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I remember sitting on the rocks
down at the beach,
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00:00:06,200 --> 00:00:08,280
in my mind going over August 27th,
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August 27th, and I kept saying 1979,
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I'll never forget this date,
and I don't.
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Every year, that date comes round
and we remember it.
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00:00:17,800 --> 00:00:20,560
40 years ago, Lord Mountbatten,
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the great-uncle of Prince Charles,
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was blown up at sea by the IRA
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at Mullaghmore,
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00:00:27,320 --> 00:00:29,480
off the west coast of Ireland.
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By killing Mountbatten,
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you sent ripples around the world,
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00:00:34,120 --> 00:00:38,640
in a way in which no other
assassination could have achieved.
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No member of
the British royal family
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had been murdered
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by terrorists, within living memory.
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At the time, I could not imagine how
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we would come to terms with
the anguish
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of such a deep loss.
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Three others were killed on the
boat, including two teenage boys.
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There was an almighty bang,
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a huge crack like thunder,
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and I immediately said...
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"Paul is dead."
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The day was marked not just by
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the Mountbatten bomb,
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but by a second IRA attack
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that killed 18 British soldiers
29
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at Warrenpoint, across the border
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in Northern Ireland.
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The IRA couldn't believe their luck.
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For the nationalist population,
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we were monsters.
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This is the story of that day...
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..told by those
directly affected by it.
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00:01:42,840 --> 00:01:47,240
It is hard, when you see the wounds
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that never really got sewn up,
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00:01:50,120 --> 00:01:52,880
from that day and that tragedy,
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and that is hard.
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00:01:57,480 --> 00:02:04,520
This programme contains scenes which
some viewers may find upsetting
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MUSIC: This Is Your Life
theme tune
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In a few minutes from now,
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I'll know whether or not
we're going to succeed in telling
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00:02:19,600 --> 00:02:23,320
the exciting story of a man whose
courage and daring in the war
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and far-ranging influence on peace
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00:02:26,080 --> 00:02:27,880
have significantly contributed to
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00:02:27,880 --> 00:02:30,400
the shaping of
this century's history.
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The man I'm after has no idea that
I'm going to be there...
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I remember going to the studio
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and I remember the dress,
I had to wear my sister's
51
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hand-me-down dress,
always a hand-me-down dress.
52
00:02:39,080 --> 00:02:41,440
And my thanks to
Lord Brabourne, John Barrett...
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00:02:41,440 --> 00:02:44,120
We even had Princess Anne's
underwear, I remember one year
54
00:02:44,120 --> 00:02:45,680
was handed all the way down to us.
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00:02:45,680 --> 00:02:48,720
Admiral of the Fleet,
the Earl Mountbatten of Burma,
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tonight, this is your life.
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What do you mean?
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LAUGHTER
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I don't know what you mean!
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00:02:57,880 --> 00:03:01,040
Inside here, we have
a whole host of surprises for you...
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00:03:01,040 --> 00:03:03,480
Amazing that they managed to
pull that off.
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APPLAUSE
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00:03:08,760 --> 00:03:10,560
Now, India, that's an unusual name,
64
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isn't it? How did you get that?
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00:03:12,320 --> 00:03:14,320
Because my grandfather was the last
66
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Viceroy of India.
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00:03:14,320 --> 00:03:17,560
LAUGHTER AND APPLAUSE
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Because my grandfather was
the last Viceroy of India!
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00:03:22,000 --> 00:03:25,320
Of course, nowadays, people say,
what's a Viceroy?
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As Viceroy, he was the last
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colonial ruler of India.
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00:03:33,040 --> 00:03:36,240
He was also Admiral of the Fleet,
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second cousin of the Queen,
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and mentor to the Prince of Wales.
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00:03:43,240 --> 00:03:45,160
The Earl Mountbatten of Burma
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was, for half a century, one of
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00:03:47,320 --> 00:03:49,960
Britain's leading public figures.
78
00:03:51,560 --> 00:03:53,280
Can you bear having hot milk in it,
79
00:03:53,280 --> 00:03:55,440
or would you rather not
have milk in it?
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00:03:55,440 --> 00:03:56,720
In retirement, he spent
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00:03:56,720 --> 00:03:59,200
more time with his family,
82
00:03:59,200 --> 00:04:02,080
but he still enjoyed
the public spotlight so much
83
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that he allowed an ITV crew
84
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to record his annual summer holiday
in Ireland,
85
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even if it meant compromising
the family's privacy.
86
00:04:10,120 --> 00:04:11,520
I've found some more milk...
87
00:04:11,520 --> 00:04:12,720
Every Easter, every summer,
88
00:04:12,720 --> 00:04:15,160
every Christmas,
every single holiday,
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00:04:15,160 --> 00:04:17,040
we were together with our cousins.
90
00:04:17,040 --> 00:04:18,280
One, two, three... Whoopsie!
91
00:04:18,280 --> 00:04:21,640
Classiebawn was always
in the summer, a month in August.
92
00:04:21,640 --> 00:04:23,640
The twins, where are the twins?
93
00:04:23,640 --> 00:04:27,640
For all of the fact that
it was called Classiebawn Castle,
94
00:04:27,640 --> 00:04:31,000
essentially, it wasn't. It was a
Victorian mansion, with some turret
95
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built onto the end of it.
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00:04:33,640 --> 00:04:38,080
Lord Mountbatten inherited
Classiebawn Castle from his wife,
97
00:04:38,080 --> 00:04:41,000
Lady Edwina, who died in 1960.
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There were so many
wonderful traditions.
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00:04:49,680 --> 00:04:51,640
The heart of the holiday was
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00:04:51,640 --> 00:04:52,880
going out on the boat.
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00:04:52,880 --> 00:04:54,320
I would go a lot on the boat,
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we all did.
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India, come on...
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The building of the dams,
that was absolutely a tradition,
105
00:05:01,720 --> 00:05:03,480
and taken very seriously.
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Everybody knew what they had to do.
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LORD MOUNTBATTEN: Give it to me,
I'll show you. Make the hole here.
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There it is, see? From here,
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then you start doing the dam.
110
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Yeah. Out of the way...
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00:05:13,400 --> 00:05:17,480
You see, he was, um,
admiralling, wasn't he?
112
00:05:17,480 --> 00:05:18,800
No, put it this way.
113
00:05:18,800 --> 00:05:20,240
Go on, do as you're told.
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Do as you're told.
115
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That'll do it.
116
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There we are. There you are...
117
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It would be hard to be
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00:05:26,240 --> 00:05:28,720
Chief of Combined Operations
and then not be in charge of
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00:05:28,720 --> 00:05:31,160
the family dam, let's face it.
120
00:05:32,720 --> 00:05:34,640
That way...
121
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The Mountbattens were generally
viewed by the locals as benevolent,
122
00:05:39,560 --> 00:05:43,480
well-meaning, helpful people,
who it was nice to have around.
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00:05:43,480 --> 00:05:46,760
The neighbourhood benefited
as a result of their presence.
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00:05:49,280 --> 00:05:52,400
Each summer, the Mountbattens
would take up residence
125
00:05:52,400 --> 00:05:53,880
at Classiebawn Castle,
126
00:05:53,880 --> 00:05:57,480
overlooking the pretty
fishing village of Mullaghmore.
127
00:05:59,080 --> 00:06:02,320
The family's visits
brought a touch of glamour,
128
00:06:02,320 --> 00:06:04,800
and jobs for the locals.
129
00:06:05,840 --> 00:06:07,640
This photograph, here,
130
00:06:07,640 --> 00:06:10,080
was in the dining room
of Classiebawn.
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00:06:10,080 --> 00:06:14,440
It's a dinner. That is me there.
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00:06:17,040 --> 00:06:19,000
When you look back,
so many years ago,
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00:06:19,000 --> 00:06:21,000
it's now 40 years,
you can always say,
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00:06:21,000 --> 00:06:25,400
the memories of them
are happy ones,
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00:06:25,400 --> 00:06:28,240
and that's the most
important thing of all.
136
00:06:28,240 --> 00:06:30,440
Do you remember this, Mother?
137
00:06:30,440 --> 00:06:33,640
Louis gave you this book. Yeah.
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00:06:33,640 --> 00:06:35,760
"To Mrs Barry,
with grateful appreciation,
139
00:06:35,760 --> 00:06:40,760
"Mountbatten of Burma,
Classiebawn Castle. August, 1978."
140
00:06:40,760 --> 00:06:44,160
And it was Barbara Cartland's
Book of Useless Information.
141
00:06:44,160 --> 00:06:46,880
So, my mother treasured that
very much.
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00:06:46,880 --> 00:06:49,360
I think that's the last thing
he gave to her.
143
00:07:02,320 --> 00:07:05,320
The Mountbattens were not alone
in their attachment
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00:07:05,320 --> 00:07:07,680
to Mullaghmore.
145
00:07:07,680 --> 00:07:09,760
There are my three children
at Mullaghmore.
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00:07:09,760 --> 00:07:13,760
That was Paul and his two sisters.
147
00:07:15,680 --> 00:07:18,360
Mullaghmore was
a popular holiday destination
148
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for families from Northern Ireland,
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00:07:21,000 --> 00:07:22,400
as well as the South,
150
00:07:22,400 --> 00:07:24,800
and the Maxwells, from Enniskillen,
151
00:07:24,800 --> 00:07:26,680
had their own cottage there.
152
00:07:26,680 --> 00:07:30,560
We went down there during
summer holidays for two months
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00:07:30,560 --> 00:07:35,320
every year, and the children
enjoyed it immensely.
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I particularly like this...
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this one of Paul.
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That summer,
15-year-old Paul Maxwell
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landed his dream job - looking after
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00:07:45,480 --> 00:07:48,920
Lord Mountbatten's boat, Shadow V.
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00:07:48,920 --> 00:07:51,800
I think they had
a nice relationship.
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00:07:51,800 --> 00:07:54,200
Paul would sometimes
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stay on the boat afterwards with
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00:07:56,600 --> 00:07:59,560
Mountbatten and they would talk.
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00:07:59,560 --> 00:08:05,080
And he told Paul about going
into the Navy. And he said,
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00:08:05,080 --> 00:08:09,600
"You know, I went into the Navy
when I was 12 years old,
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00:08:09,600 --> 00:08:13,440
"and I saw active service
when I was 16."
