By Joe McCann
A BANGOR man who grew up in the Boys’ Brigade and the city’s First Bangor Presbyterian Church is now leading one of London’s best known Irish cultural institutions.
William Foote is director of the Irish Cultural Centre in Hammersmith, a role he has worked his way into after joining the organisation as assistant manager in 2018.
After studying acting at the University of Glasgow and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, William moved to London after his partner found work in the capital.
“It wasn’t originally on my list, moving to London,” he said. “I was looking for a job with the arts and I saw the Irish Cultural Centre were looking for an assistant manager in 2018.
“I ended up getting the job and was able to prove myself, especially during Covid when some staff left and I worked myself up from there.”
Today William oversees a centre serving both London’s long established Irish community and newer arrivals, while also welcoming people with no Irish connections.
William said the centre reflects the changing face of the Irish community in London which has evolved over the generations. He said many who visited the centre still came from labouring backgrounds from the 1950s, 60s and 70s but who were now seeing their children and grandchildren who wanted to maintain links with their culture.
“You also have the new wave of Irish people coming over,” he said. “We see people who are university educated with strong labour skills. However, a lot of people come for a taste of home and we try to reflect that culture, so we have a bar with Irish drinks and snacks, gigs with Irish bands and our centre is right opposite the Hammersmith Apollo so you have tonnes of culture, arts, theatre and music right on our doorstep.”
The centre also runs Irish language classes, music tuition and cultural events, but William said it was open to everyone regardless of their background.
“If you want to see a show, you just buy a ticket or join a class. We have people with no Irish background coming in all the time to enjoy what’s on offer because as well as being part of the Irish community, we are also the London community, so we have a lot of people of all backgrounds coming through our doors to see what’s on offer.”
William said that growing up in Bangor after the Good Friday Agreement had helped to shape his outlook on his identity.
“I grew up in an era of peace and Bangor is a lovely place,” he said. “What I actually experienced was a pretty great place to live with a great community and a great culture. Ultimately my experience is one of peace and having a great childhood.”
Coming from a unionist background, he believes attitudes towards Irish identity have changed significantly in recent years, particularly since the Brexit referendum.
“I think the feeling of wanting to be Irish or feeling like you can say you’re Irish, especially if you’re from a unionist background comes because of Brexit. Brexit is the catalyst for everything and the amount of people that come in and are trying to get the Irish passport is huge, because we help people with their applications.”
William said Irish culture was also enjoying something of a renaissance at the moment, with more people than ever exposed to writers, musicians and playwrights from the island.
“Irish culture is going through a bit of a reformation at the moment, you can hardly turn on the TV without seeing some brilliant drama set in Ireland because the writing is so good. There are also the number of bands, musicians, authors and playwrights from Ireland,” he said. “Irish culture is everywhere at the moment and there’s that pride in being Irish.”
Living in England he said had highlighted how little many people know about the history and culture of Ireland and he said it was something many people found after moving over.
He said: “I have many great English friends but they don’t understand any of our history and it’s not their fault, they were not taught it, so you get people who are well educated and have gone to good universities but you still have to explain to them about the culture in the North and the South, even people who have done history degrees.”
Alongside supporting London’s Irish community, the centre continues to expand its programme of events.
Its autumn programme features performances from musicians including Cathal Hayden, Cara Dillon and Sharon Shannon, alongside plays by Marie Jones and Seamus O’Rourke. Work is also under way to expand the centre’s library following an agreement with Hammersmith and Fulham Council, while planning has already begun for its St Patrick’s Day celebrations in 2027.
William also had a message for people from Bangor and North Down and said anyone visiting Hammersmith or London would be more than welcome to call into the centre and see what it has to offer.
