated by Dr Christoper Kissane, Engagement & Impact Lead, LSE Dept of Economic History.

Featured Stories

Black and white image of two men working on the Southbank exhibition — *Tom Farrell & Michael Byrne working on the Southbank Exhibition, 1950. Courtesy of the Archive of the Irish in Britain/Trades Union Congress, London Metropolitan University.*

Living Standards

Our research shows that the Irish in England were substantially poorer than their English neighbours for most of the last 200 years, particularly in the North of England. The Irish also faced higher infant mortality and lower social mobility for many generations. Many Irish communities were amongst the poorest in England, and discrimination often made life difficult for new migrants, from “No Irish Need Apply” notices to harsher treatment by police and authorities. More recent Irish migrants are much better off and higher earning, and the Irish have become one of England’s best-integrated heritage communities, although older Irish migrants often continue to struggle with social disadvantage and isolation.

Work

Irish migrants and their descendants have been a vital part of the English economy since the Industrial Revolution, with Irish workers particularly prominent in construction, healthcare, industry, and service. Irish “navvies” were central to the construction of England’s transport network, from canals to roads to railways, while Irish nurses were the “backbone” of the foundation of the National Health Service. The hard work of Irish women and men was crucial to England’s economic growth, and to the country’s reconstruction and development after the Second World War. Irish emigrants to England this century are more likely to be highly-qualified professionals, while those of Irish heritage can be found working in everything from politics to the arts to sport.

Anti-Partition march in Liverpool as part of No Irish Need Apply — *Anti-Partition march in Liverpool, 10 October 1948. Courtesy UCD Archives.*

Data

Professor Cummins and Professor Ó Gráda’s research used big data analysis to analyse millions of documents to identify and track Irish migrants and those of Irish descent over nearly 200 years. Through analysing inheritance data, they found that families of Irish heritage were substantially poorer than local English averages, most notably in the North of England, which was the major destination for Irish emigrants before the Second World War, and home to England’s largest Irish community. The exhibition uses animated data visualisations to explore wealth, inequality, health, and more.

Film

In collaboration with the Irish Film Institute and the filmmaker’s family, the exhibition includes Philip Donnellan’s 1965 documentary film, The Irishmen: An Impression of Exile. The film proved too controversial for British television in the 1960s, and includes extraordinary interviews with Irish migrant labourers, along with pioneering footage of major construction projects, music sessions, and sporting events. It also includes performances from Joe Heaney, song compositions by Ewan MacColl, and musical arrangements by Séamus Ennis.

A Note from the Exhibition Curator

“Almost every family in Ireland has relatives living in England, and emigration across the Irish Sea has been an experience for every generation over the last two centuries. But the stories of the millions of Irish people in England have often been ignored or forgotten. Our new exhibition shows how economic history can answer difficult questions and offer important lessons about both the past and present of migration, integration, and inequality.”

Dr Christopher Kissane, Engagement & Impact Lead, LSE Dept of Economic History