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00:08:13,440 --> 00:08:18,400
And Paul said to him,
"Were you not frightened, My Lord?"
167
00:08:18,400 --> 00:08:21,720
And he said, "Yes,
but you didn't show it."
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And you can see...
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Classiebawn in the background there,
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00:08:26,960 --> 00:08:28,440
in the distance.
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00:08:31,720 --> 00:08:36,240
Classiebawn itself had been a fairly
early example of what you might call
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English colonisation,
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in a sense that, quite clearly,
they were intruders.
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00:08:42,400 --> 00:08:48,520
The Irish obviously resented
Britain, as such, and wanted us out.
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00:08:50,160 --> 00:08:52,440
The Mountbattens' summer retreat
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was in County Sligo,
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in the Republic of Ireland.
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Mullaghmore was only 13 miles
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00:08:58,640 --> 00:09:00,920
from the border
with Northern Ireland
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where, in 1969,
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a bloody conflict broke out.
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EXPLOSION
183
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Catholics in Northern Ireland
184
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resented being treated as
185
00:09:13,280 --> 00:09:16,160
what they saw as
second-class citizens,
186
00:09:16,160 --> 00:09:20,680
and the IRA took up arms against
the British state.
187
00:09:21,880 --> 00:09:23,560
Despite the nearby Troubles,
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the Mountbattens kept coming
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to Classiebawn.
190
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They enjoyed protection
from the local police,
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the Garda, but it was all kept
192
00:09:32,200 --> 00:09:33,760
very low-key.
193
00:09:36,080 --> 00:09:38,120
The families themselves were
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00:09:38,120 --> 00:09:39,800
very rarely targeted at all
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00:09:39,800 --> 00:09:43,960
and there was very little
personal animosity.
196
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I don't believe the Garda,
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00:09:46,720 --> 00:09:48,560
more than anybody else, believed
198
00:09:48,560 --> 00:09:50,800
that actually,
there was a serious threat.
199
00:09:52,600 --> 00:09:56,680
Judging the appropriate level
of security for the Mountbattens
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00:09:56,680 --> 00:09:58,480
was a tough call.
201
00:09:58,480 --> 00:10:02,120
My grandfather was very keen
not to have the intrusion of
202
00:10:02,120 --> 00:10:04,360
an overly protective force around,
203
00:10:04,360 --> 00:10:06,360
which is funny when you think that
204
00:10:06,360 --> 00:10:10,440
on the mountainside, there was a
big painted sign, "Brits go home".
205
00:10:10,440 --> 00:10:14,160
You arrived for your summer holiday
and that's the welcome.
206
00:10:18,800 --> 00:10:20,800
A reminder that
while the fishing village
207
00:10:20,800 --> 00:10:24,160
of Mullaghmore itself may have
welcomed the Mountbattens,
208
00:10:24,160 --> 00:10:26,920
County Sligo had deep roots in
209
00:10:26,920 --> 00:10:29,720
the Republican movement.
210
00:10:29,720 --> 00:10:33,000
Mountbatten would have been seen by
211
00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:36,280
people in the IRA leadership as a...
212
00:10:36,280 --> 00:10:39,640
cultural icon of
the British establishment.
213
00:10:41,080 --> 00:10:46,120
Anthony McIntyre joined
the IRA in Belfast in 1973.
214
00:10:46,120 --> 00:10:48,760
He wanted to get the Brits out
215
00:10:48,760 --> 00:10:51,640
and create a united Ireland.
216
00:10:51,640 --> 00:10:54,160
Although he later
fell out with the IRA,
217
00:10:54,160 --> 00:10:56,800
he understood their mind-set
at the time.
218
00:10:56,800 --> 00:10:58,480
BAND PLAYS
219
00:10:58,480 --> 00:11:00,320
He would have been targeted,
220
00:11:00,320 --> 00:11:04,480
and his targeting justified
221
00:11:04,480 --> 00:11:08,680
on the grounds that
by taking him out,
222
00:11:08,680 --> 00:11:12,840
there was a blow being administered
223
00:11:12,840 --> 00:11:17,080
to the very heart of the British
establishment.
224
00:11:17,080 --> 00:11:18,600
HE SHOUTS COMMAND
225
00:11:20,160 --> 00:11:23,920
It turns out that throughout
the 1970s, Lord Mountbatten
226
00:11:23,920 --> 00:11:27,280
had been a potential target
for the IRA.
227
00:11:29,760 --> 00:11:34,000
Kieran Conway had risen through
the IRA's ranks to become
228
00:11:34,000 --> 00:11:36,920
its Director of Intelligence
by 1975.
229
00:11:38,080 --> 00:11:42,200
He reveals, for the first time, that
an attempt on Mountbatten's life
230
00:11:42,200 --> 00:11:45,560
had been actively considered
four years before
231
00:11:45,560 --> 00:11:47,760
the successful assassination.
232
00:11:47,760 --> 00:11:49,200
In the mid-Seventies,
233
00:11:49,200 --> 00:11:52,240
there was an operation cleared
to kill Mountbatten.
234
00:11:53,880 --> 00:11:57,520
He was to be ambushed either
exiting or entering his castle.
235
00:11:59,160 --> 00:12:00,680
Four or five men,
236
00:12:00,680 --> 00:12:04,000
a spotter car somewhere distant,
237
00:12:04,000 --> 00:12:07,040
then walkie-talkie communication
between the people with the guns
238
00:12:07,040 --> 00:12:09,840
and the car to say he's on his way.
239
00:12:10,800 --> 00:12:12,960
You'd know roughly how long
it was going to take,
240
00:12:12,960 --> 00:12:16,640
and, er, then open up on the car.
241
00:12:20,040 --> 00:12:22,280
The mind-set in '74-'75,
the early '70s,
242
00:12:22,280 --> 00:12:26,520
would have been operational,
you know? Like, kill them. Ha!
243
00:12:26,520 --> 00:12:28,760
Without too much reflection.
244
00:12:31,520 --> 00:12:36,560
I think he would have been
astonished if told that there were
245
00:12:36,560 --> 00:12:40,600
IRA members in Ireland who were
interested in his existence,
246
00:12:40,600 --> 00:12:42,400
let alone wanting to murder him.
247
00:12:42,400 --> 00:12:46,760
The 1975 plot
did not get the go-ahead from
248
00:12:46,760 --> 00:12:49,320
the IRA's Army Council,
249
00:12:49,320 --> 00:12:53,640
and Kieran Conway temporarily left
the IRA later that year.
250
00:12:54,600 --> 00:12:56,840
EXPLOSION
251
00:12:56,840 --> 00:12:58,640
But the military campaign against
252
00:12:58,640 --> 00:13:01,000
the British security forces
253
00:13:01,000 --> 00:13:02,400
did not let up.
254
00:13:02,400 --> 00:13:06,240
In Crossmaglen, it takes all the
professional skills of the Army
255
00:13:06,240 --> 00:13:08,640
to make it safe enough for
the Royal Ulster Constabulary
256
00:13:08,640 --> 00:13:10,280
to walk around the town where
257
00:13:10,280 --> 00:13:12,800
they're charged with maintaining
law and order.
258
00:13:12,800 --> 00:13:14,960
Two of them have been
gunned down here.
259
00:13:16,120 --> 00:13:20,200
By 1979, the British Army
had been in Northern Ireland
260
00:13:20,200 --> 00:13:21,880
for ten years.
261
00:13:21,880 --> 00:13:24,280
Around 30,000 troops
were lined up against
262
00:13:24,280 --> 00:13:29,200
an estimated 500 IRA volunteers,
263
00:13:29,200 --> 00:13:33,360
yet 324 soldiers
had already been killed.
264
00:13:35,120 --> 00:13:38,480
And things were particularly
dangerous in South Armagh,
265
00:13:38,480 --> 00:13:41,640
which runs along the Irish border.
266
00:13:41,640 --> 00:13:43,560
Bombings and shootings.
267
00:13:46,040 --> 00:13:51,280
South Armagh had a fairly notorious
reputation as being dangerous.
268
00:13:52,560 --> 00:13:54,320
More dangerous, perhaps,
269
00:13:54,320 --> 00:13:57,640
than any other battalion area.
270
00:13:57,640 --> 00:14:01,200
Of course, South Armagh
adjoins the Republic...
271
00:14:02,280 --> 00:14:04,720
..so life on the border was, um...
272
00:14:05,840 --> 00:14:07,520
..er, challenging.
273
00:14:10,920 --> 00:14:13,920
The South Armagh Brigade
was, er, beyond belief.
274
00:14:15,040 --> 00:14:17,720
Just its ability,
their operational efficiency.
275
00:14:17,720 --> 00:14:20,440
They were, erm,
visibly beating the British.
276
00:14:25,600 --> 00:14:27,480
In the summer of 1979,
277
00:14:27,480 --> 00:14:29,720
the South Armagh Brigade
278
00:14:29,720 --> 00:14:31,240
was plotting two of the most
279
00:14:31,240 --> 00:14:32,440
ambitious attacks of
280
00:14:32,440 --> 00:14:35,480
the IRA's campaign so far.
281
00:14:35,480 --> 00:14:37,200
One in Warrenpoint,
282
00:14:37,200 --> 00:14:39,680
the other just south of
283
00:14:39,680 --> 00:14:41,560
the border, in Mullaghmore.
284
00:14:44,160 --> 00:14:47,080
There, during the night of
the 26th of August,
285
00:14:47,080 --> 00:14:49,560
the IRA planted a remote-controlled
286
00:14:49,560 --> 00:14:51,000
50-pound bomb on
287
00:14:51,000 --> 00:14:54,720
Lord Mountbatten's boat, Shadow V,
288
00:14:54,720 --> 00:14:57,960
sitting unguarded in the harbour.
289
00:15:17,000 --> 00:15:19,160
I went on duty at 6am...
290
00:15:20,920 --> 00:15:22,560
..up at the castle here.
291
00:15:24,640 --> 00:15:27,640
9:00-9:30, Lord Mountbatten
292
00:15:27,640 --> 00:15:30,440
and his family
293
00:15:30,440 --> 00:15:33,680
came out from the castle
and informed us that they were
294
00:15:33,680 --> 00:15:35,680
going down to the pier.
