The Troubles Podcast

Ian Paisley was one of the most influential individuals involved in the Troubles. He fiercely protected Protestant and Unionist interests in Northern Ireland and flat out refused to even talk with Nationalists for decades. His thundering speeches embodied the style and power of Martin Luther King and his influence also led to the rise of loyalist paramilitary groups.  He was the ultimate ‘no’ man and many believed he would never soften. But he did, and in the final years of his life, he eventually agreed to sit at the table with Nationalists and help pave a future for the people of Northern Ireland. In this episode we will learn about the life of Paisley and the role he played in the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Massive thanks to all my patreons for their support the past couple of months. SOURCES:BBC documentary interview with himhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2xNHqJB6vIPaisley, From Trouble Maker To Peacemakerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2DNWxvIa5E&t=409sDocumentary about the rise of the DUPhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAaf49mM0SwAn example of one of his sermons:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIxkrFgb0CIObituary:https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/irish-times-obituary-rev-ian-paisley-1.1927133Sermon from 1966https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zlwLyZwnBgHistory of the Free Presbyterian Church: https://www.freepresbyterian.org/history/Paisley heckling the Popehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlbmIMbKZa4Sayings of Paisleyhttps://archive.is/20140912200213/http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/northern-ireland/the-sayings-of-ian-paisley-30582269.htmlThatcher vs Paisley Documentaryhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrjdXgIKwVgDocumentary on the Anglo-Irish Agreement:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k3m0bbdMuY See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Though the IRA attacked places in northern Ireland and the United Kingdom, they sometimes ventured further and their plan to bomb the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar is one such example. What happened in Gibraltar, and the chain of killings that followed in Northern Ireland, is one of the most shocking examples of the tit for tat violence that encapsulated the darkest days of the troubles in Northern Ireland.Sources and Further Reading:Documentary about Mairead Farrell (Irish language with English Subtitles)https://ifiplayer.ie/mairead_farrell/Death on the Rock Full Documentaryhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cE_0M_pzzUIRTE article about Haughey's reluctance to allow the bodies of the three to be flown into Dublin Airporthttps://www.rte.ie/news/2017/0825/899858-haughey-archive-papers/Article about the inquest into the killing of the Gibraltar threehttps://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/oct/01/ira-killings-gibraltar-sas-1988Yellow Card Rules for the British Army during conflicthttps://alphahistory.com/northernireland/british-army-instructions-opening-fire-1973/Guide on Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rightshttps://www.echr.coe.int/Documents/Guide_Art_2_ENG.pdfFootage minutes before the Corporeal killingshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZV3z9H6OyXoAnother Documentary about the three events:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8m8WCAHpD_IArticle about the Corporeal Killings (Warning, graphic images)https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/fr-alec-reid-death-it-was-a-photo-that-shocked-the-world-but-from-that-dark-day-a-sliver-of-light-appeared-on-the-horizon-29777931.html See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Maze Prison was seen by many as Europe’s most secure prison. It was a prison within a detention centre within an army camp, and believed to be completely impenetrable by any one prisoner. That was until September in 1983, when the IRA successfully pulled off the largest prison escape in British and Irish History. A massive thank you to the following Patreons who helped make this episode possible: Brendan B, Jessica Riley, Matthew McGregor, Nick Kinsella, SalBee, Sandra Lawman and Wes Mills.Here's a link to my Patreon if you want to support the podcast:https://www.patreon.com/thetroublespodcastSHOW NOTES:Documentary about the escape:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJy5N-hCxWwAnother interesting documentaryhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyCrhfYrWvgThatcher Speech where she discusses political status:https://www.margaretthatcher.org/document/104589Republican Magazine about the escape:https://issuu.com/anphoblacht/docs/iris-number-18Hennessy Inquiry in full:https://cain.ulster.ac.uk/hmso/hennessy/hennessy84.htm#chapter10Some good footage of Maze:https://www.rte.ie/archives/2018/0920/994978-maze-prison-escape/ See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It was a Saturday afternoon in the Northern Irish town of Omagh. With just two weeks before school was due to start, many parents were out with their children getting school uniforms.A red Vauxhall was parked in the centre of the town. Inside the car were two men, and a 500 pound bomb. The men armed the bomb and walked away, disappearing into the crowd.What happened next would become the single deadliest bombing atrocity of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.SOURCES: Excellent resource with many first hand accounts of the dayhttp://www.wesleyjohnston.com/users/ireland/past/omagh/before.htmlBBC Documentary, Who Bombed Omagh?At 28:50 the bombing is captured live by on a police dispatch.