The Troubles Podcast

After 28 years of bans, Drumcree is back. The story of the 2026 Garvaghy Road standoff: a court case, a midnight legal battle, and a crisis that threatened to bring down Stormont.

For 28 years, the Parades Commission said no. Every July, Portadown’s Orangemen applied to walk home from Drumcree Church along the Garvaghy Road, and every July they were refused. Then, in the summer of 2026, a procedural mistake changed everything.

In part two, we follow how one of the Troubles’ most notorious flashpoints ignited again: a court case that exposed the Parades Commission’s slop...

Few parades in the world are as controversial as the one at Drumcree Church in Portadown.

In this episode, we go back to the very beginning and try to explain how exactly one mile of road became a flashpoint for the entire conflict in Northern Ireland.

From the founding of Portadown as a plantation town to the birth of the Orange Order and the Obins Street dispute, we trace the route that led to the first standoff on the Garvaghy Road in 1995.

With Drumcree back in the headlines, part 2 will focus on current...

In the 1990s, Lee Lavis was a young British soldier sent to South Armagh. Crossmaglen. Bandit Country. In this episode, I sit down with Lee to hear what it was like to patrol the fields and border roads of South Armagh at the height of the Provisional IRA's campaign there.

We then talk about life after, in which Lee experienced drug addiction

and homelessness.

This is the first episode of Season 7. Lee will also be joining me at CrimeCon London on the first weekend of October for a panel on the prosecution of...

This week on the podcast, Johnny Adair talked about his role during the Troubles.

"Mad Dog" Adair progressed from a skinhead youth to lead the UDA's C Company, directing over 40 murders, robberies, and operations.

He waged a war against the Nationalist population, but he wanted more and was eventually expelled from Northern Ireland after turning on his fellow loyalists and trying to seize control of the Shankill.

This is his story in his own words.

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Johnny 'Mad Dog' Adair played a significant role in the Troubles in Northern Ireland. He commanded the UDA's C Company and through his leadership they enacted a fierce campaign of violence against Republican paramilitaries and the Nationalist population as a whole.

For the first time in the Troubles, loyalists were out-killing republicans and much of this was down to the actions of C Company.

But Adair wanted more power and ended up taking the fight to fellow loyalists, as he ousted the UVF from the Shankill.

But this move would see the full...

When it comes to the history of the Provisional IRA, there are many divisive figures within the paramilitary group. 

Some were beloved who then fell out of favour, either by leaning too far towards peace, or refusing to give up the violence. 

Few are as beloved as Brendan Hughes

His story is also rather unique, in the years before he died, Hughes was extremely candid about his time in the Provisional IRA. He contributed to the Boston College Tapes between 2001 and 2006, providing an insight into his time in the IRA that was revealed af...

In the early days of the Troubles, the Provisional IRA needed two things: guns and money.

As hundreds of thousands of Irish Americans watched the troubles unfold, many of them wanted to help. NORAID was born out of this need.

But was it just humanitarian aid that they were sending home, or was it weapons? This is the story of NORAID.

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Chris Ward is at home with his parents. He’ s watching football on the television with his father when they hear a knock on the door.

He answers and a man says “Alright Chris, I’m here to talk to you about Celtic”. The man then pushed past Chris into the house. A second man then appeared, dressed in black and a third.

Chris worked at Northern Bank in Belfast, which was the largest retail bank in Northern Ireland, which distributed cash to its 95 branches, and hundreds of ATMS in Northern Ireland. It was one of four...

This episode is being released on the 50-year anniversary of the Kingsmill Massacre; an attack which saw members of the provisional IRA march 11 Protestant factory workers off a bus, line them up and execute them.

All were killed, except for Alan and this week he tells us what life is like after such a life-altering event.

We talked about a lot of things, and honed in on that English accent heard on the night of the killing and how Alan does not believe that was Captain Robert Nairac but instead the clues point toward ex-paratrooper...

This week on the podcast: The Disappeared. People who were abducted, killed, and secretly buried someone on the island of Ireland. There's a lot in here, including:

The toll on family members when they don't know where their loved one is buried

The Disappeared Commission who are still organising digs and searches

Details about all 17 of the Disappeared and one additional person who has disappeared.

Reasons why people were taken

Anyone with information on the four outstanding Disappeared cases should contact the ICLVR on +353 1 602 8655 or Secretary...

Delve into the hidden world of the UVF with guest Iain Turner, an expert on Northern Ireland’s loyalist paramilitaries. We unpack the origins of the UVF’s weapons and explosives, their approach to informers, the controversy of Robin Jackson, and why Iain questions the existence of the Glenanne Gang. This compelling conversation uncovers fresh perspectives and lesser-heard stories from one of the most secretive paramilitary groups operating during the Troubles.

