BROADCASTER Terry Christian has expressed his delight at getting an Irish passport, saying he will feel ‘no more shame’.
Christian, raised in Manchester by parents from Dublin, has long expressed his pride in his Irish roots, previously backing a campaign to encourage people in Britain of Irish heritage to declare their ethnicity on the census form.
The former presenter of Friday night institution The Word was also opposed to Brexit and has regularly used his social media accounts to highlight how he believes it has had a detrimental effect on Britain.
One downside for British people has been long queues at airports, with EU lanes no longer accessible to British passport holders.
Despite the EU’s new biometric entry/exit system (EES) being expected to ultimately hasten the process following its introduction last month, the British Government has warned travellers to expect even longer wait times at border control in the Schengen area during the six-month phased implementation stage.
Sharing the news of his new Irish passport on Twitter / X, Christian revealed he would no longer be affected by such hindrances.
“No more stupid queues, no more shame, no more being a prisoner of Toff Island,” he wrote.
Replying to a post in the replies as to why he hadn’t gotten the passport sooner, Christian revealed he had attempted to but was scuppered on different occasions by Covid and administrative issues.
“Irish independence took less time,” he quipped.
In a separate post on acquiring what has been ranked the world’s most powerful passport, Christian thanked his parents for his Irish heritage.
“So that’s all of us in the immediate family with our Irish passports plus one grandchild. All the rest will have them soon,” he wrote on Instagram.
“Thanks to my mum and dad for being from Dublin. Never knew it would be such a huge freedom.”
Christian’s upbringing in an Irish household in Manchester formed the subject of his show at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe, with Confessions of an Irish Catholic winning praise from both fans and critics.