Famous people from Ireland

Kevin Long (footballer)

Kevin Finbarr Long is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a defender for League of Ireland Premier Division club Waterford.

Dónal Lunny

Dónal Lunny is an Irish folk musician and producer. He plays guitar and bouzouki, as well as keyboards and bodhrán. As a founding member of popular bands Planxty, The Bothy Band, Moving Hearts, Coolfin, Mozaik, LAPD, and Usher's Island, he has been at the forefront of the renaissance of Irish traditional music for over five decades. In 2025 he was the recipient of the RTÉ Radio 1 Folk Awards Lifetime Achievement Award.

Mary Robinson

former President of Ireland and former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

Mary McAleese

8th President of Ireland

Denis Irwin

Irish association football player

John Boyne

Irish novelist (born 1971)

Shay Given

Irish association football player

Richard Dunne

Irish footballer (born 1979)

John Banville

Irish writer (born 1945)

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Cillian Murphy

Irish actor (born 1976)

Enda Kenny

Irish poliitician (* 1951)

Shane Long

Irish association football player

Eoin Colfer

Irish author of children's books (born 1965)

Alan Keely

Alan Vincent Keely was an Irish footballer who played as a defender for several League of Ireland teams between 2001 and 2009, including Shelbourne F.C., Finn Harps F.C. and Waterford United F.C. He was a member of the Finn Harps' squad that won the 2004 League of Ireland First Division.

Graham Linehan

Graham George Linehan is an Irish comedy writer and anti-transgender activist. He created or co-created the sitcoms Father Ted (1995–1998), Black Books (2000–2004), The IT Crowd (2006–2013), and Count Arthur Strong (2013–2017), and the sketch comedy show Big Train (1998–2002). He also contributed to other comedy shows, including The Fast Show, The Day Today, and Brass Eye. During the 1990s, his writing partner was Arthur Mathews, with whom he created Father Ted and Big Train.

Sean Patton

Sean Joseph Patton is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a striker for Reading. Previously, Patton has played for Derry City and had loan spells at both Finn Harps and Aldershot Town.

Peter Claffey

Peter Claffey is an Irish actor and former professional rugby union player. A former prospect for Connacht Rugby, he retired from the sport in 2019 to pursue acting. He is known for starring as Ser Duncan "Dunk" the Tall in the HBO fantasy series A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (2026–present). He was named a 2025 Screen International Star of Tomorrow.

Darragh MacAnthony

Darragh MacAnthony is an Irish football chairman, author and adult entertainments entrepreneur. He also has a podcast named The Hard Truth where he discusses Peterborough United and other football related topics.

Michael Fassbender

German-Irish actor (born 1979)

Barry Keoghan

Irish actor

Dermot Kennedy

Dermot Joseph Kennedy is an Irish singer and songwriter. His music blends folk and hip-hop. He is signed to Interscope Records in the US and Island Records for the rest of the world. Kennedy gained worldwide recognition in 2016 when Spotify added two of his self-released tracks to its influential playlists. His discography includes three albums: Without Fear (2019), Sonder (2022), and The Weight of the Woods (2026) as well as four EPs: Doves & Ravens (2017), Mike Dean Presents: Dermot Kennedy...

Steve Finnan

Irish association football player (born 1976)

Keith Andrews (footballer)

Keith Joseph Andrews is an Irish football coach and former player who played as a defensive midfielder. He is the head coach of Premier League club Brentford.

Kenny Cunningham

Costa Rican association football player