Actor traces family tree to Tullylish
Regular viewers of the popular TV programme ‘Who do you think you are' will find this week's programme comes with a local flavour. The series of weekly programme follows a different celebrity tracing their family tree.
The programme being screened on BBC 1 at 9.00pm on Wednesday 18th October features actor Jeremy Irons as he tracks his roots back to his great-great-great grandfather, William McCreight, who along with 28 other members of the McCreight family are buried in the old cemetery adjoining All Saints' Parish Church, Tullylish. The Reverend W B Yeats, grandfather of William Butler Yeats the poet and dramatist, was the rector of Tuyllylish in the 1800s, when William McCreight lived in the parish. William was a well-known landowner in the area and is believed to have been a major contributor to church funds.
In the middle of the summer Jeremy Irons and the programme makers descended on All Saints', which is some three miles outside Banbridge. They were warmly greeted by the rector, the Rev Arthur Young, Grave Registrar Robin McCusker and Parish Administrator Heather Fulton. Robin helped Jeremy locate the family vault in the old graveyard. Arthur said afterwards that the visit by the high profile actor had given the church a major boost over the summer months. The down to earth celebrity also made a big impression on Heather when he asked her about the history of the parish.
Jeremy Irons became a household name in the 1980s when he played Charles Ryder in the TV drama Brideshead Revisited. He began his stage career in the West End in the rock musical Godspell. He also won a Best Actor Oscar for his part in Reversal of Fortune. Film goers will also recognise him from his roles in The Mission, Kingdom of Heaven and Die Hard with a Vengeance.