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Will be back to business as usual next week.

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Sunday, January 4th, 1976. Reavey brothers, Brian, Anthony and John are alone in the house eating biscuits and watching TV.

Suddenly, he men saw the barrels of automatic machine guns appear in the window above the front door of the house. 

At that moment, the door burst open and three armed men came through the door, unleashing a barrage of machine gun fire at the young men inside. 

This episode tells the story of brothers who were shot and killed in their home.

We’ll explore the investigation into their murders, the secr...

In this episode, Rory Nugent shares his extraordinary experience embedded inside the IRA during one of the most turbulent periods of the Troubles.

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The Balcombe Street Gang were an active service unit based in London, and one of the Provisional IRA’s most efficient units operating outside of Northern Ireland. Their 14-month campaign saw them planting upwards of 40 bombs around the London area, which killed and injured many and struck terror in the hearts of Londoners. 

Their reign came to an end after a six-day siege took place between members of the gang and the London metropolitan police and in this episode we will learn about the gang itself, and the siege which was watched live on TV by millions of...

Chris Stothers was an officer in Northern Ireland and was a part of the new rebranded police force, the PSNI, which had replaced the RUC.

But this period of peace time policing was anything but, and Chris ended up shot in the stomach at point blank range by dissident republicans during a protest in 2010.

In this episode Chris tells his story, and talks about life after policing.

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Dominic McGlinchey, was one of the most wanted Republican paramilitaries in Ireland during the Troubles. First with a small unit of freelance paramilitaries, he then joined the PIRA before changing sides and joining up with the INLA.

He would soon gain full control of the INLA and under his control, the group carried some significant attacks on the security services. But when he tried to leave paramilitary life behind, his violent past would catch up with him.

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In the conclusion of my conversation with former undercover agent Martin McGartland, we dive into the aftermath of his dramatic escape in Belfast and the challenges he faced while living under threat in England, as gunmen would eventually find out where he was living.

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This is an interview with Martin McGartland, who is a former informer who was kidnapped by the IRA after they became suspicious of his activities. There is a lot in this interview, including first hand accounts of how he became an informer, the activities he carried out, and then what things were like when he got caught. This is the first part of a two part episode.

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Get Troubles Podcast Merch here:

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Also over on Patreon I have just released a bonus episode. It is a bit older than my usual ones and focuses on one of the seminal moments during the Irish War for Independence, which saw British Soldiers shooting dead Irish civilians attending a GAA match.

The day, which is known as Bloody Sunday did not occur during the Troubles, but has so many similarities with the one that occurred in 1972.

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In this final episode of season 5 of the Troubles Podcast, I talked to Eddie Kinner who joins the UVF at a young age and then was involved in a gun and bomb attack on a pub when he was 17. We talk about his past, and how he feels about life in Northern Ireland in the aftermath of the troubles.

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This episode focuses on Martin McGuinness as a politician and the rocky path to peace, which would be strained on many occasions. There was peace, then the threat of it all falling apart, problems with decommissioning and even a presidential bid.

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This week on the podcast comes the first in a two-part series on the life of Martin McGuinness. In this episode we cover Martin's rise to prominence and the role he played in some of the pivotal moments of the troubles.

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Sergeant Joe Campbell was a Catholic RUC officer who was well respected by the people he looked after in the small seaside village of Cushendall up in the Glens of Antrim.

At the time, the RUC was an overwhelmingly Protestant police force and Joe knew that there were some in the organisation who didn't want a Catholic working in their midst.

In 1977 Joe was killed by loyalists and in this episode his son, Joe Campbell Junior, talks about his father and the 33-year quest for justice.

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The La Mon House Hotel Bombing was a no-warning incendiary bomb attack on unsuspecting patrons in a hotel, which saw 12 people lose their lives.

This attack was a complete disaster for the Provisional IRA and firmly cemented the thought in the minds of Unionists, that they were a sectarian group.

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Raymond Gilmour was born and raised in Derry and decided to become an informer as a teenager. He joined the INLA and then the Provisional IRA and all the while he was passing information on to the RUC and British Army. Then when he was exposed as an informer, upwards of 100 people were arrested on his testimony alone. But the toll paid by an informer is indeed a heavy one, and was it worth it?

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Don Tidey was kidnapped by the Provisional IRA in the hopes that his employer would pay the significant ransom that they demanded. What ensued instead was the largest manhunt in the history of the Irish State, which would see people lose their lives as a result of paramilitary violence. Journalist Ronan McGreevey comes on to tell this story.

