On June 18th 1994 while watching Ireland play in the World Cup, 6 completely innocent men were slaughtered by a loyalist paramilitary gunman who sprayed the bar with an assault rifle in an act of cold blooded sectarianism. Trevor Birney's book, "Shooting Crows" tells the storey of this tragic event, the hatred and bitterness that provide the basis …

Toby Harnden is the author of one of the best-selling and well regarded books on the IRA and the troubles, “Bandit Country”. Toby’s book lifted the lid on the area where is was most dangerous to be a British soldier in during the conflict and the IRA brigade that made it that way. One of my most requested guests and an author that I’ve been dying t…

Kevin Meagher's book "What A Bloody Awful Country" examines the creation of the state we know as Northern Ireland and how the 100 plus years of existence as gone. We discuss the reasons for partition in the first place, the sectarian violence during the state's early years, the anti-catholic discrimination built into Northern Ireland's governing sy…

Rob Millington, ex-british army trooper, spent 6 months in Belfast during the final decade of the conflict that gripped the lives of anyone in the 6 counties. Rob talks to us almost getting caught in an IRA b*mb which was set up to blow up security forces responding to sh*oting, the impact that first seeing dead bodies had on him and aftermath of t…

John Nixon, ex-Offical IRA and INLA member begins this episode at the start of his second prison term in Long Kesh during which he would volunteer for the IRA/INLA Hunger Strike of 1980, led by Brendan “The Dark” Hughes. John speaks about the horrors and trauma of years in prison, beatings and torture from the guards and his account of the hunger s…

Ralph Brooker served in the British army touring Fermanagh, Derry and the infamous South Armagh, better known as "Bandit Country". Having spent the majority of his time in rural, border areas Ralph recounts the British army's constant attempts to counteract the IRA's ever evolving methods and tactics. Ralph speaks to us about being on the receiving…

David Burke’s most recent book “Puppet Masters” shines a light on mysterious case of Patrick Crinnion, the garda (Irish police officer) who was passing information to Mi6 while he was in the Gardai’s secretive intel department. David, joining me for the third time, tells us about the state of the Republican movement in the years prior to the outbre…

****Q&A COMING SOON SO PLEASE SUBMIT ANY QUESTIONS YOU'D LIKE ANSWERED IN THE COMMENTS**** In a recent episode David Burke re-joined us to talk about the mysterious case of Garda Patrick Crinnion, a spy within the Garda Special Branch (Intel dept) who passed information to the British intel network. The release of David's book on the subject has pr…

In part 2 of my interviews with ex-official IRA & INLA member, John Nixon. In this episode we discussed some of the INLA’s most prolific operations as well as some of the organizations most well known members including Seamus Costello and Dessie O’ Hare. (Part 1 - https://youtu.be/9YOpiW1jU6c?si=81DqiPlwIAz4HOHQ) I asked John about second prison te…

My guest for this week is James Durney, historian and author of “Jailbreak” which details the various “great escapes” perpetrated by Irish Republican prisoners from 1865 onwards into the 1980s. James tells us about the most daring and dangerous prison escapes, both successful and otherwise, of the troubles-era including the story of the Crumlin Kan…

Hilton McCabe served in the RUC in both East Tyrone and Belfast during the second half of the conflict we know as “the troubles”. Hilton tells us about policing rural East Tyrone and the horror of cleaning up body-parts after the one of the IRA’s most deadly roadside b*mb attacks, the Ballygawley Bus Ambush. Hilton shares with us his stories of rio…

Ex-FRU agent handler "Will Britten" (alias) actively ran and recruited agents in South Armagh, one of the most dangerous places to be a British soldier during the conflict, in the 80s and is the author of "The Deadly Game". We speak in depth about the recruitment methods of the FRU, how to successfully run an agent in such a dangerous area, the leg…