295
00:15:35,680 --> 00:15:37,720
So, we got into a patrol car
296
00:15:37,720 --> 00:15:39,800
and we escorted them.
297
00:15:43,360 --> 00:15:45,200
In this unique photograph,
298
00:15:45,200 --> 00:15:47,480
taken just 24 hours earlier,
299
00:15:47,480 --> 00:15:49,400
showing the family and staff
300
00:15:49,400 --> 00:15:50,960
outside Classiebawn,
301
00:15:50,960 --> 00:15:52,240
all the members of
302
00:15:52,240 --> 00:15:55,160
Lord Mountbatten's
boat party are present.
303
00:15:55,160 --> 00:15:57,280
His son-in-law, Lord Brabourne,
304
00:15:57,280 --> 00:15:59,520
and his daughter, Patricia,
305
00:15:59,520 --> 00:16:01,200
their 14-year-old twin sons,
306
00:16:01,200 --> 00:16:03,480
Timothy and Nicholas Knatchbull,
307
00:16:03,480 --> 00:16:07,880
and their 83-year-old grandmother,
Doreen, the Lady Dowager.
308
00:16:07,880 --> 00:16:09,520
The only non-family member on board
309
00:16:09,520 --> 00:16:14,480
was the 15-year-old Northern Irish
boat boy, Paul Maxwell.
310
00:16:18,280 --> 00:16:22,000
The day itself
comes to me in flashes,
311
00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:23,640
rather like small explosions.
312
00:16:25,280 --> 00:16:29,440
I remember distinctly sitting in
the library with my brother.
313
00:16:29,440 --> 00:16:32,800
My grandfather and the others
had gone out on the boat,
314
00:16:32,800 --> 00:16:35,760
and Ash and I were watching -
on this crackly, fuzzy
315
00:16:35,760 --> 00:16:37,840
television screen -
Laurel and Hardy.
316
00:16:40,240 --> 00:16:44,760
On that day, August 27th, 1979,
317
00:16:44,760 --> 00:16:49,160
I was sitting on
the back patio, with
318
00:16:49,160 --> 00:16:52,360
Paul's father and Lisa.
319
00:16:52,360 --> 00:16:56,720
Paul said, "Goodbye, Mum,
see you in the evening."
320
00:16:58,400 --> 00:17:03,800
I didn't think that was the last
time I would ever see him alive.
321
00:17:11,120 --> 00:17:13,000
Beautiful morning, it was.
322
00:17:13,000 --> 00:17:15,320
The sun was shining.
323
00:17:15,320 --> 00:17:18,000
They left Mullaghmore Pier and
324
00:17:18,000 --> 00:17:19,480
travelled out to
325
00:17:19,480 --> 00:17:21,400
where they had some lobster pots.
326
00:17:40,880 --> 00:17:42,600
This is where we were.
327
00:17:42,600 --> 00:17:45,280
Yes, looking out here. Because...
328
00:17:45,280 --> 00:17:47,600
you can see the boat
as it came along.
329
00:17:52,280 --> 00:17:55,320
Dennis Devlin was a 15-year-old,
330
00:17:55,320 --> 00:17:58,040
whose family came to
Mullaghmore every summer.
331
00:17:58,040 --> 00:17:59,640
Their caravan was parked
332
00:17:59,640 --> 00:18:01,360
just off the coastal road.
333
00:18:12,000 --> 00:18:14,400
As they came in,
I could hear them talking.
334
00:18:16,080 --> 00:18:18,040
Talking among themselves.
335
00:18:21,480 --> 00:18:22,840
As the boat pulled up,
336
00:18:22,840 --> 00:18:25,520
I remember the young fella
over the side of the boat
337
00:18:25,520 --> 00:18:28,440
pulling in the lobster pot,
and slowly pulled it in.
338
00:18:42,680 --> 00:18:48,720
Suddenly, there was
a flash of light and a loud bang.
339
00:18:48,720 --> 00:18:51,280
You could see the boat
had just disintegrated.
340
00:18:51,280 --> 00:18:54,520
It was obvious
that a bomb had gone off.
341
00:18:57,800 --> 00:19:00,640
There was an almighty bang.
342
00:19:00,640 --> 00:19:03,720
A huge crack, like thunder.
343
00:19:05,800 --> 00:19:08,920
And I immediately said,
344
00:19:08,920 --> 00:19:10,600
"Paul is dead."
345
00:19:13,160 --> 00:19:20,120
And I knew he was dead
because I felt a part of me go.
346
00:19:25,360 --> 00:19:27,960
My brother, sister and I were taken
347
00:19:27,960 --> 00:19:30,520
into the study and, before anything,
348
00:19:30,520 --> 00:19:32,800
we were asked to take these pills,
with a glass of water.
349
00:19:32,800 --> 00:19:34,640
I'd never taken a pill
in my life before.
350
00:19:34,640 --> 00:19:40,680
And that, to me, was more surprising
than anything of that day.
351
00:19:40,680 --> 00:19:43,400
I couldn't understand why
I was being made to take a pill.
352
00:19:43,400 --> 00:19:46,160
Again, I think it's so reflective
of the era that they were in,
353
00:19:46,160 --> 00:19:48,920
in the 1970s, that someone
would have had Valium on them,
354
00:19:48,920 --> 00:19:51,760
for God's sakes, and said,
let's give it to the children.
355
00:19:51,760 --> 00:19:54,000
I mean, dear God, would you give
an 11-year-old a Valium?!
356
00:19:55,360 --> 00:19:58,680
I, for some reason, left the castle
357
00:19:58,680 --> 00:20:00,520
and ran down to the beach,
358
00:20:00,520 --> 00:20:02,640
which wasn't helpful at all,
359
00:20:02,640 --> 00:20:05,400
and incredibly inconsiderate of me,
now I look back.
360
00:20:05,400 --> 00:20:07,920
I remember sitting on the rocks
361
00:20:07,920 --> 00:20:09,800
down at the beach, in my mind,
362
00:20:09,800 --> 00:20:12,400
going over - 27th of August,
27th of August.
363
00:20:12,400 --> 00:20:15,000
And I kept saying, 1979,
I'll never forget this date.
364
00:20:15,000 --> 00:20:17,240
And I don't. I don't.
365
00:20:17,240 --> 00:20:21,000
VOICE BREAKING: Every year, that
date comes round and we remember it.
366
00:20:21,000 --> 00:20:24,960
Um... And, erm... And, er...
367
00:20:24,960 --> 00:20:28,800
And it was just
such an incredibly beautiful day.
368
00:20:28,800 --> 00:20:32,400
And on the rocks,
this incredible view.
369
00:20:32,400 --> 00:20:35,440
And yet, you know, destruction.
370
00:20:35,440 --> 00:20:37,160
I'm so sorry, I don't...
371
00:20:37,160 --> 00:20:39,200
I don't normally get upset.
372
00:20:40,360 --> 00:20:41,840
SHE CHUCKLES
373
00:20:47,280 --> 00:20:48,960
I remember it very vividly,
374
00:20:48,960 --> 00:20:50,480
every moment of it, really.
375
00:20:50,480 --> 00:20:51,800
From the very start
376
00:20:51,800 --> 00:20:54,880
to the very end of the day.
And I think I'll always remember it.
377
00:20:58,640 --> 00:21:01,520
Lord Mountbatten's boat
had exploded.
378
00:21:01,520 --> 00:21:04,480
So, immediately, I got two friends
379
00:21:04,480 --> 00:21:07,720
and we went out on the boat
to see what we could do.
380
00:21:07,720 --> 00:21:11,240
And, erm, we arrived there
and there was other boats
381
00:21:11,240 --> 00:21:13,920
that were in the near vicinity,
they were already...
382
00:21:13,920 --> 00:21:15,440
lifting the survivors.
383
00:21:23,840 --> 00:21:27,120
I think when we actually
took him from the boat
384
00:21:27,120 --> 00:21:30,400
that he'd been brought ashore in
and brought him to the ambulance.
385
00:21:30,400 --> 00:21:32,640
That's the first that
I realised that
386
00:21:32,640 --> 00:21:36,360
he had actually been one of the
fatalities. He was one of the first
387
00:21:36,360 --> 00:21:38,000
that was actually taken ashore.
388
00:21:43,800 --> 00:21:46,680
It was a perfectly ordinary day,
that August Bank Holiday.
389
00:21:46,680 --> 00:21:48,200
I was helping to put together
390
00:21:48,200 --> 00:21:50,400
the lunchtime bulletin
for Radio Ulster.
391
00:21:50,400 --> 00:21:54,240
Nicholas Witchell was
a trainee reporter at the time,
392
00:21:54,240 --> 00:21:57,240
in the BBC newsroom in Belfast.
393
00:21:57,240 --> 00:21:59,840
We received a tip-off
from somebody we knew,
394
00:21:59,840 --> 00:22:01,400
suggesting that there had been
395
00:22:01,400 --> 00:22:03,760
an explosion reported
at Mullaghmore,
396
00:22:03,760 --> 00:22:05,800
in the Republic of Ireland.
397
00:22:05,800 --> 00:22:10,400
I do remember forming the words
on my pad, "Mountbatten, dead".
398
00:22:13,880 --> 00:22:17,640
By now, all but one of
the bodies of the boat party
399
00:22:17,640 --> 00:22:19,240
had been recovered.
400
00:22:19,240 --> 00:22:22,040
Lord Mountbatten and Paul Maxwell
401
00:22:22,040 --> 00:22:24,120
had been killed instantly.
402
00:22:24,120 --> 00:22:27,960
The 83-year-old dowager,
fatally injured.
403
00:22:27,960 --> 00:22:31,920
The parents of the twins
were also seriously wounded,
404
00:22:31,920 --> 00:22:35,040
as was 14-year-old Timothy.
405
00:22:35,040 --> 00:22:38,160
His twin brother, Nicholas,
was still missing.
406
00:22:44,320 --> 00:22:46,360
You could see this beautiful
407
00:22:46,360 --> 00:22:48,080
blue azure sea, just off to
408
00:22:48,080 --> 00:22:52,400
the north end of the little
peninsula which Mullaghmore is.
409
00:22:54,040 --> 00:22:57,280
We could see a lot of debris.
410
00:22:57,280 --> 00:23:00,160
Splinters of wood.
It was fine debris.
