The anniversary of the Omagh bombing of August 1998 weighs heavily on me every year. My sadness does not begin to compare to that suffered by family, friends and neighbours of the dead and the injured, but I spent a decade closely involved with that small, brave...
An old friend from Omagh, an ex-member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary called me to tell me of the attempted police killing. Published: 23 February 2023 An old friend from Omagh, an ex-member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) — the predecessor of the Police...
Last week Secretary of State Chris Heaton-Harris said he was establishing an independent statutory inquiry into the Omagh bombing. Published: 7 February 2023 Though I was pleased for those who had worked to achieve this, the news also worried me. Planted on a sunny...
Seán Murray – son of the more famous Seán ‘Spike’ who spent years in jail for explosives offences – came to mind last week for something that he tweeted. Published: 22 November 2022 He said that he would run “a free course for young working class loyalists/unionists....
My late friend David Trimble saved unionists from having joint authority imposed on them because he fought nationalism, constitutional and violent, intelligently and imaginatively — despite the attacks from his own side. Published: 30 August 2022 He also benefited...
In the week in which Austin Currie died, two members of the SDLP — the party he co-founded — made comments about the RUC that would, I believe, have shocked that anti-sectarian. Published: 16 November 2021 As his friend the UUP’s Lord (Ken) Maginnis said of him,...
My hope for post-Brexit, post-Covid Northern Ireland is that its good people work together to exploit future opportunities. Published: 5 January 2021 They will have to do so despite the continual destructiveness of Sinn Fein, which skilfully uses its dark arts to...
We should stand up to the haters and extol the fine men and women of the force, writes Ruth Dudley Edwards Published: 18 November 2019 The RUC have been portrayed as “villains-in-chief from central casting”, said Mick Fealty. “The singular exception...
The RUC are consistently betrayed, but they have much to be proud of, writes Ruth Dudley Edwards Published: 11 November 2019 Last week I caught up on BBC iPlayer with Cops On The Frontline, directed by Dubliner Gerry Gregg, one of a handful of citizens of the Republic...
In the latest essay in our series, RUTH DUDLEY EDWARDS writes that the NIO has come up with is a Sinn Fein wish list on legacy, but it is not too late to fight back Published: 2 October 2018 In four decades of following events in Northern Ireland closely, I’ve seen...