In a recent episode I interviewed author Dan Lawton about his book focusing on the fallout from the murder of dept Governor, Albert Miles, of the infamous Maze Prison in November 1978 in which an innocent man was convicted. Alan Miles witnessed his father’s brutal murder as a young man at the hands of the IRA but almost immediately got to a place i…

Jonathan Trigg’s book “Death In The Fields” examines, in great detail, the infamous East-Tyrone IRA and how this rural group complied some of the republican’s biggest wins and conversely, their most devastating losses. We examine the early days of the unit and how they were formed, the autonomy they enjoyed, the Jim Lynagh “A-Team” era and their de…

William Matchett is an ex-RUC officer who spent years working in the secretive and murky world of informants and agents during his time in Special Branch while “the troubles” raged on. William shares with us his motivations for joining the RUC during such dangerous times, the techniques they utilized to recruit informants, death threats he’s receiv…

**Sorry for the late upload my good people.. feel free to follow on YouTube where I'm a bit more on top of things** Fr Sean McManus hails from Co. Fermanagh but was sent, by his superiors in the Catholic, to America early in his career where he continued his fight for Irish freedom. Fr McManus’ tells us about his early life, his older brother who w…

Mick Hawkes is an ex-SAS soldier and 14th intel company (the Det.) operator who worked against the IRA and Loyalist paramilitaries in Northern Ireland as part of his military career. Mick tells us about the daily ins and outs of carrying out surveillance on dangerous insurgents, the differences between republican and loyalist paramilitaries, how he…

My guest this week is Dr Michael Flavin, child to Irish parents who grew up in Birmingham, England during the IRA’s bombing campaign in England during the troubles. Michael speaks to us about being a part of the Irish diaspora in England, anti-Irish discrimination at the time as well Michael’s writings on IRA leadership and INLA splits. 00:00 “NO B…

Dan Lawton’s thrilling new book “The Hunted” explores the story of Kevin Barry Artt and how he was false-convicted of the IRA murder of deputy Maze prison governor, Albert Miles. We speak about the so-called “confession factory” Castlereagh, Long Kesh’s Maze prison, the horrors of the “blanket”/“no-wash” protests and how Kevin Barry Artt took part …

For this episode I’m joined by author and lecturer, Thomas Leahy, whose book “The Intelligence War against the IRA” gives a through and detailed account of Britain’s attempts to disrupt and defeat the IRA by way of intel gathering. We discuss the various methods of intel collection, what “intel” is and can be used for in this context, the various t…

Harry McCallion is an ex-paratrooper and SAS solider who served in the north during some of the troubles’ most violent years. Harry tells us about the brutal training regime they underwent before deployment, his thoughts on the mistakes that the British army made, his views on the “Ballymurphy Massacre”, his emotional state while policing violent r…

Author, lawyer and past guest of the show, David Burke reveals a previously unreleased statement from ex-Tara member and close-friend of Robin 'the jackal" Jackson, Charlie Simpson uncovering Jackson and the British Army's involvement in one of the trouble's most heinous attacks. We talk through the events of the tragic day, the logistics of the UV…

Brendan Hughes (not to be confused with the deceased Brendan ‘The Dark” Hughes) shares his truly extraordinary life story, a life shaped by his membership of the East-Tyrone PIRA in the early days of the conflict in the North. Brendan tells us about his time ambushing British soldiers in the countryside and robbing banks to fund raise for the IRA a…

My guest this week is ex-b*mb disposal man, Steve Smith. Steve worked as a EOD officer in Belfast during the early 80s and worked to rid the city of IRA & Loyalist b*mbs. Steve gives us his insight into the various types of explosives used throughout the conflict, the differences between IRA & Loyalist b*mb-makers, how it feels to put on the b*mb-s…

Graham Cousins grew up protestant in East Belfast and spent his late-teen years and early 20s in the Ulster Defense Association better known as the UDA, a loyalist paramilitary group formed in the early 70s. He has since become close friends with ex-paramilitaries from the other side including my last guest, ex-b*mb-maker Packy McMahon (https://you…