411
00:23:00,160 --> 00:23:01,920
Quite fine debris, it was.
412
00:23:06,920 --> 00:23:09,480
I was winched from
the rescue helicopter...
413
00:23:11,800 --> 00:23:13,760
..and I was placed into the water,
414
00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:17,360
beside what looked like
the bubble of an anorak.
415
00:23:20,040 --> 00:23:22,640
I placed my hand and pulled it,
416
00:23:22,640 --> 00:23:24,880
and it didn't yield very easily.
417
00:23:24,880 --> 00:23:26,400
And I pulled it a second time,
418
00:23:26,400 --> 00:23:30,120
and it was then the head came up
with the jacket as I pulled,
419
00:23:30,120 --> 00:23:32,480
and I realised it was a child.
420
00:23:35,720 --> 00:23:37,400
Imagine what those
421
00:23:37,400 --> 00:23:40,320
thick Aran sweaters
must have felt like,
422
00:23:40,320 --> 00:23:45,720
clogged with oil and water,
being lifted out of the ocean.
423
00:23:45,720 --> 00:23:50,960
You know, how long had Nick been
floating in the water, you know?
424
00:23:52,640 --> 00:23:54,520
It was the first child
425
00:23:54,520 --> 00:23:56,680
that I handled in death.
426
00:23:56,680 --> 00:23:59,320
It came as a terrible shock to me,
I can tell you,
427
00:23:59,320 --> 00:24:01,640
but I'm in rescue mode.
428
00:24:01,640 --> 00:24:03,600
I need to get him out of that water.
429
00:24:03,600 --> 00:24:06,680
I need to give him over
to his family.
430
00:24:07,800 --> 00:24:10,520
14-year-old
Nicholas Knatchbull's body
431
00:24:10,520 --> 00:24:13,080
was returned to Mullaghmore Harbour.
432
00:24:15,240 --> 00:24:18,360
It's the last photograph
we have of Paul.
433
00:24:18,360 --> 00:24:19,760
That's Paul.
434
00:24:20,760 --> 00:24:22,680
And that is...
435
00:24:22,680 --> 00:24:26,320
Nicky and Timmy.
436
00:24:26,320 --> 00:24:27,760
So, one boy survived,
437
00:24:27,760 --> 00:24:29,400
and the other two were killed?
438
00:24:29,400 --> 00:24:34,320
He survived because
he was up on the roof.
439
00:24:36,000 --> 00:24:39,800
Mountbatten was
in the middle, between
440
00:24:39,800 --> 00:24:43,160
Paul and Nicky.
441
00:24:43,160 --> 00:24:45,880
And so, they got the full blast.
442
00:24:54,960 --> 00:24:57,760
Later that afternoon,
I had a phone call from
443
00:24:57,760 --> 00:24:59,200
a contact I knew within
444
00:24:59,200 --> 00:25:01,560
the Republican movement, who asked,
445
00:25:01,560 --> 00:25:06,160
most unusually, to drive up to
the Falls Road to meet him.
446
00:25:06,160 --> 00:25:09,160
Opened the door,
he got into the car,
447
00:25:09,160 --> 00:25:11,320
sat down beside me, we drove on.
448
00:25:11,320 --> 00:25:13,440
Then he reached into his mouth...
449
00:25:14,400 --> 00:25:15,760
..like that,
450
00:25:15,760 --> 00:25:18,520
and drew out a small scrap of paper,
451
00:25:18,520 --> 00:25:22,520
which was wrapped up in clingfilm,
452
00:25:22,520 --> 00:25:25,160
unwrapped it, and this was the...
453
00:25:25,160 --> 00:25:27,680
a telexed message which contained
454
00:25:27,680 --> 00:25:30,480
the IRA claim of responsibility
for, as they put it,
455
00:25:30,480 --> 00:25:33,200
the execution of Lord Mountbatten.
456
00:25:37,840 --> 00:25:40,200
The choice of the word "execution"
is very deliberate.
457
00:25:41,440 --> 00:25:44,320
It is an attempt to imply that there
was some kind of a justification.
458
00:25:44,320 --> 00:25:47,840
I mean, execution implies
a judicial process.
459
00:25:47,840 --> 00:25:50,120
Clearly, you know,
absolutely inappropriate.
460
00:25:50,120 --> 00:25:54,360
By killing Mountbatten,
you sent ripples
461
00:25:54,360 --> 00:25:57,240
around the world,
in a way which probably,
462
00:25:57,240 --> 00:26:01,240
no other assassination
could have achieved.
463
00:26:03,320 --> 00:26:05,840
While people were still
reeling from the news that
464
00:26:05,840 --> 00:26:07,120
a member of the royal family
465
00:26:07,120 --> 00:26:08,680
had been killed at Mullaghmore,
466
00:26:08,680 --> 00:26:13,960
the IRA's operations that day
were not yet over.
467
00:26:15,400 --> 00:26:18,560
Now, the British Army
was in their sights.
468
00:26:19,880 --> 00:26:21,640
Later that afternoon,
469
00:26:21,640 --> 00:26:23,840
over 100 miles away, members from
470
00:26:23,840 --> 00:26:26,120
another South Armagh unit were
471
00:26:26,120 --> 00:26:28,440
lying in wait by the Newry River,
472
00:26:28,440 --> 00:26:29,920
on the southern side of
473
00:26:29,920 --> 00:26:32,240
the Irish border. They were hoping
474
00:26:32,240 --> 00:26:34,440
to blow up a British
Army convoy,
475
00:26:34,440 --> 00:26:36,160
travelling along
the road from
476
00:26:36,160 --> 00:26:38,000
Warrenpoint,
across the river,
477
00:26:38,000 --> 00:26:40,160
in Northern Ireland,
by detonating
478
00:26:40,160 --> 00:26:42,120
two radio-controlled
bombs
479
00:26:42,120 --> 00:26:44,280
that they'd
planted earlier.
480
00:26:44,280 --> 00:26:46,600
One - a 700-pound
device hidden
481
00:26:46,600 --> 00:26:49,160
in a lorry piled
high with straw -
482
00:26:49,160 --> 00:26:51,880
was parked in a
lay-by. The other -
483
00:26:51,880 --> 00:26:54,240
£1,000-worth
of explosive -
484
00:26:54,240 --> 00:26:56,520
hidden in a nearby
gate lodge.
485
00:27:01,560 --> 00:27:03,400
So, I went down. I remember
486
00:27:03,400 --> 00:27:06,280
messing about with a car behind us.
487
00:27:06,280 --> 00:27:10,040
Tom Caughey was a local boy
from Newtownards,
488
00:27:10,040 --> 00:27:13,200
who had joined
the Parachute Regiment at 18,
489
00:27:13,200 --> 00:27:15,520
as his father had before him.
490
00:27:15,520 --> 00:27:17,400
That day, he was a passenger
491
00:27:17,400 --> 00:27:20,280
in the lead vehicle of
the two-truck convoy.
492
00:27:22,200 --> 00:27:23,920
We had a packed lunch,
493
00:27:23,920 --> 00:27:26,840
and we'd oranges, and we made little
teeth out of the orange, you know.
494
00:27:26,840 --> 00:27:29,080
And there was a car with...
495
00:27:29,080 --> 00:27:30,840
a lady and kids in it.
496
00:27:31,880 --> 00:27:35,360
We were smiling at them,
you know, that type of banter.
497
00:27:36,400 --> 00:27:38,040
Ten minutes later, we were blown up.
498
00:27:38,040 --> 00:27:39,840
EXPLOSION
499
00:27:39,840 --> 00:27:43,640
BLEEPING
500
00:27:43,640 --> 00:27:45,520
Not a bang, just a rumble.
501
00:27:45,520 --> 00:27:48,680
And I had the sensation of flying.
502
00:27:50,360 --> 00:27:54,240
Coming...
Not even coming to, just...
503
00:27:54,240 --> 00:27:58,040
looking about, sitting there,
and everything's just a mess.
504
00:28:01,600 --> 00:28:03,920
I came into the roundabout
505
00:28:03,920 --> 00:28:06,720
and you couldn't see
past the roundabout.
506
00:28:06,720 --> 00:28:08,520
Totally obscured with smoke.
507
00:28:09,880 --> 00:28:13,240
Peter Maloy was a freelance
photographer at the time,
508
00:28:13,240 --> 00:28:16,640
who just happened to be passing.
509
00:28:16,640 --> 00:28:19,960
I got out, grabbed the cameras,
510
00:28:19,960 --> 00:28:22,880
and just as I'm going into it,
a policeman's coming running out
511
00:28:22,880 --> 00:28:26,120
and he's screaming. He says,
512
00:28:26,120 --> 00:28:28,200
"Don't go in there,
they're all dead."
513
00:28:28,200 --> 00:28:31,400
I just put the camera into autofocus
514
00:28:31,400 --> 00:28:34,280
and I just shot generally.
515
00:28:37,960 --> 00:28:41,680
The first thing I saw was
a long wheelbased jeep,
516
00:28:41,680 --> 00:28:44,200
and there were soldiers
in that, and...
517
00:28:44,200 --> 00:28:48,720
one look told you they were
obviously dead. And the heat,
518
00:28:48,720 --> 00:28:51,080
you couldn't really
go too close to it.
519
00:28:52,480 --> 00:28:53,960
Everything was burning.
520
00:28:53,960 --> 00:28:56,120
And my legs were on fire.
521
00:28:56,120 --> 00:28:57,960
No, I couldn't move.
522
00:28:57,960 --> 00:28:59,200
And the next thing,
523
00:28:59,200 --> 00:29:01,040
the guys were on me.
524
00:29:01,040 --> 00:29:04,360
They were pouring water,
you know, trying to put me out.
525
00:29:04,360 --> 00:29:07,440
And one of the guys, er,
526
00:29:07,440 --> 00:29:11,240
give me his red beret
to put over my face,
527
00:29:11,240 --> 00:29:13,400
to keep the sun off it.
528
00:29:13,400 --> 00:29:16,840
And I can remember
lying there and...
529
00:29:16,840 --> 00:29:18,280
voices...
530
00:29:19,520 --> 00:29:22,680
Dead. He's dead. He's dead. They're
dead, they're dead, they're dead.
531
00:29:22,680 --> 00:29:25,520
And voices getting closer to me.
