The BelTel

The trial of Soldier F has begun in Belfast. The former paratrooper is accused of murdering James Wray and William McKinney, two of the thirteen civil rights protests shot dead on Bloody Sunday in 1972. He is also charged with five attempted murders in Derry’s Bogside area. Ciarán Dunbar is joined by Sunday World’s Investigations Editor, Nicola Tallant, who was in court.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michael Briggs has a famous scientist but as it turns out he had faked some of his qualifications. He also faked research that supposedly showed the safety a brand of oral contraceptives. His daughter Joanne has written a book about him - ‘The Scientist Who Wasn't There’ She joined Ciarán Dunbar to tell her incredible story and to try and answer the question, who really was her father?   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Marianne Smyth had a long career on both sides of the Atlantic as a swindler and a con-woman. Smyth has now been convicted in Downpatrick of swindling more than £115,000 from four victims, including Derry GAA player Dermot McNicholl. Born in Maine, Smyth claimed she had ordered IRA killings, been the heir of a multi-million dollar fortune, and survived cancer, among many other absurd lies.  Smyth had even had her pet dogs euthanised before she fled Northern Ireland. The Belfast Telegraph’s Kurtis Reid joined Olivia Peden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Thirty-one-year-old conservative activist and father-of-two Charlie Kirk was fatally shot during a public event on Wednesday. With an intense manhunt underway, US president Donald Trump has blamed the “radical left” for the gruesome killing. How is an already splintered America responding to the murder of Charlie Kirk? And what happens next in a bitterly divided county awash with guns? Host: Kevin Doyle Guests: Terry Sheridan and Gina London    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Riots were a familiar feature of the Troubles, but with political violence now almost a thing of the past, rioting is rare. However, sparked by a decision not to allow the Orange Order to parade on west Belfast’s Springfield Road, the September 2005 riots were complete mayhem. Loyalists rampaged for three nights causing two thousand police and soldiers to be deployed. Belfast Telegraph’s security correspondent Allison Morris was there, she joins Ciarán Dunbar.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sean Hegarty is a brutal double murderer. He is currently in Northern Ireland’s maximum-security prison, Maghaberry. But he is somehow updating a Facebook account from behind bars. Hegarty murdered his ex-girlfriend Caron Smyth and her friend Finbar McGrillen in December 2013. Hegarty had just days before been released on bail for domestic violence charges. An inquest found that the PSNI’s decision to release the prolific abuser was flawed.  How was someone so dangerous let loose on the streets and how can he be on social media?  Ciarán Dunbar is joined by Allison Morris. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Twenty-five years ago, as a long summer drew to a close, a night out ended in tragedy. It changed the lives of four young men forever, ending another’s far too soon. It happened in the leafy, affluent suburb of Donnybrook in south Dublin. A fight broke out among a group of young men outside Anabel’s nightclub. When it was over, 18-year-old Brian Murphy lay on the ground. Hours later, he was pronounced dead. What followed wasn’t just a murder investigation - it was a case that exposed a deep divide in Irish society, focusing on the Dublin southside rugby schools and Blackrock College in particular. Host; Fionnán Sheahan, Guest; Sarah Cadden   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Irish man Graham Linehan is one of the brains behind one of TV’s finest ever comedies – Father Ted. He is now a self-described ‘gender critical’ activist, causing much controversy and offence to those who believe in trans rights. In the latest twist, he was arrested by five armed police over posts made on X in April of this year. How did Graham Linehan go from comedic genius to such a divisive figure, and where exactly is the line between free speech and hate speech? Ciarán Dunbar joined by the Belfast Telegraph’s deputy features editor, Gillian Halliday, and from our news desk, Brett Campbell.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When an IRA Stormont spy ring was alleged in 2002, devolution quickly plunged into crisis. A PSNI raid on Sinn Féin's Stormont offices discovered a map of castle buildings with instructions on bypassing security, and intelligence on the prison service, including personal details of prison officers. But in 2004, Denis Donaldson – the most senior republican arrested during the raids – admitted he had been a British agent all along. Months later he was murdered in Donegal.  Belfast Telegraph’s Northern Ireland Editor Sam McBride has been back in the archives and has unearthed fresh details on the Stormont spy ring scandal, he joins Ciarán Dunbar. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In March 1994 the IRA attacked Heathrow Airport with mortar bombs, they were high profile and highly symbolic acts.   One of those involved was Glasgow-born IRA man Michael Gallagher.  He was eventually arrested and charged but he managed to convince his English partner Mary Attenborough that he was innocent.  Mary then campaigned for what she thought was justice for Michael.   But when he was convicted and given a twenty-year sentence, he decided he had to tell her the truth.  Amazingly, they are still together – and have written a book about their experiences – it's called ‘Unbroken: Secrets, Lies and Enduring Love’.  Mary Attenborough and Michael Gallagher joined Ciarán Dunbar in the BelTel studio.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.