Manchester United’s famous “Big Lily” flag will take center stage on the 21st anniversary of its inception at Old Trafford.
The club has handed over its famous stadium for a day of celebration to commemorate the historic flag that emerged from the conflict in Northern Ireland.
Revered among United’s 670 million fans worldwide, Big Lily has become a symbol that represents all the positive things about Manchester United, friendship and passion through football.
It was launched in 1999 by best friends Keith Norris and the late Martin ‘Faceman’ Cleary – two friends from opposite sides of the religious divide in Northern Ireland – to create harmony in their local Manchester United Supporters Club – and has been used all over the world World wide including Australia, Brazil, Japan and Germany.
Keith Norrissaid: “There are now 254 Manchester United Supporters Clubs in 82 countries. All United supporters have a role in the global red family. Support groups like TRA Red Army create an amazing atmosphere in Old Trafford. MMMF works tirelessly to preserve the memory of the Busby Babes. MUST depict topics that are important to the fans. Big Lily is all about friendship and a small part of the United family. Everything Big Lily does to foster friendship is dedicated to the memory of Faceman.
The flag appeared in two Champions League finals, was the bridesmaid at Norris’ wedding in Kyoto, attended George Best’s funeral in Belfast and was a special guest at the Malta Manchester United Supporters Club’s 60th anniversary event.
The name ‘Lily’ is derived from the Easter lily and the orange lily, which are symbolic of the Catholic and Protestant traditions in Ireland.
Despite their different religious backgrounds, the two creators of ‘Big Lily’ were best friends and dedicated supporters of Manchester United.
Ireland, north and south, is a hotbed for Manchester United with 45 official fan clubs. Irish Patrick O’Connell, Johnny Carey, Noel Cantwell and Roy Keane led the team. Club legends like George Best, Sammy McIlroy, Norman Whiteside, Denis Irwin, Tony Dunne and Liam Whelan all hail from the Emerald Isle.
John Peden was the first Irishman to be signed by Newton Heath, the forerunner of Manchester United, in 1893. 63 players followed suit and crossed the Irish Sea to wear the famous Manchester United red shirt, the newest, currently under 23 stars, Ethan Galbraith.
The club received great recognition for displaying the “Busby Babes” tribute flags, commemorating those who died of the 1958 Munich air disaster when they were displayed in the game against Everton at Stretford End on February 6th – the 63rd anniversary were of the crash that killed 23 people.
Hundreds of avid United fans travel each year with the tribute flags to the crash site in Trudering, Munich, where they hold a memorial service organized by the Manchester Munich Memorial Foundation, a charity dedicated to the memory of the Busby Babes.
Known as “The Global Flag of Friendship,” the flag has many famous friends – from football players like Gary Neville, Raul Gonzalez and Cristiano Ronaldo – to dignitaries like Dieter Reiter, Lord Mayor of Munich, Mark Magowan, Prime Minister of Western Australia and former Irish Taoiseach , Bertie Ahern.
For the first time in Old Trafford, the famous 60 by 40 foot trailer flag will be hoisted alongside 50 ‘Wee Lily’ tribute flags, dedicated to the memory and illustrious history of heroes, legends and fans of the club.
They will proudly fly together as part of a documentary film about the flag in which a number of famous people contribute to the film.
Big Lily attracted worldwide media coverage when a mural dedicated to her was unveiled on Belfast’s world-famous International Peace Wall in 2019.