532
00:29:25,520 --> 00:29:29,120
And whether I imagined this,
I don't know,
533
00:29:29,120 --> 00:29:34,320
but I vividly remember it.
I remember saying, "I'm not dead."
534
00:29:34,320 --> 00:29:36,720
You know, and taking
the beret off, you know?
535
00:29:36,720 --> 00:29:38,400
It was like a roll call of the dead.
536
00:29:42,440 --> 00:29:45,240
Seven of the nine Paras travelling
537
00:29:45,240 --> 00:29:47,800
in the first truck had been killed.
538
00:29:47,800 --> 00:29:50,800
Tom Caughey, along with his friend,
539
00:29:50,800 --> 00:29:52,960
Paul Burns, were the only survivors.
540
00:29:52,960 --> 00:29:56,520
But the carnage didn't end there.
541
00:30:00,120 --> 00:30:02,600
A very fine English voice shouted,
542
00:30:02,600 --> 00:30:06,120
"There could be a second bomb!
Take hard cover!"
543
00:30:08,080 --> 00:30:11,000
And they all went over
544
00:30:11,000 --> 00:30:12,960
towards the gate lodge.
545
00:30:12,960 --> 00:30:15,920
Across the river,
the IRA bombers
546
00:30:15,920 --> 00:30:17,640
were lying in wait,
547
00:30:17,640 --> 00:30:20,640
ready to detonate
the second bomb.
548
00:30:20,640 --> 00:30:22,200
They'd predicted
correctly
549
00:30:22,200 --> 00:30:23,920
where the surviving
British troops
550
00:30:23,920 --> 00:30:25,920
were likely
to regroup.
551
00:30:27,200 --> 00:30:28,720
I remember getting
put in a chopper,
552
00:30:28,720 --> 00:30:32,200
and Paul Burns being put in.
553
00:30:32,200 --> 00:30:34,160
I remember the look on his face,
and he was like
554
00:30:34,160 --> 00:30:36,160
something out of Tom and Jerry.
555
00:30:36,160 --> 00:30:39,840
When the cigar goes off in your
mouth and your face is black.
556
00:30:39,840 --> 00:30:42,520
And we'd all little...
557
00:30:42,520 --> 00:30:45,080
He was like a strawman. You know...
558
00:30:45,080 --> 00:30:47,840
Bits of straw stuck in his face.
559
00:30:47,840 --> 00:30:49,520
And then...
560
00:30:49,520 --> 00:30:52,200
Boof! Bang, it goes again.
561
00:30:52,200 --> 00:30:53,680
Boom!
562
00:30:59,520 --> 00:31:01,080
I was thrown back
563
00:31:01,080 --> 00:31:04,920
and I got up again
564
00:31:04,920 --> 00:31:07,320
and it was over.
565
00:31:07,320 --> 00:31:08,720
Basically, it was over.
566
00:31:13,240 --> 00:31:18,000
August 27th had started badly
for Mike Jackson.
567
00:31:19,240 --> 00:31:21,480
The news came through of
568
00:31:21,480 --> 00:31:23,840
the Mullaghmore bombing
569
00:31:23,840 --> 00:31:28,600
and the death of Earl Mountbatten,
amongst others,
570
00:31:28,600 --> 00:31:30,920
which was obviously very shocking.
571
00:31:31,960 --> 00:31:35,640
Now, as the news broke that
his fellow Paras had been ambushed
572
00:31:35,640 --> 00:31:37,480
at Warrenpoint, Jackson himself
573
00:31:37,480 --> 00:31:40,280
was called into action.
574
00:31:41,880 --> 00:31:45,000
The Brigade Commander
looked at me and said,
575
00:31:45,000 --> 00:31:46,600
"Mike, what are you doing here?
576
00:31:46,600 --> 00:31:49,320
You go down to the site
and secure it,
577
00:31:49,320 --> 00:31:52,160
and take on all the aftermath."
578
00:31:52,160 --> 00:31:54,440
So, I gave out some rapid orders,
579
00:31:54,440 --> 00:31:56,800
um, and...
580
00:31:56,800 --> 00:31:58,920
got on the first light helicopter
581
00:31:58,920 --> 00:32:00,360
I could.
582
00:32:02,120 --> 00:32:03,680
There's no communication,
583
00:32:03,680 --> 00:32:05,280
all telephones are cut off,
584
00:32:05,280 --> 00:32:09,720
so you're waiting for word
to come back from your own...
585
00:32:09,720 --> 00:32:13,360
from your own lads
to what actually is going on.
586
00:32:13,360 --> 00:32:17,280
Is there a bit of you thinking,
that's my mates? Yes.
587
00:32:17,280 --> 00:32:20,280
Absolutely. And you want to know
who it was, because you know that
588
00:32:20,280 --> 00:32:22,360
some of your mates were
being killed, were killed.
589
00:32:22,360 --> 00:32:24,240
So, yes, you did want to know.
590
00:32:24,240 --> 00:32:26,080
Dead.
591
00:32:26,080 --> 00:32:28,240
Dead.
592
00:32:28,240 --> 00:32:30,360
Dead.
593
00:32:30,360 --> 00:32:33,080
Dead. Dead. Dead.
594
00:32:37,680 --> 00:32:39,760
A further 11 British soldiers
595
00:32:39,760 --> 00:32:41,000
had been killed in
596
00:32:41,000 --> 00:32:42,520
the second explosion.
597
00:32:47,760 --> 00:32:50,440
I get to Warrenpoint
598
00:32:50,440 --> 00:32:53,680
and, um, it's a pretty grim site,
599
00:32:53,680 --> 00:32:55,240
as you can imagine.
600
00:32:58,720 --> 00:33:00,400
There were body parts, um,
601
00:33:00,400 --> 00:33:02,880
pretty much everywhere.
602
00:33:02,880 --> 00:33:05,240
In the trees, everywhere.
603
00:33:05,240 --> 00:33:08,520
Um, and, er...
604
00:33:08,520 --> 00:33:11,400
those who had survived,
605
00:33:11,400 --> 00:33:13,680
um, were in shock.
606
00:33:18,880 --> 00:33:20,680
It was absolutely obvious,
607
00:33:20,680 --> 00:33:23,000
right from the earliest point,
608
00:33:23,000 --> 00:33:24,360
that this was
609
00:33:24,360 --> 00:33:28,080
a death toll
on an exceptional scale.
610
00:33:29,360 --> 00:33:31,680
It transpired, of course,
that 18 soldiers
611
00:33:31,680 --> 00:33:34,240
had lost their lives -
the greatest single loss of life
612
00:33:34,240 --> 00:33:36,400
that the British Army had suffered
613
00:33:36,400 --> 00:33:37,600
in Northern Ireland.
614
00:33:47,760 --> 00:33:50,040
Theirs were not the only lives lost
615
00:33:50,040 --> 00:33:52,360
that afternoon at Warrenpoint.
616
00:33:52,360 --> 00:33:55,040
Barry Hudson had been getting ready
to go to work
617
00:33:55,040 --> 00:33:58,440
at the family's funfair business
in Omeath,
618
00:33:58,440 --> 00:34:01,160
on the southern side of the border.
619
00:34:01,160 --> 00:34:03,160
He had been joined that summer
620
00:34:03,160 --> 00:34:06,400
by his 29-year-old cousin
from England, Bill.
621
00:34:07,600 --> 00:34:10,080
All of a sudden, we heard this...
622
00:34:10,080 --> 00:34:17,320
thump, right? And, erm, I remember
Bill saying, "Oh, what was that?"
623
00:34:17,320 --> 00:34:19,520
And I said,
"It sounded like a bomb."
624
00:34:19,520 --> 00:34:22,720
He said to me, "Could you bring
me down? Let me have a look."
625
00:34:26,240 --> 00:34:29,440
In the mayhem following
the two bomb blasts,
626
00:34:29,440 --> 00:34:32,200
the surviving Paras
spotted the figures of Barry
627
00:34:32,200 --> 00:34:35,840
and his cousin, Bill,
on the other side of the river,
628
00:34:35,840 --> 00:34:38,760
and wrongly imagined them to be
629
00:34:38,760 --> 00:34:40,280
the IRA bombers.
630
00:34:47,320 --> 00:34:49,600
For a time, we could see
the soldiers coming in,
631
00:34:49,600 --> 00:34:53,400
along the road there, in the jeeps.
632
00:34:53,400 --> 00:34:56,600
We could see their red berets
and that, you know? And...
633
00:34:58,680 --> 00:35:01,880
I heard the ground being struck.
634
00:35:01,880 --> 00:35:05,200
And then I felt my arm,
like a stone hitting it.
635
00:35:05,200 --> 00:35:08,240
I thought it was something,
a stone maybe, or whatever.
636
00:35:08,240 --> 00:35:10,760
And it was bleeding.
637
00:35:10,760 --> 00:35:12,400
And then, there was more.
638
00:35:13,440 --> 00:35:15,960
So... That's why I turned,
639
00:35:15,960 --> 00:35:19,160
and Bill was standing over there,
640
00:35:19,160 --> 00:35:20,920
the car was just parked up there
641
00:35:20,920 --> 00:35:24,160
and he was standing
to the right, we'll say.
642
00:35:24,160 --> 00:35:28,520
And I shouted at him then
to get down.
643
00:35:28,520 --> 00:35:33,560
And then you could hear more guns
and branches cracking and that.
644
00:35:33,560 --> 00:35:35,400
So, I ran...ran like hell...
645
00:35:35,400 --> 00:35:37,640
HE CLEARS HIS THROAT
646
00:35:37,640 --> 00:35:40,240
..and zigzagged up that lane.
647
00:35:42,120 --> 00:35:43,400
I've seen it in war films.
648
00:35:43,400 --> 00:35:46,480
I always thought it was
a load of baloney, really,
649
00:35:46,480 --> 00:35:48,760
because you couldn't escape death,
650
00:35:48,760 --> 00:35:50,720
but I did.
651
00:35:55,000 --> 00:35:58,000
Then it all stopped. Dead quiet.
652
00:36:03,280 --> 00:36:05,160
So, after about a minute or two,
653
00:36:05,160 --> 00:36:08,480
I thought my cousin
should be coming up now.
654
00:36:08,480 --> 00:36:10,440
I just thought he'd get up
655
00:36:10,440 --> 00:36:12,240
and come back up.
