Since 2021, Liverpool Irish Festival has been working on revitalising the Liverpool Irish Famine Trail, which includes The Great Hunger commemoration memorial. Today, the Liverpool Great Hunger Commemoration Committee, Conradh Na Gaeilge Learpholl, Liverpool Irish Centre and its choir and Liverpool Signing Choir partner with the Festival to lead a Great Hunger Memorial Service that marks the anniversary of An Gorta Mór (The Great Hunger), lasting 1845-1852 and beyond.
Along with speeches, performances and a minute’s silence, we’ll sing The Ullaloo together. Commissioned especially for The Great Hunger Memorial in 2024, by local musicians Ian Cantwell and Marty Snape, the Liverpool Irish Centre choir will lead the singing and the Liverpool Signing Choir will sign it to us.
In 2026 we consider the plight of those in the context of I Am Here, considering Maslow’s pyramid of needs and what is needed for self-actualisation.
We will welcome anyone who is interested in memorialising the 1m people who perished on the island of Ireland and the 1.8m who came through Liverpool to start their life elsewhere. About the event Please note that this is an outside event, and we may have difficulties with sound if it is rainy or windy. We recommend dressing for the weather and bringing seats or walking aids as needed. This is a standing service of roughly 30-minutes. We won’t have chairs available for everyone. People may gather in advance of the service to welcome the vigil walkers. There is room for wheelchair users.
These activities have been made possible with funds from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Care note: The story of An Gorta Mór continues to be deeply contested and its stories are sensitive, calling for compassion and self-care. Mindful discomfort is a part of memorial, but if the event becomes overly emotional for any attendee, we encourage you to move away quietly and put yourself where you feel safest. We don’t expect to use traumatising words, but we understand people’s levels are different and the An Gorta Mór story is a deep one. Though we don’t anticipate creating significant emotional discomfort, you are the expert in you, so please treat yourself carefully.’