Jacqueline O'Donovan: 'I’m not letting anyone with an Irish accent and born in Ireland tell me I’m not Irish.’“I’m the most Irish person you will meet with an English accent,” says London-born entrepreneur Jacqueline O’Donovan. People who grow up in Ireland are lucky because “no matter where they are from, you can hear the accent”, the OBE recipient says. I’m not not Irish. O’Donovan recalls being “shoved in the footwell covered blanket” to avoid paying a fare during more difficult financial times. “If I’m in Ireland and I say I am Irish people will look at me strangely.

Source: The Irish Times January 19, 2026 09:00 UTC