First of three programmes. 'Two members of the IRA administered the oath ... It was probably the most brilliant moment of my existence. I was no longer an insignificant teenager, I was a fully-fledged member.' The Volunteer
In August 1969, when British troops arrived on the streets of Northern Ireland, Shane Paul O'Doherty was 14, helping to man the barricades at the entrance to Londonderry's Bogside. Eighteen months later, to the horror of his family he had joined the IRA. Today he is serving 30 life sentences for bombing offences.
In tonight's programme, Peter Taylor traces the fortunes of the O'Doherty family through 20 years of the Troubles. He talks to Shane Paul 's mother and four brothers about how each of them reacted to what was happening - and to Shane Paul himself, about why he joined, what he did, and why he now renounces the IRA. Cameraman TONY MALLON
Film editor CHRISTINE GARNER
Executive producer GEORGE CAREY Producer MICHAEL DUTFIELD
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