Chaplin revelled in Cork gypsy roots

Charlie Chaplin may have been the quintessential English movie star, but his exotic dark looks and legendary performing genes could be thanks to his great grandmother, who was a gypsy from Cork.

An RTÉ documentary, Chaplin: The Waterville Picture, reveals Chaplin was hugely proud that his great grandmother was an Irish gypsy.

He first came to Waterville in 1959 with his young Irish-American wife Oona O’Neill and their eight children, and continued to arrive visit summer for the next 10 years.