656
00:36:12,240 --> 00:36:17,000
I looked around the corner and, um,
657
00:36:17,000 --> 00:36:20,080
well, I've seen him lying
on his back...
658
00:36:21,280 --> 00:36:23,840
..and, er...
659
00:36:23,840 --> 00:36:29,280
blood, a lot of blood. And, erm...
660
00:36:30,960 --> 00:36:33,200
..I, er...
661
00:36:33,200 --> 00:36:35,080
I ran down to the car.
662
00:36:37,880 --> 00:36:40,000
I knew when I'd seen him,
663
00:36:40,000 --> 00:36:43,760
there's nothing
anyone can do for him.
664
00:36:45,720 --> 00:36:47,360
The lad that pulled the trigger,
665
00:36:47,360 --> 00:36:52,120
I'm sure he was shell-shocked.
It didn't enter his head,
666
00:36:52,120 --> 00:36:55,800
for one instant, you know,
not to pull that trigger.
667
00:36:55,800 --> 00:36:59,400
And, er, I think we would all
have done the exact same thing
668
00:36:59,400 --> 00:37:01,440
in that situation.
669
00:37:02,920 --> 00:37:05,360
It was left to Barry to report
670
00:37:05,360 --> 00:37:08,400
the tragic news to Bill's father.
671
00:37:08,400 --> 00:37:11,360
Ironically, Bill Senior
worked in Buckingham Palace,
672
00:37:11,360 --> 00:37:15,080
as one of the Queen's coachmen.
673
00:37:15,080 --> 00:37:17,120
I said, "I've terrible news, Uncle."
674
00:37:17,120 --> 00:37:19,680
I said, "Bill's dead."
675
00:37:19,680 --> 00:37:22,720
"Oh, dead? What happened?
How is he dead?"
676
00:37:22,720 --> 00:37:25,080
And I said, "He got shot."
677
00:37:25,080 --> 00:37:27,280
He said, "How did he get shot?"
678
00:37:28,960 --> 00:37:31,720
Terrible. Terrible, just...
679
00:37:33,480 --> 00:37:37,120
One of the worst moments
in my life, actually.
680
00:37:37,120 --> 00:37:40,480
Something I wouldn't
want anyone to have to do.
681
00:37:44,160 --> 00:37:46,080
The Army later acknowledged
682
00:37:46,080 --> 00:37:50,880
that Bill Hudson was an innocent
civilian, mistakenly killed.
683
00:37:56,200 --> 00:37:58,720
This multiple killing,
the worst the security forces
684
00:37:58,720 --> 00:38:00,920
have ever suffered
in Northern Ireland,
685
00:38:00,920 --> 00:38:03,400
coming as it does
after the Mountbatten tragedy,
686
00:38:03,400 --> 00:38:07,280
must serve to only further heighten
tensions in Northern Ireland.
687
00:38:09,280 --> 00:38:12,440
Word quickly spread of
how meticulously planned
688
00:38:12,440 --> 00:38:16,600
the IRA operation
at Warrenpoint had been.
689
00:38:16,600 --> 00:38:20,600
Anthony McIntyre was
an IRA volunteer, locked up in
690
00:38:20,600 --> 00:38:23,000
the Maze Prison at the time.
691
00:38:23,000 --> 00:38:24,560
I thought it was impressive.
692
00:38:24,560 --> 00:38:26,520
I thought it was ingenious.
693
00:38:26,520 --> 00:38:29,840
Because not only did they detonate
the first device,
694
00:38:29,840 --> 00:38:33,280
they had to wait until the British
Army back-up arrived
695
00:38:33,280 --> 00:38:35,320
and position themselves
behind the gateposts,
696
00:38:35,320 --> 00:38:36,840
and then detonate
the second one.
697
00:38:36,840 --> 00:38:38,880
So, it took nerves of steel
for the volunteers
698
00:38:38,880 --> 00:38:40,880
to sit there and do that.
699
00:38:42,680 --> 00:38:45,640
It was absolutely
militarily fantastic, brilliant,
700
00:38:45,640 --> 00:38:47,800
I don't want to say
the word fantastic but,
701
00:38:47,800 --> 00:38:50,720
you know...
But the big bonus that they had
702
00:38:50,720 --> 00:38:52,680
that they didn't
normally have was...
703
00:38:52,680 --> 00:38:56,040
they were in a different country.
They'd no need to run away.
704
00:38:56,040 --> 00:38:58,160
Yeah. They were in the South.
They were in the South.
705
00:38:58,160 --> 00:39:00,800
And that's why
they could take their time.
706
00:39:01,920 --> 00:39:04,440
You take advantage
when you can, and they did.
707
00:39:13,320 --> 00:39:15,720
Will you please stand still?
708
00:39:15,720 --> 00:39:17,920
And I will move.
709
00:39:17,920 --> 00:39:19,800
The attacks on Lord Mountbatten
710
00:39:19,800 --> 00:39:23,960
and the British soldiers made
a deep impression on Mrs Thatcher,
711
00:39:23,960 --> 00:39:26,360
who had been Prime Minister
for only four months.
712
00:39:27,800 --> 00:39:30,880
Within 36 hours,
she landed in Northern Ireland
713
00:39:30,880 --> 00:39:32,840
on an unscheduled visit,
714
00:39:32,840 --> 00:39:35,000
to investigate what had happened
715
00:39:35,000 --> 00:39:37,200
and to offer her reassurance.
716
00:39:37,200 --> 00:39:39,040
When she went to Northern Ireland,
717
00:39:39,040 --> 00:39:41,120
I remember the walkabout
718
00:39:41,120 --> 00:39:44,080
in the shopping mall,
719
00:39:44,080 --> 00:39:47,800
erm, which I thought was
an extremely brave thing to do,
720
00:39:47,800 --> 00:39:50,880
not because there was much risk of
being shot in that environment,
721
00:39:50,880 --> 00:39:53,640
but simply because
there would be a lot of people
722
00:39:53,640 --> 00:39:56,080
in the shopping mall
who didn't like her very much.
723
00:40:03,600 --> 00:40:06,240
She was a very feminine person.
724
00:40:06,240 --> 00:40:09,800
And it was like for a while,
you just fell? Yes, basically...
725
00:40:09,800 --> 00:40:11,920
She was profoundly moved.
726
00:40:11,920 --> 00:40:13,680
I broke my leg...
727
00:40:13,680 --> 00:40:18,040
She didn't blub,
but tears came to her eyes.
728
00:40:18,040 --> 00:40:20,400
It could have been a lot worse...
729
00:40:20,400 --> 00:40:22,320
She only very rarely wept,
730
00:40:22,320 --> 00:40:25,320
erm, to my knowledge, anyway.
731
00:40:25,320 --> 00:40:29,960
And when she did,
there was good reason for it.
732
00:40:32,080 --> 00:40:34,520
She's not everybody's
cup of tea, I know that,
733
00:40:34,520 --> 00:40:39,640
but she was able to relate,
and they to her, to the soldiers.
734
00:40:41,480 --> 00:40:45,760
Boadicea. A very doughty lady.
735
00:40:50,760 --> 00:40:52,560
I think in terms of significance
736
00:40:52,560 --> 00:40:54,640
for Margaret Thatcher,
737
00:40:54,640 --> 00:40:58,840
knowing as we do what we do
about her personality,
738
00:40:58,840 --> 00:41:03,440
I'm sure that it actually made her
even more determined to resist.
739
00:41:09,040 --> 00:41:10,760
Mrs Thatcher's flying visit
740
00:41:10,760 --> 00:41:12,520
did not extend to the scene of
741
00:41:12,520 --> 00:41:15,320
the Mountbatten bombing,
over the border,
742
00:41:15,320 --> 00:41:18,120
in the Republic of Ireland.
743
00:41:18,120 --> 00:41:22,480
Here, too, the events of that day
had made a huge impact.
744
00:41:22,480 --> 00:41:24,520
While it was recognised that the IRA
745
00:41:24,520 --> 00:41:28,920
had pulled off two audacious
military operations,
746
00:41:28,920 --> 00:41:32,920
in PR terms, opinion was divided.
747
00:41:34,600 --> 00:41:37,520
Almost everybody spoke with regret
748
00:41:37,520 --> 00:41:39,240
and shame about what had happened
749
00:41:39,240 --> 00:41:41,560
to Mountbatten. And that sense,
750
00:41:41,560 --> 00:41:44,960
this is our territory, how dare they
do this on our territory?!
751
00:41:47,280 --> 00:41:49,040
But there were a number of people,
752
00:41:49,040 --> 00:41:52,000
I won't say a majority,
but there were a number of people
753
00:41:52,000 --> 00:41:54,640
who said what happened
to Mountbatten was wrong but,
754
00:41:54,640 --> 00:41:58,400
as far as the British soldiers
are concerned, listen,
755
00:41:58,400 --> 00:42:01,720
those that live by the sword
die by the sword.
756
00:42:05,000 --> 00:42:09,200
This feeling was reinforced
by the fact that 16 of the 18
757
00:42:09,200 --> 00:42:14,440
British soldiers killed
at Warrenpoint were from the
Paratroop Regiment.
758
00:42:14,440 --> 00:42:18,800
The Paras were deeply unpopular
on both sides of the Irish border
759
00:42:18,800 --> 00:42:21,840
thanks to an infamous incident
that had taken place
760
00:42:21,840 --> 00:42:24,240
seven years earlier.
761
00:42:24,240 --> 00:42:26,160
THEY SHOUT
762
00:42:27,600 --> 00:42:32,960
There is no other single incident
in Northern Ireland that unites
763
00:42:32,960 --> 00:42:37,320
nationalists of all colour, north
and south, like Bloody Sunday does.
764
00:42:37,320 --> 00:42:39,400
GUNSHOT
765
00:42:39,400 --> 00:42:44,040
Because, to us, it was the
deliberate killing
766
00:42:44,040 --> 00:42:47,320
of peaceful protesters
on a march in Derry.
767
00:42:47,320 --> 00:42:49,200
SCREAMS
768
00:42:50,480 --> 00:42:53,080
13 civil rights protesters
were killed
769
00:42:53,080 --> 00:42:55,840
in what came to be known
as Bloody Sunday.