Patrick “Packy” McMahon is a former provisional IRA bomb maker who was jailed after being caught in the act of manufacturing a 1,500 LB bomb. Packy tells us about growing up as the conflict raged and how his life-long battle with British soldiers began. We spoke about the in and outs of how the IRA manufactured its bombs/explosive devices from begi…

Ian Hurst, better known to some as “Martin Ingram” was a member of the Force Research Unit, an intel gathering and spy-handling British security forces group and spent time as a handler in Derry during which time he worked with Frank Hegarty. Ian is best known for co-authoring the book ’Stakeknife” which exposed the exploits of one of the North’s m…

*** PREVIEW CLIP*** (I usually don't do this but to fill the void this week here's a snippet from the full episode which will be available on YouTube this week and on podcast platforms next Monday) In a clip from our upcoming 3 + hour interview, ex-FRU handler Ian Hurst (Martin Ingram) gives his take on how he thinks the infamous "Agent Stakeknife"…

For this episode I spoke with author Henry Hemming about his most recent book “Four Shots in the Night”, an excellently written true-story of a British army agent within the IRA named Frank Hegarty. Henry talks to us about the army unit that recruited and ran Hegarty, the now infamous FRU (force research unit) and their unique approach to running a…

For this episode I spoke with filmmaker Des Henderson, about his recent, extremely powerful documentary "Lost Boys: Belfast's Missing Children" which focus on the disappearances of a number of boys in Northern Ireland during the troubles and explores the dark story of Kincora Boys Home. Des tells us about the links that these disappearances may hav…

Ex-IRA volunteer and author of the “Stakeknife's Dirty War", Richard O Rawe returns to the pod to share his analysis on the recently published and long awaited, Operation Kenova (interim report). This was an investigation into the FRU (force research unit) agent code named Stakeknife and the IRA’s internal security unit better known as the “nutting…

Padraig Og O' Ruaric, historian and author of "The Disappeared" speaks to us about his the forced disappearances the have taken place for political reasons in Ireland's often bloody history. We speak about the different reasons for forced disappearances in Ireland's war of independence and civil war committed by both Irish guerrilla fighters and th…

In this episode author David Blake Knox ("Facedown: The disappearance of Thomas Neidermayer") takes us through the tragic case of German man, Thomas Neidermayer, who was living in the north when he was kidnapped (and killed) by the IRA in an attempt to get Marian and Dolores Price moved to an Irish prison after their 1973 London b*mbing attack. We …

Richard Moore grew up in Derry and as a young child experienced life in pre-troubles Northern Ireland before the eruption of a conflict that had been brewing for years. Richard tells us about his memories of the British army as they first came to N.I following the Battle of the Bogside and how they were originally welcomed by the community and how …

David Burke, author of "Kitson’s Irish War: Mastermind of the Dirty War in Ireland" breaks down the work/influence of Brigader Frank Kitson and the infamous "Military Reaction Force" better known as the MRF, The British Army branch who were "there to act like the IRA". David tell us about how Kiston developed the tactics that would used against the…

Stephen White is former commanding officer of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (police force at the time) during some of Northern Ireland’s most violent and volatile years. Stephen tells us about his early years growing up in an environment where sectarian tension and violence was a constant. Stephen spent time in the Ulster Defense Regiment before he…

PLEASE SUBSCRIBE, LEAVE A RATING & SHARE TO HELP THE SHOW CONTINUE TO GROW On April 13th 1922 the war of independence era IRA committed their only murder on US soil when they took revenge on a traitor whose disloyalty had cost 6 members of his old unit their lives. Author Mark Bulik, who has written the first book on the incident shares with us the…

Julieann Campbell's uncle John "Jackie" Duddy was 17 years old when he was shot dead while running away by British soldiers during Bloody Sunday 1972. Julieann's urge to find out whatever she could about the killing of the uncle that she never got to meet for her family would eventually led her to write an outstanding book called 'On Bloody Sunday"…

