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PHOTOS Richard Harris Exhibition opens at Hunt Museum letting visitors step into the life of a legend
The highly anticipated exhibition of Richard Harris’ archives From ‘Dickie to Richard’ – Richard Harris: Role of a Lifetime has opened at the Hunt Museum and runs until November 16, 2025. Picture: Olena Oleksienko/ilovelimerick
From Rugby Pitch to Theatre Stage to the Film Set of Harry Potter, a new Richard Harris Exhibition opens at Hunt Museum, letting visitors step into the life of a legend
The highly anticipated exhibition of Richard Harris’ archives From ‘Dickie to Richard’ – Richard Harris: Role of a Lifetime has opened at the Hunt Museum, Limerick.
This landmark exhibition celebrates one of Ireland’s most magnetic and unconventional talents — Richard Harris — in the city where his story began.
The first-ever public exhibition of the Richard Harris Archive, generously donated by the Harris family to University College Cork in 2022, brings together personal letters, annotated scripts, rare photographs, poetry, and memorabilia that have never before been on display.
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Richard Harris’ sons, Damian, Jared and Jamie, attended the official opening along with family members and close friends.
Among the many exhibition highlights is the original crown worn by Harris in Camelot, a cherished rugby jersey honouring his lifelong love for Munster Rugby, and intimate 8mm film footage capturing Harris with his family at home in Limerick. These sit alongside material that spans his entire career — from Shakespeare to Harry Potter, from The Field to Gladiator.
“This exhibition is a celebration, not only of Richard Harris the actor, but of the man — the Limerick native, the poet, the rebel, the rugby lover,” said Teresa Crowley, CEO of the Hunt Museum. “We are proud to offer a deep and immersive insight into his extraordinary life in his home city.”
Curated in partnership with the Hunt Museum, the Harris Family and UCC’s Special Collections and Archives team, Role of a Lifetime is designed for everyone — whether you knew Harris as a proud rugby player and supporter, for his magnetic presence in This Sporting Life, or as Albus Dumbledore in Harry Potter.
Damien, Jared and Jamie Harris, speaking on behalf of the family, said ‘Richard was a prolific writer and kept everything: Poems. Short stories. Scripts. Whether finished or works in progress. This exhibition gives people a sense of the depth and humour behind the public image. It means a lot to us to see it begin here, in Limerick.”
Professor John O’Halloran, President of UCC, said, “The exhibition comprises carefully selected artefacts from the larger archive now housed, protected, preserved, and researched at University College Cork for generations to come. We were keen that the first public exhibition of the Richard Harris Archives occurred in Limerick and this collaboration with the Hunt Musuem has produced a stunning tribute to one of the most iconic film actors of the late twentieth century.”
Richard St. John Harris (1 October, 1930–25 October, 2002) was an Irish actor, writer and musical performer. He appeared with inexhaustible talent on stage and screen, most notably as Frank Machin in This Sporting Life, for which he won Best Actor at The Cannes Film Festival (1963). He was nominated for the Academy Award twice, in 1964 for This Sporting Life and in 1991 for The Field.
He won The Golden Globe for his portrayal as King Arthur in the 1968 film Camelot, and later in his life went on to portray the role in the 1981 revival of the stage musical. In his later career, he played English Bob, a gunfighter, in Clint Eastwood’s Western Unforgiven (1992), Emperor Marcus Aurelius in Ridley Scott’s Gladiator (2000), and Albus Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter films, the latter of which was his final film role.
The exhibition runs until 16 November 2025 at the Hunt Museum and will be accompanied by a public programme including film screenings, talks, and special events.
Pictures: Olena Oleksienko/ilovelimerick
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