Sean O’Connell was born in Manchester. His parents hailed from Tuam, County Galway and Castletown Geoghegan in County Westmeath. He is a Professor of Modern British and Irish history at Queen’s University Belfast and has lived in Northern Ireland since 1999.
In January 2021, alongside Professor Leanne McCormick, he published the research report entitled Mother and Baby Homes and Magdalene Laundries in Northern Ireland 1922-1990. Sean took the lead in the collection and analysis of oral testimony that was used in that report. Together with our trauma informed specialist, Beverley Clarke, and our linguistic analysis specialist Patricia Canning, Sean is leading on the Panel’s collection and analysis of individual testimonies.
Sean has been an oral historian since 1992 and is an editor of the journal Oral History. He is the founder of Quote Hub, Queen’s oral history website, which is home to some of the testimonies on Mother and Baby Institutions, Magdalene Laundries and Workhouses that featured in the 2021 research report.