(RE-UPLOAD, RECORDED LATE DEC 2022 & PUBLISHED IN JAN 2023) The chief suspect for the still unsolved 1996 murder of Sophie Toscan Du Plantier, Ian Bailey has died form a heart-attack. I spoke to Ian almost exactly a year ago in what was, I'm fairly sure, his second last long format interview and his last video long format interview. (Video version …

For this episode I spoke with Ronan McGreevy, co-author of the recently released book "The Kidnapping", which focuses on the doomed ransom kidnapping attempt on businessman Don Tidey. We discussed the IRA's various methods of fund-raising during the troubles and their history of ransom-kidnaps. Ronan told me about how Tidey was selected as the targ…

Nick Dunn is a former British soldier and private security contractor who endured nearly half a decade in the Indian prison system after being unfairly convicted while carrying out anti-pirate work. Nick spoke to me about his brief time patrolling South Armagh in post-conflict Northern Ireland and danger he faced in Afghanistan fighting against the…

Billy Hutchinson is an ex-UVF member and Loyalist who saw the Troubles heat up and erupt as he was a teen in sectarian Northern Ireland. Billy told us about his growing up in the Shankill area, a working class Protestant part of Belfast and his community felt uncared for by their government despite identifying as loyal Brits. Billy, in an attempt t…

PLEASE SUBSCRIBE, SHARE & LEAVE A RATING TO HELP US CONTINUE TO GROW Brian Banks is a former NFL whose life was altered forever when he was the victim of a false-r*pe allegation towards the end of his high school years. We spoke about how he found out that he was being accused of such a horrific crime, the process of being arrested & charged and th…

PART 2 OF 2 PLEASE SUBSCRIBE & LEAVE A RATING TO HELP THE SHOW CONTINUE TO GROW Glenn Bradley was born 1967 in West Belfast and grew up in the loyalist Woodvale area. He is a former soldier, one-time politician and a made-good businessman. Today, Glenn is Chair of Veterans For Peace Ireland and a Board Member of the Belfast Charitable Society. He r…

Glenn Bradley was born 1967 in West Belfast and grew up in the loyalist Woodvale area. He is a former soldier, one-time politician and a made-good businessman. Today, Glenn is Chair of Veterans For Peace Ireland and a Board Member of the Belfast Charitable Society. He remains an unapologetic Irish peace processor. I was eager pick Glenn's brain abo…

Graham Linehan is the Irish comedy writer behind behind the legendary sitcom, Father Ted, as well as Black Books and the I.T Crowd. Grahams recent autobiography, “Tough Crowd” takes the reader through Graham’s youth in Ireland, his co-writing of the show that is now embedded in Irish culture and provided laughs the world over. We speak about Graham…

Frank Portinari is a former commander of the London UDA during the troubles and was eventually imporisoned after being caught buying firearms which were to used for the loyalist cause of keeping the 6 counties of Northern Ireland part of the UK. Frank told us about his growing in working-class London in a largely Irish area and how he ended up as a…

Irish criminologist and co-host of the Real Lives Untold podcast, Sarah O' Conor speaks to us about the recent murders that shocked Ireland committed by Yousef Palani & Jozef Puska whose respective killings have now resulted in life sentences for the murderers. Sarah also told us about Ireland's history of serial-killer types and particularly those…

"Balaclava Street" is a leading blog dedicated to exploring the history of the loyalist paramilitaries in Northern, particularly the UVF. Over the years Iain has gained unprecedented access to ex-UVF members for the book that he is in the process of writing about the loyalist paramilitary's history. We spoke about the various loyalist paramilitary …

Nicola Tallant is one of Ireland’s leading crime journalists and her newest book, “Cocaine Cowboys” presents a history of Ireland’s relationship with the drug as well as the gangland figures that have emerged since white powder hit Irish shores. We spoke about the drug itself, how long it has taken to fully penetrate all layers of society and how i…