List of Cork people

Cork is the second largest city of Ireland and largest county in Ireland and has produced many noted artists, entertainers, politicians and business people.

Historical and/or political figures

• John Anderson – businessman
• Sir John Arnott – businessman, newspaper owner
• Anthony Barry – politician, photographer
• James Barry - surgeon, possibly born in Cork
• Katty Barry – restaurateur
• Mick Barry – Teachta Dála and Socialist politician.
• Peter Barry – Tánaiste
• Tadhg Barry – journalist, trade unionist and nationalist
• Tom Barry – guerilla leader during war of independence, author of the book Guerilla Days in Ireland
• Olive Beamish – suffragette activist
• Joseph Brennan – civil servant
• Sir George Callaghan – Admiral of the Fleet
• Patrick Cleburne – Major General in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War
• Hugh Coveney – government minister
• Simon Coveney – Tánaiste
• Thomas Croke – Archbishop of Cashel
• Donal Creed (1924 – 2017): Fine Gael politician; MEP, Teachta Dála, Minister of State under Garret FitzGerald
• Michael Creed (b. 1963): Former Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine
• Eileen Desmond – government minister, Senator, MEP
• Mary Elmes – aid worker honoured as 'Righteous Among the Nations' for saving 200 Jewish children during WWII
• Gerald Goldberg – first Jewish lord mayor
• T. C. Hammond – Church of Ireland clergyman
• William Baylor Hartland – plant breeder, seedsman
• John Pope Hennessy – author, governor of Hong Kong and Mauritius
• Ellen Hutchins – botanist
• Mary Harris "Mother" Jones – labour organiser, born near Cork
• Jim Lane – Irish Republican Socialist
• Arthur Leahy - LGBT activist
• Cornelius Lucey – Bishop of Cork and Ross
• Jack Lynch – Taoiseach and hurler
• Thomas Mac Curtain – Lord Mayor of Cork
• Terence MacSwiney – Lord Mayor and hunger striker
• Daniel Mannix – Roman Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne
• Micheál Martin – Taoiseach
• Sake Dean Mahomed (1759–1851) – Bengali traveller, surgeon, entrepreneur, and one of the most notable early non-European immigrants to the Western World
• Stephen Moylan – Quartermaster General of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War
• Michael Murphy – first Irish president of the European Court of Auditors
• Nano Nagle – educator who founded the Presentation Sisters
• William O'Brien – nationalist politician and MP; founder of All-for-Ireland League
• Fergus O'Connor – Irish nationalist and publisher
• Dáithí Ó Conaill – Irish republican
• Jeremiah O'Donovan Rossa – nationalist
• Batt O'Keeffe – government minister
• Michael O'Riordan – socialist politician
• John Cyril Porte – pioneer aviator
• John Roach – major shipbuilder in postbellum United States
• Adi Roche – humanitarian campaigner
• Brendan Ryan – Senator and lecturer at CIT
• William Henry John Seffern – printer, newspaper editor, journalist and historian
• D. D. Sheehan – nationalist politician and first Labour MP
• Canon Patrick Augustine Sheehan – Catholic priest, author, political activist
• Kathy Sinnott – MEP
• Robert Spence – Roman Catholic Archbishop of Adelaide
• William Thompson – political and philosophical writer
• Sir Robert Torrens – Prime Minister South Australia; pioneer of Land Registration system
• Thady Quill – historical rake
• The Wallace sisters – IRA Intelligence officers

Scientists

• Vincent Barry - chemist
• Amy Warren - marine biologist and conchologist
• Robert Warren - ornithologist

Military

• James Adams – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Francisco Burdett O'Connor – officer in the Irish Legion of Simón Bolívar's army
• Josephine Carr – Women's Royal Naval Service woman; first Wren killed in action.
• Michael Collins – revolutionary leader, and Chairman of Provisional Government
• John Dunlay – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• William English – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Michael Fitzgerald – member of the Irish Republican Army who died on hunger strike
• Richard Fitzgerald – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Thomas Kent – Irish nationalist
• Thomas Lane – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Samuel Lawrence – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• David Lord – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Ambrose Madden – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Mick Mannock – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Joe Murphy – Irish republican who died on hunger strike
• James Murray – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Timothy O'Hea – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Daniel Florence O'Leary – Irish-born Venezuelan brigadier general of Simón Bolívar's army
• Michael O'Leary – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Gerald O'Sullivan – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• John Sullivan – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• James Travers – recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Joseph Ward – recipient of the Victoria Cross