770
00:42:55,840 --> 00:42:58,000
GUNSHOT
771
00:42:58,000 --> 00:43:04,400
Here was the British Army
turning its guns
772
00:43:04,400 --> 00:43:07,680
on the people
it called its own citizens.
773
00:43:12,200 --> 00:43:14,760
And the soldiers responsible
for Bloody Sunday...
774
00:43:14,760 --> 00:43:17,320
Were the Paratroopers.
775
00:43:19,920 --> 00:43:26,200
So, there was a particular feeling
of general dislike
776
00:43:26,200 --> 00:43:28,280
towards the Paratroopers.
777
00:43:29,560 --> 00:43:34,360
This dislike was felt particularly
strongly by the IRA volunteers
778
00:43:34,360 --> 00:43:37,320
locked up in the Maze Prison
at the time.
779
00:43:38,560 --> 00:43:41,520
And how do you characterise
the reaction of you and your fellow
780
00:43:41,520 --> 00:43:44,640
prisoners to hearing
about the Warrenpoint news?
781
00:43:44,640 --> 00:43:47,560
Exuberance, exhilaration.
782
00:43:47,560 --> 00:43:50,160
All our Christmases had come
at once and come early.
783
00:43:51,520 --> 00:43:53,640
The IRA couldn't believe their luck.
784
00:43:53,640 --> 00:43:57,160
For the nationalist population,
we were monsters.
785
00:43:59,680 --> 00:44:04,000
We were quite ruthless,
quite callous, quite indifferent
786
00:44:04,000 --> 00:44:09,760
to the suffering of the relatives
and found the Parachute Regiment,
787
00:44:09,760 --> 00:44:12,120
absolutely anathema.
788
00:44:12,120 --> 00:44:15,840
They were celebrating -
of course they were. You know...
789
00:44:17,600 --> 00:44:20,360
They had a good day.
790
00:44:20,360 --> 00:44:24,400
And doubly good in a sense with the
memory for them, the memory of...
791
00:44:24,400 --> 00:44:26,520
Bloody Sunday, yeah.
Of course, yeah.
792
00:44:26,520 --> 00:44:30,000
That's where the old saying
came out, you know,
793
00:44:30,000 --> 00:44:34,440
13 dead, not forgotten,
we got 18 and Mountbatten.
794
00:44:35,680 --> 00:44:38,160
There's support for you. Very good.
795
00:44:45,200 --> 00:44:48,240
THE LAST POST
796
00:45:00,240 --> 00:45:02,400
That funeral was extraordinary.
797
00:45:02,400 --> 00:45:05,680
And I think my grandfather
has masterminded every moment of it,
798
00:45:05,680 --> 00:45:09,280
understandably,
and it ran to perfection.
799
00:45:10,720 --> 00:45:14,720
The whole family of
Europe seems to be here.
800
00:45:14,720 --> 00:45:18,720
Lord Mountbatten's State funeral,
the largest of its kind
801
00:45:18,720 --> 00:45:22,640
since Winston Churchill's,
provided a vivid reminder
802
00:45:22,640 --> 00:45:27,000
of the personal nature of the blow
dealt to the Royal family.
803
00:45:31,800 --> 00:45:38,280
Two granddaughters and the girl
that bears the name of India and...
804
00:45:38,280 --> 00:45:42,080
We know my grandfather's murder
was a complete shock
805
00:45:42,080 --> 00:45:47,400
and very devastating to the Prince
of Wales because he fulfilled
a role,
806
00:45:47,400 --> 00:45:49,320
and that role was then taken away.
807
00:45:49,320 --> 00:45:52,480
So I think he probably felt
that more than most,
808
00:45:52,480 --> 00:45:57,120
the loss, my grandfather's murder,
and in such a brutal way.
809
00:45:58,800 --> 00:46:01,680
The murder horrified him and,
810
00:46:01,680 --> 00:46:04,480
in a way, marked him for life.
811
00:46:04,480 --> 00:46:09,200
It left a sort of sense
of uncertainty, if Mountbatten,
812
00:46:09,200 --> 00:46:15,240
the invincible, the almighty,
could be snuffed out like that,
813
00:46:15,240 --> 00:46:17,760
then what was left certain in life?
814
00:46:20,000 --> 00:46:23,880
Within a week of the funeral,
11-year-old India found herself
815
00:46:23,880 --> 00:46:26,880
sent off to Gordonstoun,
the boarding school
816
00:46:26,880 --> 00:46:28,840
in the north of Scotland.
817
00:46:28,840 --> 00:46:33,120
Here was she was given a painful
reminder of the very public nature
818
00:46:33,120 --> 00:46:35,640
of her grandfather's death.
819
00:46:35,640 --> 00:46:39,880
I remember feeling desperately
lonely going off to boarding school
820
00:46:39,880 --> 00:46:42,360
without my mother,
and the first night someone,
821
00:46:42,360 --> 00:46:45,280
after lights out, saying a joke.
822
00:46:46,440 --> 00:46:49,520
And maybe we can't even put
this in because it's too horrific,
823
00:46:49,520 --> 00:46:54,560
but she said, "How did they know
Lord Mountbatten had dandruff?"
824
00:46:54,560 --> 00:46:56,920
And no-one in the dorm at
lights out knew the answer.
825
00:46:56,920 --> 00:46:58,320
And the answer was, of course,
826
00:46:58,320 --> 00:47:02,240
"Because they found his head
and shoulders on the beach."
827
00:47:02,240 --> 00:47:04,080
Um...
828
00:47:04,080 --> 00:47:06,880
It was a pretty staggering moment.
829
00:47:10,920 --> 00:47:14,560
Later that autumn,
two IRA men were put on trial
830
00:47:14,560 --> 00:47:17,480
for the murder of Lord Mountbatten.
831
00:47:17,480 --> 00:47:20,160
One, Thomas McMahon, was convicted.
832
00:47:21,840 --> 00:47:25,400
Thomas McMahon, did you know him
by reputation?
833
00:47:25,400 --> 00:47:28,560
I knew him both by reputation
and personally and he was a very,
834
00:47:28,560 --> 00:47:31,120
very fine IRA volunteer.
835
00:47:31,120 --> 00:47:33,120
Very fine indeed.
836
00:47:34,120 --> 00:47:39,920
He would be the most outstanding
figure to come out of South Armagh.
837
00:47:39,920 --> 00:47:43,600
Thomas McMahon was sentenced
to life in prison,
838
00:47:43,600 --> 00:47:48,000
but no-one higher up in the IRA
leadership chain was ever held
839
00:47:48,000 --> 00:47:50,640
to account for the bomb.
840
00:47:52,640 --> 00:47:56,560
Somebody knew children
were going on that boat.
841
00:47:56,560 --> 00:47:59,600
Not necessarily the guys who put
the bomb on or the guys that made
842
00:47:59,600 --> 00:48:03,160
the bomb, but the people
who planned it certainly knew
843
00:48:03,160 --> 00:48:05,160
about the children.
844
00:48:16,640 --> 00:48:20,680
Although Anthony McIntyre
has since fallen out with the IRA,
845
00:48:20,680 --> 00:48:24,840
back in 1979, he was still
very much an insider.
846
00:48:24,840 --> 00:48:27,520
I think given the political
sensitivity around Mountbatten
847
00:48:27,520 --> 00:48:31,160
and the fallout that the IRA
leadership, the political thinking
848
00:48:31,160 --> 00:48:34,600
people in the IRA leadership
would have anticipated,
849
00:48:34,600 --> 00:48:37,880
I would have imagined
there was a decision taken
850
00:48:37,880 --> 00:48:39,760
at the most senior levels.
851
00:48:41,600 --> 00:48:45,800
Kieran Conway, who temporarily
left the IRA in 1976,
852
00:48:45,800 --> 00:48:48,560
is in no doubt as to who was
in charge at the time
853
00:48:48,560 --> 00:48:51,160
of Mountbatten's assassination.
854
00:48:51,160 --> 00:48:54,800
I have absolutely no difficulty
in saying in '81 when I rejoined,
855
00:48:54,800 --> 00:48:57,920
and I wouldn't have said
that until Martin died,
856
00:48:57,920 --> 00:49:00,640
that McGuinness was Chief of Staff.
857
00:49:00,640 --> 00:49:04,920
And your clear understanding is
that he had been since '78? Yeah.
858
00:49:06,400 --> 00:49:10,360
Ultimately, as Chief of Staff,
it would be McGuinness'
859
00:49:10,360 --> 00:49:13,920
responsibility, that operation?
Yeah, that's right, yeah.
860
00:49:13,920 --> 00:49:16,920
That's the way it works. I mean, if
you are the boss, you are the boss.
861
00:49:16,920 --> 00:49:19,640
You take responsibility
for whatever goes on.
862
00:49:24,360 --> 00:49:27,240
Meanwhile, no-one was ever
put on trial for the bombs
863
00:49:27,240 --> 00:49:32,600
at Warrenpoint, let alone convicted,
despite the arrest on the day itself
864
00:49:32,600 --> 00:49:36,400
of two IRA suspects
near the scene of the carnage.
865
00:49:39,640 --> 00:49:42,600
Well, of course it's frustrating.
866
00:49:42,600 --> 00:49:45,040
The event is one of murder.
867
00:49:45,040 --> 00:49:47,160
Mass murder.
868
00:49:47,160 --> 00:49:50,600
And it is a source of great regret
869
00:49:50,600 --> 00:49:53,600
that nobody was brought
to account for it.
870
00:50:00,640 --> 00:50:03,760
In these past few days,
the irresistible force,
871
00:50:03,760 --> 00:50:08,040
the political will,
has met the immovable object,
872
00:50:08,040 --> 00:50:12,240
the legacy of the past,
and it has actually moved it.
873
00:50:12,240 --> 00:50:14,760
It took another 20 years
after the Mountbatten
874
00:50:14,760 --> 00:50:18,800
and Warrenpoint killings, but peace
was finally established
875
00:50:18,800 --> 00:50:22,320
in Northern Ireland by the British
and Irish governments
876
00:50:22,320 --> 00:50:26,080
at the Good Friday Agreement
in 1998.
877
00:50:26,080 --> 00:50:29,080
This agreement is good
for the people of Ireland,
878
00:50:29,080 --> 00:50:31,800
north and south.
