1988 IRA funeral Footage

boys in blue= coppers=RUC men. If you still want to be clevah the gardai werent wearing blue back in the 80s, it was a nice shade of navy :rolleyes: . But while you're being pedantic you might want to check the flag, beret and gloves on that coffin, just so you dont need to talk anyones word for the IRAnosity of that funeral

me up in tha prahvince? just before christmas. I used to be up in belfast quite a bit for work

Navy is a shade of blue. Navy blue. The colloquiallism for the RUC is "Peelers" in the Northern Counties not the "Boys in Blue". The colour of the beret is black just like the black beret worn by most armies in Europe and Frank Spencer. So what is your point? Is everyone killed by a loyalist an IRA member?

I worked up there for a long time and on average, given my age, have seen things you haven't.

Hagar wrote:

Navy is a shade of blue. Navy blue. The colloquiallism for the RUC is "Peelers" in the Northern Counties not the "Boys in Blue". The colour of the beret is black just like the black beret worn by most armies in Europe and Frank Spencer. So what is your point? Is everyone killed by a loyalist an IRA member?

I worked up there for a long time and on average, given my age, have seen things you haven't.

but im not a nordie thanks all the same, cops are universally known as the boys in blue, hence even branch men in bright red sweaters can be "boys in blue".

im sure someone whose spent as much time in the north as you have would know that civillians dont get the tricolour and beret/glove treatment so you'd know that was not a civilian funeral. Plus given your age you'd have known back then, just like I did, that one of the men shot by stone was a member of the IRA. I mean you're such a clever chappie im sure all this is old news to you.

You're getting very personal there.

I'm not a clever chappie at all. At the time I was 32 and working there so I have an adult perspective of events plus some local knowledge. The truth is you cannot believe official versions of many events in NI in those times. There was too much of a power struggle to allow little things like truth and justice to get in the way of keeping law and order. I worked with a man whose son by marriage was convicted and sent to jail for the murder of those corporals. He didn't do it but someone had to be found to appease the British press and public. He wasn't an innocent man though, he had been involved in an assasination attempt on a Unionist politician but was never even suspected of it.

No disrespect intended but most of the people debating in this thread would have been too young to remember the events and are relying on official press releases etc as their only source of information.
As the saying goes "you had to be there".

20 Times 20 Times

d_mcevoy wrote:

I'm looking for images/video of.......

Two British soldiers who blundered into an IRA funeral cortège in West Belfast were killed by a lynch mob in 1988

... for a project on the conflict in the north.

I have A uncle That was there that day , I will ask him to see if he is willing to talk to you about it !

Hagar wrote:

You're getting very personal there.

I'm not a clever chappie at all. At the time I was 32 and working there so I have an adult perspective of events plus some local knowledge. The truth is you cannot believe official versions of many events in NI in those times. There was too much of a power struggle to allow little things like truth and justice to get in the way of keeping law and order. I worked with a man whose son by marriage was convicted and sent to jail for the murder of those corporals. He didn't do it but someone had to be found to appease the British press and public. He wasn't an innocent man though, he had been involved in an assasination attempt on a Unionist politician but was never even suspected of it.

No disrespect intended but most of the people debating in this thread would have been too young to remember the events and are relying on official press releases etc as their only source of information.
As the saying goes "you had to be there".

Ah the traditional "son when you've seen as much as I have" and "well I was was there you don't understand" the last defence of armchair and barstool bullshítters the world over........

Snickers Man

LikeOhMyGawd! wrote:

Once during a drinking session after a shooting competition in Edinburgh I got speaking to a Colonel who had been stationed in Belfast at the time. We were generally talking about sacrifices made in the line of duty and he made quite a surprising admission. He told us that the two soldiers who drove into the cortege were members of the SAS and not Signallers as widely reported.

Frankly, I don't believe this version for a number of reasons.

1) One of the dead guys was quite a portly individual. Say what you like about the SAS, they tend to be superb physical specimens.

2) They were carrying small pistols. Standard SAS equipment is usually more robust and with greater, er, 'lethality' I think they call it.

3) I just don't believe the story about the wrong turning. British soldiers were well briefed on what area was what in Belfast. I just don't believe that they were passing by so close to a funeral of that nature.

Freelancer wrote:

Ah the traditional "son when you've seen as much as I have" and "well I was was there you don't understand" the last defence of armchair and barstool bullshítters the world over........

I find that remark offensive. On what basis are you claiming that that post is false or misleading?
I was just trying to pass on my experience on the topic in hand. If you don't believe me that is your perogative but do not accuse me of bull****ting.

