Our World
The Last Linen Beetler of Ireland
Written by Sophie Gallagher
The Financial Times came north to meet the people who actually make the cloth.
What they found
They found a beetling mill, a handful of weavers, and an industry that is smaller than it was but has not stopped. The distinction matters more than it sounds.
A rare kind of story
It was a rare thing: a fashion story that spent its time in the finishing room rather than the showroom. Nobody was styled. The photographs are mostly of hands and machinery.
There is one engine and one man who can set it. That is the whole story, and it took a national paper to say it out loud.
Why it mattered
Coverage does not keep a mill open; orders do. But it is easier to place orders for something people have heard of. The engine itself is described in Inside the Beetling Mill.
Niall Hartigan
Frequently Asked Questions
What did the Financial Times cover?
The people who actually make the cloth — a beetling mill, a handful of weavers, and an industry smaller than it was.
Is the industry finished?
No. It is smaller than it was, but it has not stopped, and the machinery and the knowledge are both still here.
Why was the piece unusual?
Because it spent its time in the finishing room rather than the showroom.
