Mary Robinson will attend a screening of the award- winning documentary about her life at the Kiln Cinema in Kilburn.
The screening is part of a tour of the UK for the documentary Mrs Robinson, the first feature-length documentary about Ireland’s first female president, organised by Irish Film and TV UK (IFTUK).
The film will visit Glasgow, Birmingham and London with Mary Robinson herself taking part in a Q and A.
The special screenings will take place as part of Irish Film & TV UK’s (IFTUK) St Brigid’s Film Festival 2025.
They also follow the film launching the Irish Film Festival London in November.
The documentary paints a portrait of the influential woman whose gift for bridging differences was instrumental in bringing about seismic change in Ireland.
A reforming constitutional lawyer and senator in her early career, Mary Robinson is known for her progressive positions on issues such as reproductive rights and the decriminalisation of homosexuality in the 1970s and 1980s, pushing against a conservative establishment. Later, as UN High Commissioner she built a lasting legacy, fearlessly challenging perpetrators of human rights abuses all over the world.
In 1990 when Mary Robinson won the Irish Presidential vote in 1990, she famously declared: “I was elected by the women of Ireland, who instead of rocking the cradle, rocked the system.”
The Irish World spoke to director Aoife Kelleher around the time of the festival.
The director Aoife Kelleher told The Irish World at the Irish Film Festival London: “Mary was elected in 1990, I was eight years old at the time and it was a moment that really percolated down to girls my age: That sense of just big doors being thrown open and so much that had not been a possibility for girls and women, for the LGBTQ+ community, for disadvantaged communities across Ireland, there was a sense that finally, the country could be theirs as well.”
Filmed over three years, the documentary takes a deep-dive into her career as Robinson discusses the significant controversies throughout her tenure and her own regrets in professional life. The film is also a personal account in which Robinson reflects on the influence of her parents, growing up with three brothers, her time studying in the US and her decision to marry a Protestant in 1970s Ireland.
Aoife said in a previous interview with the Irish World: “I think Mary liked our pitch which was a warts and all look at her career to date, kind of giving her the chance to reflect on her life from the beginning and consider some of the key challenges that she’s faced and the battles that she’s fought, whether it was as a human rights lawyer in Ireland, the really tough and gruelling Presidential campaign that ended up being quite personal. I think the cut and thrust of that campaign was very, very challenging for her. I think she might have been questioned in ways that she wasn’t expecting, her family life being brought into the public arena and all of that.
“And then on to the UN. When the war on terror broke out, when she ended up having to really be quite negative for the first time in her career about the United States and this kind of notion of ‘truth to power’ really coming to the fore.
“And now climate justice being her main focus.
“I think giving her the chance to look through all of that was very appealing to her as well as some of the more controversial elements in her career and how really affronted and hurt the Irish public were when she didn’t complete the term of her presidency.
“Some people might feel that that ending a presidential term a few months early might be a storm in a teacup but actually, I think there was a huge sense of affront on the part of the Irish people when she left.
“It’s something that she really acknowledges as a mistake.
“Then, more recently, she got embroiled in the case of Dubai’s missing princesses and the saga of Princess Latifa al Maktoum.
“It’s a lot to get into a documentary but I think the chance to reflect on her life and talk about some of the challenges and some of the controversies really appealed to her.”
Mary Robinson recently stepped down as chair of the Elders, a position she held for six years, having taken over from Nelson Mandela. Now at 80, she remains active in political life, campaigning for climate justice – a passion that has intensified since becoming a grandmother. The documentary is one of the two best-performing documentaries at the Irish box office over the last three years.
Also in celebration of St Brigid’s Festival, IFTUK will also host a Masterclass with three prolific female filmmakers; Maeve Murphy, Julie Baines & Farah Abushwesha. This event will be hosted by IFTUK’s Nicola Wadell and runs in partnership with the Century Club in Shaftesbury Avenue – where the event will be held on the 21st January 2025 at 6.30PM.
There will also be a free online masterclass in partnership with Wise Women, with producer Edwina Forkin and casting director Maureen Hughes.
Mrs Robinson screens at Glasgow Film Theatre on 28 January, The Kiln Theatre in London on 29 January and MAC Birmingham on 1 February.
For more information and to book, go to iftuk.com.