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In this second episode we examine James Mitchell and his farm at Glenanne. We then dive deep into two bar attacks, one which was carried out by serving members of the RUC, and the other which took place under the watchful eye of the British military.

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This two-part episode focuses on the Glenanne gang, who were a secret informal alliance of Ulster loyalists based in the village of Glenanne. These were a group of loyalist which included members the the paramilitary group, the UVF, but also members of the police force the RUC and the British military regiment the UDR. In this first episode we learn about the infiltration of the UDR and then hear the claims made by former Glenanne gang member, John Weir.

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This is a short episode to explain why there has been rioting in the streets of Belfast in the early days of August, 2024.

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Richard O'Rawe joined the Provisional IRA when he was a teenager. He was eventually arrested and spent a number of years taking part in the blanket protests which would eventually lead up to the hunger strikes. Richard was there for it all and in this episode we talk about his role during the hunger strikes as well as his thoughts on Freddie Scappaticci who also went by the name of Stakeknife. 

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It was a dark evening in February, 1983, when three armed, masked men arrived to the home of Jim Fitzgerald.

His family were locked in a room. One of the men said to him "We have come for Shergar. We want £2 million for him." He was taken at gunpoint to a nearby stable where Shergar the horse was sleeping.  

The horse was loaded into a horsebox, and never seen again. What followed was a mystery which captivated the people of Ireland, and many around the world in the hunt to locate Shergar the world’s most famous race...

The two socialist Republican paramilitary groups were the INLA, Irish National Liberation Army and the IPLO, the Irish People's Liberation Organization.

These were two organisations who sought to fight against the colonial occupation of British Rule and free the working class of capitalistic dominance. 

However, instead of romantic struggle they would instead set their sights on each other. Former friends would become submerged in a murky world of criminality, revenge, sectarianism and cold-blooded murder. 

By the end of this feud, many would be dead and both organisations would be shadows of their former strength. So...

I'll be putting on a live show in London later this month with Kevin and Jason from Shite Talk: An Irish History Podcast. It'll take place on Wednesday, May 22nd at the London Irish Centre. Ticekts are £12 and the show starts at 19:30. Be great to see some of you there! 

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This week's episode focuses on the life of Father Patrick Ryan, a Catholic priest who had a unique relationship with the Provisional IRA and Libyan Dictator, Muammar Gaddafi. 
Through Father Ryan, the Provisional IRA received millions in cash, but it was his engineering work with Provisional IRA bombs, which would end up saving the lives of many paramilitaries… while allowing them to improve the efficacy of their bombing campaign. 

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It was a Sunday evening in November, 1983 and 65 people were attending service at the Mountain Lodge Pentecostal Church Service. The church was a small wooden building on the outskirts of the Northern Irish village of Darkley, in the county of Armagh, which was close to the border with the Republic of Ireland. The popular hymn, 'Are You Washed in the Blood of the Lamb' was playing, and pastor Bobby Bain was leading the singing. 
It was at this time, three masked gunmen arrived at the church. 
As the congregation started singing the final verse ‘Lay aside the garments that...

Here's the link to The Troubles Podcast live show in January 25th, 2024:
www.puntcomedy.com/event-details/the-troubles-live-podcast

In this episode, Kevin Owens talks about life in the Irish army during the Troubles, and explained what life was like... From searching in lakes for Libyan arms dumps to dealing with Gardai who may have been helping out the IRA. He then joined the US Army and ended up serving in Iraq and Afghanistan a number of times.

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David Ervine began as a loyalist paramilitary but had a remarkable change of heart while in prison, and upon his release dedicated his efforts to political discourse, and acting as a political voice for the UVF. But it wasn't easy, and there would be many who wanted to take his life. This is the story of the man who championed constructive unionism.

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Peter Taylor is a journalist who had an unparalleled level of access across the divided and sectarian communities in Northern Ireland. He has made multiple documentaires and written many books about the Troubles, and was trusted by paramilitaries to tell the world their stories.

In this episode we talk about his life, his memories of Bloody Sunday, and meeting the leaders of the Provisional IRA and the dangers with being a journalist during the Troubles.

We then discuss his new book, Operation Chiffon, The Secret Story of MI5 and...

Chris Thrall deployed as a Royal Marine into Northern Ireland in 1989. He knew very little about the conflict in Northern Ireland before arriving, and it wasn't long before he would see first-hand, what the troubles was like for a member of the British armed forces. Republicans targeted his barracks with mortor bombs, and he was also fired upon while out on patrol one day. This is his experience of the troubles.

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