The COVID-19 pandemic had a profound effect on how many of us view our professional and personal lives, including my own. For teachers of English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) there was an immediate disruption as lockdown restrictions were announced in March 2020, with an imperative during that initial period to maintain contact with learners and facilitate online teaching and learning where possible. This study explores the personal and professional experiences of ESOL practitioners working on the island of Ireland during and since the pandemic. It considers how they felt and what they did, but also how far they felt supported and who they might have collaborated or kept in touch with. Before embarking on this study, I had spent the previous two decades working for City & Guilds where I managed, supported and advised on its ESOL, literacy and numeracy qualifications and services. Most of that work involved supporting practitioners and provider organisations in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, though since relocating to Derry a decade ago my role had become home-based but nevertheless involved almost weekly commutes across the Irish Sea to meet with colleagues and customers. The pandemic provided me with pause for thought, an opportunity to consider how I might apply my knowledge and experience of language and literacy learning closer to home. Based on qualitative interviews, eight ESOL practitioners’ insights and reflections are distilled across four themes: • equity and learner engagement • practicalities of lockdown and using technology • collaboration and communication • enduring changes. The study also considers the wider context of Ireland’s publicly funded ESOL programmes, and especially why ESOL has not have gained the same level of high profile and cross-government support that can be seen with the ten-year Adult Literacy for Life (ALL) strategy.