06/10/2026
Noel Gallagher, Susan Sarandon and Siobhán McSweeney are among celebrities who have signed a letter to Britain’s secretary of state for Northern Ireland, Sir Chris Bryant, calling for the appointment of an independent mediator from outside Britain or Ireland to try to solve the standoff over the proposed Orange parade down the Garvaghy Road.
Other high-profile signatories of the letter include, film directors Jim Sheridan, Ken Loach and Trevor Birney; actors Adrian Dunbar, Maxine Peake and Denise Gough; writer Irvine Welsh; artist Jim Fitzpatrick; chef Richard Corrigan; British trade union leaders Eddie Dempsey and Mick Lynch; musicians Paul Weller, Johnny Marr of the Smyths, Kevin Rowland of Dexy’s Midnight Runners, Suggs from Madness, Imelda May, Nadine Shah, Siobhán Fahy, Kneecap, their manager Daniel Lambert, and Robert Del Naja of Massive Attack; and creation records boss Alan McGee.
In the letter, they write to Mr Bryant “with a sense of profound urgency regarding the current impasse surrounding the Garvaghy Road parading dispute in Portadown”.
“Following the breakdown of recent talks at Hillsborough Castle, it has become increasingly evident that local mechanisms have exhausted their current utility and that a fresh, independent framework is required to prevent a deeper crisis.
“Therefore, we respectfully urge you to work in tandem with the Irish Government to appoint an independent international mediator from outside Ireland and Britain to facilitate a robust, durable resolution.”
They say that the standoff is a stark reminder of the fragile nature of the Peace Process and of the importance of “mutual respect, dialogue, and cross-community parity of esteem”.
