In May 2025, the Museum will launch a new LGBTQ+ tour marking the 10th Anniversary of the Marriage Equality Referendum. The Museum currently seeks applications from suitable individuals, in particular those with knowledge of and/or lived experience in LGBTQ+ history, culture and heritage, for a social history research project to develop a Queer Tour for the NMI - Collins Barracks. See here and below for more information about this project and how to apply.
Our programming on LGBTQ+ themes includes the Rainbow Trail which you can pick up at Museum reception or download it here before your visit. Take the Trail to explore artefacts on display which have a connection with LGBTQ+ histories, including LGBTQ+ figures who were caught up in the 1916 Easter Rising and more recent activists involved in the campaigns for equality in Irish law. The trail was originally part of the Rainbow Revolution Exhibition, on display at the Museum in 2019.
Also watch the short film made by historian and curator at Kilmainham Gaol, Brian Crowley, on Roger Casement’s Greatcoat, which was on display in the Museum’s Proclaiming a Republic: The 1916 Rising exhibition.
In 2020 - 2022, the National Museum of Ireland collaborated with the OUTing the Past Festival, the International Festival of Lesbian Gay Bisexual & Trans History, delivering an exciting celebration of events, talks, webinars and workshops, many of which are accessible online on the Museum’s YouTube channel.