879
00:50:29,080 --> 00:50:31,800
APPLAUSE
880
00:50:31,800 --> 00:50:36,520
As part of the peace process,
the IRA's prisoners were released,
881
00:50:36,520 --> 00:50:39,960
including Thomas McMahon,
the sole IRA member
882
00:50:39,960 --> 00:50:42,160
convicted of the killings.
883
00:50:49,920 --> 00:50:54,960
The idea of reconciliation has lain
at the heart of the peace process.
884
00:50:58,120 --> 00:51:02,240
And there we get a first
glimpse of the Queen.
885
00:51:02,240 --> 00:51:07,200
In 2012, the Queen came face-to-face
with the man said to have been
886
00:51:07,200 --> 00:51:12,640
ultimately responsible for the
assassination of her second cousin.
887
00:51:12,640 --> 00:51:16,040
You really did have to just pinch
yourself and think,
888
00:51:16,040 --> 00:51:18,560
can this actually be happening?
889
00:51:18,560 --> 00:51:20,760
That the head of state of the United
Kingdom
890
00:51:20,760 --> 00:51:24,880
and the man who without doubt it was
one of the leaders of the military,
891
00:51:24,880 --> 00:51:27,600
the offensive side of the Republican
movement,
892
00:51:27,600 --> 00:51:30,440
who may well have had a hand
in planning Mullaghmore,
893
00:51:30,440 --> 00:51:32,480
or certainly signing off on it...
894
00:51:32,480 --> 00:51:35,400
That they were standing
together was remarkable.
895
00:51:36,800 --> 00:51:41,200
The symbolic strength
of that shaking of hands
896
00:51:41,200 --> 00:51:47,880
was enormous - one of the most
powerful things that she could do.
897
00:51:47,880 --> 00:51:50,720
And she did it even though
personally
898
00:51:50,720 --> 00:51:52,920
it may have cost her something.
899
00:51:52,920 --> 00:51:55,560
But it was terribly important
that that was done.
900
00:51:55,560 --> 00:51:58,800
Only she could do it,
and she did it.
901
00:51:58,800 --> 00:52:01,560
She is the more admirable
person in the transaction,
902
00:52:01,560 --> 00:52:03,560
I think, you know?
903
00:52:03,560 --> 00:52:07,280
I think it was more difficult
for her than it was for him.
904
00:52:13,120 --> 00:52:15,000
Like mother, like son.
905
00:52:16,320 --> 00:52:18,720
Three years later,
the Prince of Wales made his own
906
00:52:18,720 --> 00:52:21,200
gesture of reconciliation.
907
00:52:21,200 --> 00:52:26,360
The events of 1979 had come
as a double blow to him.
908
00:52:26,360 --> 00:52:29,680
He was Colonel in Chief of the
Parachute Regiment
909
00:52:29,680 --> 00:52:33,960
which had lost 16 of the 18
soldiers killed that Warrenpoint.
910
00:52:33,960 --> 00:52:37,200
And at Mullaghmore,
he had also lost to the mentor
911
00:52:37,200 --> 00:52:39,640
who meant so much to him.
912
00:52:39,640 --> 00:52:44,200
At the time, I could not imagine
how we would come to terms
913
00:52:44,200 --> 00:52:47,720
with the anguish of such
a deep loss, since,
914
00:52:47,720 --> 00:52:52,720
for me, Lord Mountbatten represented
the grandfather I never had.
915
00:52:58,560 --> 00:53:03,040
The poet Yeats once wrote
that I shall have some peace there,
916
00:53:03,040 --> 00:53:05,360
for peace comes dropping slow.
917
00:53:07,880 --> 00:53:14,640
As a grandfather now myself,
I pray that his words can apply
918
00:53:14,640 --> 00:53:17,000
to all of those that
have been so hurt
919
00:53:17,000 --> 00:53:20,000
and scarred by the Troubles
of the past.
920
00:53:21,720 --> 00:53:24,760
The problem with peace is you have
to keep working at it.
921
00:53:24,760 --> 00:53:27,240
It's not a passive thing.
922
00:53:27,240 --> 00:53:30,760
It is always going to be
a continuing responsibility
923
00:53:30,760 --> 00:53:35,000
on all of us in these islands
to make sure that the conditions
924
00:53:35,000 --> 00:53:38,720
in Northern Ireland do not
encourage the break-out again
925
00:53:38,720 --> 00:53:40,760
of sectarian tensions.
926
00:53:40,760 --> 00:53:42,800
We do not want to go back to that.
927
00:53:42,800 --> 00:53:45,600
So it is not a matter of peace
coming, dropping slow -
928
00:53:45,600 --> 00:53:48,560
peace has to be worked
at damned hard.
929
00:53:49,880 --> 00:53:53,280
Two years ago, Martin McGuinness,
the man widely believed
930
00:53:53,280 --> 00:53:56,040
to have been the IRA Chief
of Staff at the time
931
00:53:56,040 --> 00:53:58,560
of the bombings, died.
932
00:53:58,560 --> 00:54:02,200
According to Buckingham Palace,
the Queen sent a private letter
933
00:54:02,200 --> 00:54:04,200
of condolence to his widow.
934
00:54:13,680 --> 00:54:17,080
Today, for the most part,
normal life has returned
935
00:54:17,080 --> 00:54:19,520
on both sides of the Irish border.
936
00:54:21,240 --> 00:54:25,520
But the sense of shame in the
village of Mullaghmore lives on,
937
00:54:25,520 --> 00:54:30,080
especially among those who had had
close ties to the Mountbattens.
938
00:54:33,560 --> 00:54:36,840
There was a terrible sense
of shock in this village,
939
00:54:36,840 --> 00:54:39,320
and disbelief.
940
00:54:39,320 --> 00:54:42,360
And there was a dark
cloud over the area,
941
00:54:42,360 --> 00:54:44,800
over the village,
for years afterwards.
942
00:54:46,760 --> 00:54:48,680
People didn't talk about it.
943
00:54:48,680 --> 00:54:52,040
They did in their own houses
hushed talk about it,
944
00:54:52,040 --> 00:54:54,360
but not out in the open.
945
00:54:54,360 --> 00:54:57,560
People felt so bad
about what happened,
946
00:54:57,560 --> 00:54:59,720
and embarrassed about it.
947
00:55:01,560 --> 00:55:06,120
As with the town,
so with the individuals themselves.
948
00:55:06,120 --> 00:55:10,200
They too are still struggling
to come to terms with the tragic
949
00:55:10,200 --> 00:55:12,680
events of 40 years ago.
950
00:55:15,240 --> 00:55:17,520
I never took another picture since.
951
00:55:17,520 --> 00:55:19,520
That's 40 years ago.
952
00:55:19,520 --> 00:55:22,280
Why did you never take
another photograph?
953
00:55:22,280 --> 00:55:24,760
I...
954
00:55:24,760 --> 00:55:26,800
I just couldn't face it.
955
00:55:26,800 --> 00:55:28,840
I was literally shaken.
956
00:55:31,160 --> 00:55:33,480
I watched the firemen and I thought,
957
00:55:33,480 --> 00:55:36,080
"That's what I should have
been doing."
958
00:55:36,080 --> 00:55:40,360
And the following week, I applied
and I joined the Fire Service then.
959
00:55:41,840 --> 00:55:45,800
Loved it. Loved it.
960
00:55:47,520 --> 00:55:51,640
I see that young boy's face
over and over and it doesn't go away
961
00:55:51,640 --> 00:55:55,720
and it doesn't get any more blurred
as it did from 1979 to today,
962
00:55:55,720 --> 00:55:58,360
because I can still see it.
963
00:55:58,360 --> 00:56:02,120
I'm OK with all that because
I brought that kid home.
964
00:56:11,120 --> 00:56:13,680
That's 40 years ago now.
965
00:56:20,120 --> 00:56:22,800
There hasn't been one day,
I'm sure, that it hasn't
966
00:56:22,800 --> 00:56:25,400
crossed my mind sometime.
967
00:56:27,240 --> 00:56:31,080
And that's a long time for
something to stick in your mind.
968
00:56:34,040 --> 00:56:36,720
Didn't feel lucky at the time,
969
00:56:36,720 --> 00:56:40,080
didn't feel lucky for ten
years after it.
970
00:56:43,640 --> 00:56:45,760
I wanted to be with them.
971
00:56:46,920 --> 00:56:49,000
Why did I survive?
972
00:56:51,320 --> 00:56:56,720
It was like a day that would never
end and then went on to weeks
973
00:56:56,720 --> 00:57:02,520
that would never end and years
where grieving would never end.
974
00:57:02,520 --> 00:57:04,920
And it hasn't.
975
00:57:04,920 --> 00:57:07,280
I will always grieve for Paul.
976
00:57:08,360 --> 00:57:12,200
I carry him in my heart
everywhere I go.
977
00:57:14,200 --> 00:57:17,160
I asked my mother about
doing this and she said,
978
00:57:17,160 --> 00:57:21,160
"Yes, absolutely,
it's important to keep talking."
979
00:57:22,760 --> 00:57:27,680
I think, in trauma and in death
and in survival,
980
00:57:27,680 --> 00:57:34,240
there is so much that is unsaid,
and there is unfortunately no path,
981
00:57:34,240 --> 00:57:38,040
there is no written
text book of healing.
982
00:57:38,040 --> 00:57:42,120
And so, in amongst my seven cousins,
who I am, and remain,
983
00:57:42,120 --> 00:57:47,520
close to, and my own siblings,
everybody coped very differently.
984
00:57:49,480 --> 00:57:53,000
And some didn't cope well and
of course we are seeing
985
00:57:53,000 --> 00:57:57,280
the side-effects of that even
to this day,
986
00:57:57,280 --> 00:58:00,160
and the damage that was done
987
00:58:00,160 --> 00:58:04,480
was so much deeper than any of us
could ever have imagined,
988
00:58:04,480 --> 00:58:08,840
and adult lives are still being
horrifically disrupted.
989
00:58:12,360 --> 00:58:17,840
I certainly try not to hold
resentment in any way,
990
00:58:17,840 --> 00:58:19,880
and that's hard.
991
00:58:21,640 --> 00:58:24,760
But forgiveness,
I think, is important.
992
00:58:24,760 --> 00:58:26,800
One has to move on.
116914
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