Ballyhoura Development is delighted to announce that the Ireland Canada Homecoming 2025, held in September of last year, will feature on RTÉ’s Nationwide on Monday next, 16th February, at 7pm.
The Ireland Canada Homecoming marked the 200th anniversary of the Peter Robinson Emigration Scheme, a deeply significant chapter of Irish emigration history. In 1823 and 1825, approximately 2,500 people emigrated from the Ballyhoura region and surrounding counties to Upper Canada, settling in what is now Ottawa and Peterborough County in Ontario.
The Homecoming welcomed 190 international visitors from Canada and the United States, all descendants of families who left this region two centuries ago. Over seven days, communities across Ballyhoura opened their doors and hearts, hosting visitors for historical walks and talks, music, song and dance, and shared moments of remembrance and reconnection.
A central feature of the week was the nightly performance of ‘The Robinson Experiment’, produced by CallBack Theatre and staged at the Schoolyard Theatre in Charleville, which brought the migration story vividly to life for audiences. The programme of events also included the Peter Robinson Settler Conference, held at Saint George’s Arts and Heritage Centre in Mitchelstown, officially opened by His Excellency Dennis King, Canadian Ambassador to Ireland, and An Taoiseach Micheál Martin.
‘Nationwide’ interviewed descendants during their visit to Cobh Heritage Centre, which opened a new interpretative wing on the Peter Robinson Emigration Scheme in May 2025. The programme also features interviews with The Robinson Experiment director John Sheehy, and producer Cora Fenton at the Schoolyard Theatre in Charleville.
Canadian partners Nine Ships 1825 Inc., who led the Canadian Bicentennial in August 2025, also shared footage from those events for inclusion in the programme. Ballyhoura Development representatives, including Amanda Slattery, Development Manager, travelled to Peterborough to attend the Canadian events, alongside historical geographer Christy Roche and writer and business man Gerry Murphy, who have collectively worked for many years on researching and interpreting this shared history. The Ireland Canada Homecoming delivered a significant local and international impact, generating an estimated €6.8 million for the local economy. A two-year marketing and engagement campaign reached 5.2 million people globally, strengthening cultural, genealogical and tourism connections between Ireland and Canada.