‘The Troubles’

Press, 29 May 1981, Page 15

‘The Troubles’

A five-part documentary about Ireland titled “The Troubles” begins on One tonight. The series follows the story of Anglo-Irish relations through the centuries from the plantation of Ulster in 1609 — when thousands of English and Scottish Protestants settled on Irish Catholic land — through the many nationalist uprisings, the partition of Ireland in 1921, and finally to the legacy of- those "years to be found on the streets of Londonderry and Belfast today. “The Troubles” feature a wide selection of views from both nationalists and unionists, with archive film, some of it being shown for the first time, and eye-witness accounts of some of the great moments of Irish history in this century. “The Troubles” starts from basics, explaining and introducing the personalities and

beliefs behind all those names and initials dotted through the news and it sets out to study the problem with a fresh eye — for instance, looking upon Belfast as though it were a city in the north of England. None of the Thames Television production team is Irish: Richard Broad, the producer, had never been to Northern Ireland before he embarked on the series. He sees that as a positive advantage. “On an historical series such as this,” he says, “innocence is a good place to start from. “You don't want people with prejudices if you are setting out to destroy prejudices. It is better to start from nothing.” Rosalie Crutchley narrates “Conquest,” tonight’s episode of “The Troubles.”

This opening programme gives an account of the British conquest of Ireland and the sense of grievance and resentment it created.

The Irish today remember Cromwell’s cruelty. the Penal Laws which deprived Catholics and dissenters of their fundamental liberties, and the tragic famine of 1845-50 which killed a million people. .

They also remembered those who suffered and those who died resisting British rule, particularlv the rebels of 1916.

Yet for Ulster Protestants. Irish history seems different. They recall how they were planted in the north-east of Ireland by the English government in 1609. To this day they celebrate Protestant victories over Catholics in the 17th century.