Drogheda United Chairman Conor Hoey (R) speaks during the filming of ‘An Gorta Mór: The Star and the Crescent’ at a football pitch in Trabzon. (AA Photo)
A new documentary will explore the historic ties between Türkiye and Ireland, tracing their roots to aid sent by the Ottoman Empire to Ireland during the Great Famine in the 19th century.
Titled “An Gorta Mór: The Star & The Crescent,” the 40-minute production will focus on the famine of 1845-1851, which claimed around 1 million lives and forced some 2 million people to leave Ireland. It will examine Ottoman assistance to the Irish population in 1847 and the traces of that solidarity that remain in Ireland today.
Directed and produced by Hayriye Savaşçıoğlu, with Ülkü Uzun also serving as a producer, the documentary will draw on Ottoman and Irish archival records, including letters and historical documents, as well as research and interviews with academics and historians.
The film will also examine the longstanding relationship between Trabzonspor and Ireland’s Drogheda United, whose colors are burgundy and blue and whose crest features a crescent and star. The clubs’ ties date back to a period when Trabzonspor and the people of Trabzon supported Drogheda United during financial difficulties around two decades ago.
The documentary’s first footage was shot during a friendly match between the two clubs in Trabzon on Oct. 1. Further filming is planned in Istanbul, Drogheda, Dublin and New York.
Savaşçıoğlu said the project aims to preserve the story of a friendship formed nearly 180 years ago. “Humanity is still being tested by the same problems,” she said, explaining that the documentary would focus on the famine and the aid that came “from afar.”
Drogheda United chairman Conor Hoey said the club was pleased to see the relationship documented. He also praised the hospitality in Trabzon, saying the city’s climate and friendly people made him feel “at home.”
Filming is expected to be completed in 2027, with the documentary scheduled to begin its festival journey in 2028.