Hagar wrote:

I find that remark offensive. On what basis are you claiming that that post is false or misleading?
I was just trying to pass on my experience on the topic in hand. If you don't believe me that is your perogative but do not accuse me of bull****ting.

Fantastic you're not got me on ignore anymore (remember when you had to resort to going "LALALALA I CAN'T HEAR YOU" when I had you on the ropes a few weeks ago) I feel all loved.

Sorry anyone who starts with that patronising "you had to be there" "son I've more life experience than you", rather than facts and proof is just another armchair or barstool bore with nothing to offer the convesation.

Back on ignore. For good this time. I was trying to contribute to the OP not you. Adios.

Snickers Man wrote:

1) One of the dead guys was quite a portly individual. Say what you like about the SAS, they tend to be superb physical specimens.

2) They were carrying small pistols. Standard SAS equipment is usually more robust and with greater, er, 'lethality' I think they call it.

3) I just don't believe the story about the wrong turning. British soldiers were well briefed on what area was what in Belfast. I just don't believe that they were passing by so close to a funeral of that nature.

From what i remember they were packing (what was then ) SAS weaponry but that wasnt produced in the incident. I remember at the time there was a lot of rumours that they were working for one of the military intelligence wings but not the SAS, and that the explanantions the British army came out with for their movements that day contradicted themselves a lot (like where they signed the weapons out from etc). All from memory though

Hagar wrote:

Back on ignore. For good this time. I was trying to contribute to the OP not you. Adios.

Awwww diddums doesn't want to listen to my opinion that you come off like a tedious bore (similar to last time you "ignored" me and called me a troll and then ignored some of the finest minds of planets opinion of your precious "virtue" of patriotism, and instead decided to abuse the spirit of man who embodies part of the precious "heritage" you claim to cherish? Oh yeah you come out of that realllllllllllly well) And I'm back on your ignore list. God I best mop around in my jim jams and listen to some Cecline Dióne to cope with the rejection.

My opinion of you stands.

Bambi wrote:

rom what i remember they were packing (what was then ) SAS weaponry but that wasnt produced in the incident. I remember at the time there was a lot of rumours that they were working for one of the military intelligence wings but not the SAS, and that the explanantions the British army came out with for their movements that day contradicted themselves a lot (like where they signed the weapons out from etc). All from memory though

So a few questions

A) What was Standard SAS equipment in those days?

Why didn't the best trained and most experienced miltary force in the british army use these weapons?

C) Where are you making your claims re signing out of weapons from?

In fact what are you basing all your claims on? Like Hagar, were you, like, there, man?

*sigh* Im not making any claims, I dont have any emotional attachment to the issue and im not really worried about winning teh prize for the best interweb arguerer :b I'm recounting what i remember about this incident from the time it happened, feel free to go off and investigate all this stuff for yourself, you can then report back to us on how you get on if you want.

Unfortunately because I am subscribed to this thread I still get emails with the goading of the little bollox. No I wasn't there but was was there when Wallace McVeigh was gunned down in the Fruit Market by two loyalists on a motorbike. They used a UZI and shot him 16 times at close range. It was not like TV at all. I am not an expert on SAS weapons nor on the whole world as you seem to be.

Bambi wrote:

*sigh* Im not making any claims, I dont have any emotional attachment to the issue and im not really worried about winning teh prize for the best interweb arguerer :b I'm recounting what i remember about this incident from the time it happened, feel free to go off and investigate all this stuff for yourself, you can then report back to us on how you get on if you want.

You made a number of very specific and exact claims about this incident and cannot suppor them. Feel free to make uo whatever you want, I'll just be here pointing out how suprious they are....

Hagar wrote:

Unfortunately because I am subscribed to this thread I still get emails with the goading of the little bollox. No I wasn't there but was was there when Wallace McVeigh was gunned down in the Fruit Market by two loyalists on a motorbike. They used a UZI and shot him 16 times at close range. It was not like TV at all. I am not an expert on SAS weapons nor on the whole world as you seem to be.

I don't say that I am, other people claim to know what the standard SAS weapons are, they just don't tell us what the weapons are or how they knew this.

You can rattle off any incidently incident you claim to have saw, doesn't mean you're qualified to lecture anyone from your armchair.......

[Deleted User]

Hagar wrote:

Unfortunately because I am subscribed to this thread I still get emails with the goading of the little bollox.

You are talking about the boards.ie emails that you get when you are subscribed to a thread right?
They contain a summary of the last post or just a link to the post ?

I would suggest you unsubscribe if you are being upset*

*Just a comment on that specefic issue I have not read this thread so I've no idea what is being talked about.