Anna Sutcliffe is part of a new wave of Irish creators using TikTok to bring Irish heritage to life. Originally from Dublin, she left the city behind for Achill Island and has embraced a new community-driven lifestyle filled with unique island traditions.
"My family was connected to the islands," she tells RTÉ Lifestyle, "so I was there all the time growing up. I would have grown up holidaying in Achill Island, and I absolutely loved it."
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Anna was given the option to work remotely and decided to set up shop at her home away from home. Before long, though, she had settled into a new way of life.
"I started to dread the return to Dublin," she muses. "I just decided to give it a go. The way of life here is so appealing, so much more relaxed, a better work-life balance."
As an avid hiker and outdoor adventurer, Anna found herself thriving once she left the city, and eventually landed a role as a Development Officer for Comhar na nOileán, working closely with communities of islands off Mayo and Donegal.
Through her work, she supports economic and cultural development in some of Ireland's most remote places. She is also tasked with celebrating and preserving the unique culture, language, and traditions at play.
"There's an abundance of storytelling on all the different islands," she explains. "I'm very excited to get back to Tory Island, they have very interesting stories that are deep-rooted in our heritage. They have the King of Tory - they're just waiting to nominate the new one."
Nominated by the community, the King of Tory works to promote the island on an international scale. The last King was Patsy Dan Rodgers, who took on the title in 1993 and held the role until his death in October 2018.
Other traditions she has enjoyed learning about include the making of Brídeog dolls on Inis Meáin, a ritual that sees young girls bring a straw doll (Brídeog) to their home on the eve of the Feast of St. Brigid in the hopes of being blessed by the patron Saint.
"All the crafts in terms of knitting and crocheting - it's so important that we support them," she says. "The Aran sweater is from the islands themselves. It's such an iconic piece of Irish culture."
"The factory out on Inis Meáin is one of the biggest employers on the island," she adds, "and it's so cool that you can go and visit it. It's so cool to be able to go out to a Ghaeltacht island and submerge yourself fully."
Anna recently represented Dublin in the Mary from Dungloe Festival – a proud celebration of Irish music, language, and tradition - and says she hopes to see more people embrace the Irish language.
"There are a lot of people trying to speak a lot more, and there are adult classes and adult Gaeltachts on some of the islands," she says. "There's such a resurgence of pride in speaking the language."
Merging the old with the new, Anna sees her content as a new form of Irish storytelling and herself as an online seanchaí of sorts.
"The islands and their stories are so visual, and I think TikTok really enables that," she explains. "It's the new, modern form of the storyteller, the seanchaí. That's what I see it as.
"I really enjoy being on the ground, and I think it's a fantastic way to keep the stories and traditions alive, to keep people interested, and to entice them to visit."
Her most popular videos have surrounded community activities like the all-island football championship that took place on Inishturk this past July, but her personal favourites lie in the incredible art scene.
"I studied Art History, so I love Derek Hill's Hut on Tory Island and the Abbey on Clare Island," she says. "There are medieval wall paintings in the Abbey that I love."
Overall, though, her greatest piece of advice is to rent a bike and take in the scenery: "On any of the islands, that's the best way to see them. And always bring rain gear!"