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0KPuQrYBYkIrish Times Timeline of the Omagh Bombing (Paywall):https://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/timeline-of-the-omagh-bombing-1.1525134?mode=sample&auth-failed=1&pw-origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.irishtimes.com%2Fnews%2Fcrime-and-law%2Ftimeline-of-the-omagh-bombing-1.1525134BBC article about the Real IRA apology:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/events/northern_ireland/focus/153629.stmArticle about how the criminal case unraveled:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/7154952.stmArticle about the UK withholding intelligence:rte.ie/news/2006/0224/73414-omagh/Full transcript of the 1998 report into the Omagh Bombing by Rights Watch UK:https://web.archive.org/web/20131019094823/http://www.rwuk.org/new/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Omagh-Report-15-8-13.pdf See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It was Sunday, January 30th 1972. Thousands of people from the city of Derry had gathered to March, protesting the new internment policy happening in Northern Ireland.Meanwhile on the other side, soldiers from the first battalion of the British Parachute Regiment were preparing to monitor the march, looking for any signs of paramilitary activity.Though it was meant to be a peaceful march, there was a palpable tension in the air and what was to follow, would be the catalyst for the bloodshed and violence that would plague Northern Ireland for the next 27 years. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This episode is a bit different that the regular ones. It is a 'primer episode to explain a number of different things related to how England ended up in Ireland and how the Troubles began in the first place. Here are the timestamps, if you want to hear about a particular part:The invasion of Ireland and history of British colonialism in Ireland: 01:24The build up to the start of the Troubles and the tipping point: 09:00Armed Forces, Paramilitary Organisations and Political Parties involved: 18:34 The Good Friday Agreement 29:36Statistics 31:33Further ReadingFin Dwyer has a fantastic podcast on ancient Irish Historyhttps://irishhistorypodcast.ie/Footage of British troops arrival in Northern Ireland:https://www.rte.ie/archives/2014/0814/636920-british-troops-arrive-in-northern-ireland-1969Footage of Gerry Fitt leading a crowd in Derry who are campaign for Civil Rights:https://www.rte.ie/archives/exhibitions/1031-civil-rights-movement-1968-9/1038-demonstration-and-intimidation/319628-derry-demonstrations-against-hearings/Article about the emptying of the Maze Prison:https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2000/jul/28/northernirelandStatistics of deaths during the Troubles:http://www.wesleyjohnston.com/users/ireland/past/troubles/troubles_stats.htmlBackground and formation of the IRA:https://www.britannica.com/topic/Irish-Republican-ArmyAnimated video explaining how England invaded Ireland:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQvaGt9B6H0Why Ireland split into the Republic of Ireland & Northern Irelandhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCJMQgfHXNI See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Shankill Butchers were a group of people who terrorized the streets of Belfast for seven years. They would pick up unsuspecting Catholic men off the street and then brutally torture them with butcher knives before killing them and dumping their bodies.This episode follows the activity of the gang, from formation to their eventual capture and what happened to those who evaded authorities. Heres a link to a one-hour documentary that was a great source for this episode:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBcYm7gDYxs See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

As the IRA moved their bombing campaign into England, they set their sights on the Prime Minister at the time, Margaret Thatcher. They came incredibly close to killing her which inspired them to ramp up their bombing campaign in Great Britain. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Birmingham Pub Bombings were one of the deadliest bombings carried out during The Troubles so the hunt was on to find the individuals responsible. On top of the tragic loss of life, six men found themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time and ended up serving sentences for crimes they had nothing to do with See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The band had just finished playing to a packed dance hall in the town of Banbridge in Northern Ireland. After the show, they hopped in their van and drove back towards Dublin. Until they were stopped by what appeared to be a routine traffic stop. The events that would unfold would shock the entire island of Ireland. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.