'Battle of the Bogside'


'Battle of the Bogside' Poster


Filming of the APPRENTICE BOYS OF DERRY parade, Derry, August 2003

RUC in Bogside, 12 August 1969

‘BATTLE OF THE BOGSIDE’ FOR GALWAY FILM FLEADH 2004

‘Battle of the Bogside’, a feature documentary produced by Derry-based Perfect Cousin Productions, receives its first ever festival screening as part of the Galway Film Fleadh this year.  The film will be shown at The Town Hall Theatre, Galway on Saturday 10^th July at 5.30pm.    

  On 12 August 1969, the disaffected Catholic and Nationalist population in the Bogside area of Derry, Northern Ireland took to the streets to confront the Royal Ulster Constabulary, in the wake of a protestant Apprentice Boys parade in the City.  The riots, which came to be known as the ‘Battle of the Bogside’, continued for almost 3 days and saw over 1,000 people injured.

  The ‘Battle’ ended when, in an unprecedented step, British troops were deployed into Derry.  This decision, by the British Government at Westminster, was to shape the future of Northern Ireland for over thirty years.

  Through the use of previously unseen archive footage, ‘Battle of the Bogside’ takes us behind the barricades, into Stormont and Westminster, to reveal the inside stories surrounding the Battle and the political response to it. Interviews with key figures from within the Bogside, the RUC and the Northern Irish and British Governments recreate the drama as events unfold.  Many of the contributors are speaking for the first time about those 3 days in August 1969.

  The film also features exclusive broadcast clips of ‘RADIO FREE DERRY’, a pirate radio station established by the Bogsiders in 1969.

  Producer/ Director, Vinny Cunningham, said:

  “I’m really looking forward to the Galway screening, it’s a wonderful festival.  This production has been a long haul, from the original conception to seeing the final film.  ‘Battle of the Bogside’ is a film that I have wanted to make for about eight years or so.  Back then a man from the Creggan in Derry gave me audio recordings that he’d made of ‘Radio Free Derry’, the radio station set up in Derry’s Bogside in 1969.  I had the idea of a film built up around these recordings and set about raising the finance to produce such a film.  In 2002, I got the Irish Film Board and the Northern Ireland Film and Television Commission onboard as well as Northland Broadcast and Raw Nerve Productions in Derry.   All I needed now was a broadcaster and it was in late 2002 that BBC4, the digital channel, commissioned the film.

  “John Peto (Assistant Producer/ Writer) from Derry’s Nerve Centre and I started work on it in early 2003 and having interviewed over 29 people from ‘both sides of the barricades’, we began editing in October 2003.  15 weeks later, Kevin Murray (editor) and I had what we believed was an accurate account of those incredible 3 days in August 1969, which came to be known as the ‘Battle of the Bogside’.

  Contributors include: Lord James Callaghan, Martin McGuinness, Sir Kenneth Bloomfield, Bernadette McAliskey, Nell McCafferty, Eamonn McCann and many others.

ENDS

UPDATE

`BATTLE OF THE BOGSIDE' SHORTLISTED FOR `GRIERSON 2004'
Wednesday 11th August 2004
The shortlist for the `Grierson Documentary Awards 2004' has been
announced and it includes Derry-based Perfect Cousin Productions'
film, `BATTLE OF THE BOGSIDE' in the `Best Historical' category. The
documentary, produced and directed by Vinny Cunningham and written by
John Peto, has been shown on BBC4 and BBC2 earlier this year. It is
one of eight films shortlisted in this category. Four will go on to
be nominated and the winners will be announced at the awards ceremony
in London on 8th November.
Each year, the Grierson Trust, which commemorates the pioneering
Scottish documentary maker John Grierson (1898- 1972), most famous
for DRIFTERS and NIGHT MAIL, recognises the best documentary film-
making from Britain and abroad through the Grierson Awards.
Established in 1972, Grierson continues to recognise outstanding
films that demonstrate integrity, originality and technical
excellence as well as social or cultural significance.

`Battle of the Bogside' was completed in early 2004 and looks 'behind
the barricades' at the riots that took place in Derry in August 1969,
revealing the inside stories from both sides surrounding the battle.
The film has already been screened at The Galway Film Fleadh in July
and was selected under `Best Feature Documentary'. There are further
screenings planned for Boston, San Francisco, New York and Dublin in
the coming months.

Vinny Cunningham, Producer/ Director, said:
`Naturally we are delighted at the success of the film to date. It is
a film that I have always wanted to make and it is always satisfying
to see the film getting recognition, especially up against many other
brilliant films. This shortlisting is a tribute to everyone involved
in making the documentary including all of those who contributed to a
record of such an important part of our history here.'

ENDS

Notes for editors:

The film was produced for BBC4 and lottery funded through the
Northern Ireland Film and Television Commission. It was also financed
by The Irish Film Board and produced in association with Northland
Broadcast and Raw Nerve Productions.

Full details of all shortlisted films can be found on
www.griersontrust.org

More information from the producers of the Awards, Artichoke Ltd:
Helen Marriage: 07808 7700555
Nicky Webb: 07976 433649
awards@griersontrust.org

More information from Perfect Cousin Productions Ltd:
Vinny Cunningham: info@northlandbroadcast.net

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