From Victor Hugo’s Esmeralda to Bizet’s Carmen, Emily Brontë’s Heathcliff to My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding, the nomadic Romani-Gypsy has fascinated artists and the public alike and has been portrayed as everything from an outlaw to a romantic hero and a reality TV favourite. But what is it really like to be a Romani in the 21st century?

I-Gypsy is a one-man show from multi-award-winning storyteller and author, Richard O’Neill, that provides a fascinating and humorous insight into an upbringing in a large nomadic family and its interaction with the modern world, from the 1960s to the present day.

A thousand years of Roma history, originating in India – caravans, horses, farm work, King Henry VIII, the missing hedgehog and David Essex – all feature in this captivating show presented through stories, musings, anecdotes and pictures.

About The Speaker

Richard O’Neill

Richard O’Neill is a multi-award winning children’s author and storyteller from the Romani tradition. Richard’s captivating stories and beautifully illustrated books reflect the oral storytelling tradition and bring together themes of identity, community and ecology, they are inclusive, inspiring – and funny.