| Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland | |
|---|---|
 Poster | |
| Genre | Documentary |
| Directed by | James Bluemel, Sian Mcilwaine |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 5 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Will Anderson Andrew Palmer |
| Producers | Vicky Mitchell, Rachel Hooper, Sian Mcilwaine, Stewart Armstrong, Louise Duffy |
| Running time | 318 minutes (BBC) |
| Production companies | KEO Films and Walk on Air Films |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC |
| Release | 22 May – 19 June 2023 |
Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland is a 2023 British documentary television miniseries covering the ethno-nationalist conflict known as "The Troubles". Directed by James Bluemel, as a follow-up to his 2020 series Once Upon a Time in Iraq, it is composed of five episodes that features interviews with members of Republican and Loyalist paramilitaries, members of the British Army who served in Northern Ireland, along with others caught up in the conflict.
Overview
The series chronologically covers "The Troubles" from its early beginnings emerging from the 1960s civil rights movement in Northern Ireland into the following three decades of armed conflict in the region between those fighting for a united Ireland and those fighting to remain part of the United Kingdom through to the Good Friday Agreement and beyond.
The first episode was broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 22 May 2023.[1]
Reception
Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland received critical acclaim upon release, with The Guardian focusing on how "by marking how the Troubles affected individuals, Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland finds profound wider truths"[2] while The Daily Telegraph gave it five stars out of five praising it as "a superb piece of work, not merely a litany of horrors but an opportunity for those involved to look back".[3] The Financial Times also gave the series five stars saying it was “of vital importance to those involved, and necessary viewing for those who were not” while Rachel Cooke writing in The New Statesman stated “James Bluemel’s documentary series may be the best television ever made about Northern Ireland’s Troubles.” The series was also awarded five stars by The Times, The Observer and The Mail on Sunday.
References
- ↑ "Once Upon a Time: BBC series takes personal look at the Troubles". BBC News. 2023-05-22. Retrieved 2023-05-23.
- ↑ Seale, Jack (2023-05-22). "Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland review – civil war rages before your very eyes". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-05-23.
- ↑ Singh, Anita (2023-05-22). "Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland, review: superb and haunting retelling of the Troubles". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2023-05-23.