Sports

• John Allen – former Irish hurler and Gaelic footballer
• Hugh T. Baker – cricketer
• Mick Barry – road bowler
• James Brophy – cricketer
• Alan Browne – footballer
• Noel Cantwell – international footballer
• Graham Canty – footballer and international rules captain
• Brian Carney – rugby league, and rugby union footballer of the 1990s and 2000s
• Mark Carroll – long-distance athlete
• Joe Cleary – major league baseball player
• Mark Cohen – cricketer
• Megan Connolly – footballer
• Joe Deane – hurler
• Damien Delaney – international footballer
• Patrick Dineen – cricketer
• Jack Doyle – boxer
• Eddie Dunbar – cyclist
• John Egan – association footballer
• Joe English (sailor), round the world sailor and international yachtsman.
• Percy Exham – cricketer
• James Foley – cricketer
• William Harman – cricketer
• Ryan Hartslief – footballer and rugby player
• Colin Healy – international footballer
• Marian Heffernan – Olympian
• Robert Heffernan – Olympic bronze medalist
• Tom Horan – cricketer (Australia)
• Denis Irwin – international footballer
• Roy Keane – international footballer
• Caoimhín Kelleher – footballer
• Alan Lewis – cricketer, rugby union referee
• Jack McAuliffe – boxer
• Teddy McCarthy – GAA sportsman, played on both Cork hurling and football double winning teams
• Darren McNamara – professional drift driver
• Sam Maguire – GAA sportsman
• David Meyler – international footballer
• Liam Miller – international footballer
• Tony Mullane – major league baseball player
• Saoirse Noonan – international footballer
• Donncha O'Callaghan – rugby union player
• Dr. Pat O'Callaghan – twice Olympic gold medalist
• Frank O'Farrell – international footballer and manager
• Ronan O'Gara – rugby union player
• Seán Óg Ó hAilpín – hurler
• Ciarán Ó Lionáird – international middle-distance athlete
• John O'Shea – darts player
• Derval O'Rourke – world indoor champion hurdler and European outdoor silver medalist 2006
• Bríd Stack - ladies Gaelic and Australian rules footballer
• Denise O'Sullivan – international footballer
• Marcus O'Sullivan – middle-distance athlete
• Sonia O'Sullivan – Olympic silver medalist, world champion athlete and cross country runner
• Christy Ring – hurler
• Peter Stringer – rugby union player

Film, entertainment and media

• Jack Gleeson – actor
• Sarah Greene – actor
• Eddie Hobbs – TV personality
• George Hook – TV/radio personality
• Fergal Keane, OBE – BBC journalist
• Danny La Rue, OBE – female impersonator
• James Leonard and Timmy Long of The Two Norries podcast
• Joe Lynch – actor
• Mark Mahon – film director
• Pixie McKenna – TV personality, doctor
• Siobhán McSweeney – actor
• Edward Mulhare – TV actor
• Cillian Murphy – actor
• Graham Norton – TV personality
• Bill O'Herlihy – TV personality
• Eoin Reardon – TikToker and YouTuber
• Jonathan Rhys-Meyers – actor
• Tony Scannell – actor
• Fiona Shaw, CBE – actor
• Cailín Ní Toibín – beauty pageant titleholder
• Niall Tóibín – comic actor
• Nora Twomey – animator
• Eileen Walsh – actor

Literature

• Sara Baume – writer
• Máire Bradshaw – poet and publisher
• Daniel Corkery – writer
• Patrick Galvin – poet, singer and playwright
• Trevor Joyce – poet
• Helmut Kollars – writer and illustrator
• Danielle McLaughlin – writer
• Doireann Ní Ghríofa – poet and writer
• Frank O'Connor – author
• Seán Ó Faoláin – writer
• Joseph O'Neill – writer
• Tim O'Reilly – author, publisher, and founder of O'Reilly Media
• Seán Ó Ríordáin – poet
• P. A. Ó Síocháin – journalist, author, lawyer and Irish language activist
• James O'Sullivan – writer and academic
• Eimear Ryan – writer
• William Trevor – writer
• William Wall – author

Music and arts

• Abraham Abell – antiquarian
• James Barry – neoclassical painter
• Kim Carroll – composer and guitarist
• Cathal Coughlan – singer/songwriter
• Dorothy Cross – artist
• Robert Day – antiquarian, photographer
• Ricky Dineen – musician
• Cian Ducrot – singer/songwriter
• Gavin Dunne (better known as Miracle of Sound) – musician
• Chloe Early – artist
• Mick Flannery – singer-songwriter
• Aloys Fleischmann – composer, professor of music at UCC
• Rory Gallagher – singer/songwriter and guitarist
• Patrick Hennessy – painter
• John Hogan – sculptor
• Pina Kollars – singer/songwriter
• Sir Hugh Lane – patron of arts
• Charles Lynch – classical pianist
• Mick Lynch – singer
• Daniel Maclise – artist
• Jimmy McCarthy – singer/songwriter
• Lyra McNamara – singer/songwriter
• Paul McSwiney – composer and dramatist
• Sean O'Hagan – musician
• Una Palliser – violinist, violist, singer
• Allie Sherlock - singer/songwriter
• Brian Smyth – painter
• John Spillane – singer/songwriter
• Henry Jones Thaddeus – painter
• Bambie Thug – singer/songwriter
• Finbar Wright – singer/songwriter

Bands

• Five Go Down to the Sea?
• The Frank and Walters
• Microdisney
• Rubyhorse
• Stump
• The Sultans of Ping FC

References