Despite his courageous efforts in ensuring the survival of the crew, he never received a British Polar Medal after falling foul of Shackleton. But, at last, his heroics are set to be given recognition, not in the form of a British Polar Medal, but an Irish one. The Irish Polar Institute was established in 2025 by Paddy Barry, Jarlath Cunnane and others. The decision to award the first Irish Polar Medal to McNish reflects the Institute’s commitment to correcting historical omissions in polar history. Douglas-Hamilton has described the failure to award McNish a British Polar Medal as ‘the greatest injustice in polar history’.