The BelTel

Thousands of declassified files on Northern Ireland and the troubles have been deposited, not in Belfast, but in the Kew Archives in London. In part 1 of a 2-part special of the BelTel, Ciarán Dunbar is joined by Sam McBride to discuss the Kew Files and what they tell us about Martin McGuinness, the IRA and the SDLP.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nationalists continue to campaign for planning a united Ireland, but Unionists seem assured it’s a pipe dream – where does the truth lie – or is it impossible to say? Is a United Ireland a realistic prospect or pure fantasy, inevitable or impossible? David McCann and Owen Polley join Ciarán Dunbar. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Prolific republican gunman Gerard ‘Hucker’ Moyna has died aged 69. He has been linked to several murders – including that of Shankill Butcher Lenny Murphy. He was also believed to be involved in the killing of solicitor and unionist politician, Edgar Graham – as well as IPLO spokesman, Jimmy Brown.  Allison Morris joins Ciarán Dunbar . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Globe-trotting Private Investigator Ian Withers reflects on his extraordinary career, from speaking to Gerry Kelly in prison after the 1973 Old Bailey bombing, tracking the IRA’s Hyde Park bomber with a bluffed phone call and being arrested on suspicion of the murder of an exiled politician from the Seychelles. He joins Andrew Madden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Northern Ireland Politics were thrown into chaos at the weekend when Jeffrey Donaldson resigned as DUP leader. He’s been charged with historical sex offences, while his wife Eleanor Donaldson has been charged with aiding and abetting. With a general election looming, can the DUP survive this crisis? Allison Morris and Sam McBride join Olivia Peden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mitchell’s farm was the base of the ‘Glenanne Gang’, a mix of loyalist paramilitaries and rogue members of the security forces. The ‘Glenanne Gang’ were responsible for up 120 murders including the Dublin Monaghan bombings, the Miami Showband massacre, and scores of other sectarian killings. Martin Breen has had a run in with Mitchell, he explains what happened. This episode originally aired on 20th October 2023. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has resigned as DUP leader after being charged with historical sex offences. The Belfast Telegraph’s Northern Ireland editor Sam McBride explains the implications of this political earthquake to Ciarán Dunbar.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ian Hurst worked with the British Army’s ‘Force Research Unit’ during the Troubles. He later exposed Freddie Scappaticci as the agent known as Stakeknife. Controversially, he also maintains former IRA leader Martin McGuinness was compromised, even claiming he protected Scappaticci. He gives his version of events to Ciarán Dunbar  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tom Galvin and Andrew Madden join Ciaran Dunbar to explain who Simon Harris is and what he might mean for Northern Ireland. And with Sinn Féin being heckled from both the right and the left, we ask what it might mean electorally.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sixteen year old Megan McAlorum’s body was found in a Dunmurry forest in 2004 after a night out. Her body was found with 54 fractures to her skull, among other injuries. Thomas Purcell, who claimed to be 16 at the time, brutally killed her after picking her up from a west Belfast bar. He died in a road crash in Oxford earlier this month. Allison Morris joins Ciarán Dunbar.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.