There’s been a number of others.
Last night, Mo Chara of Kneecap was charged with terrorism offences for allegedly holding up a flag in support of Hezbollah.
Liam Óg Ó hAnnaigh, who performs under the name Mo Chara was charged following an anti-terrorism investigation after he held up the flag at a gig in the UK but he’s not the only Irish musician to have been looked into under UK anti-terrorism law.
In 2004, Christy Moore was travelling to the UK for a series of gigs via Holyhead in Wales when he was stopped by UK Special Branch officers.
They detailed Moore for 2 hours, searching the cars carrying his instruments and other belongings and questioning him in depth about the content of his song lyrics.
They detained him under the ‘Prevention of Terrorism Act 2002’. Moore was not given a clear reason for the detention at the time.
In 1988, The Pogues had their song ‘Streets of Sorrow / Birmingham Six’ banned from British airwaves until 1991.
The song is about the false convictions of six men from Northern Ireland for bombing a pub in Birmingham.
Even Paul McCartney and Wings weren’t free from scrutiny when they released ‘Give Ireland Back to the Irish’ in 1972.
Paul McCartney wrote the song in response to the horrific events of Bloody Sunday. The song was banned by the BBC after its release for being ‘Anti-Unionist’.
When asked about the ban, Paul McCartney said “The act of banning it is a much stronger political act than the contents of the record itself. It’s just one man’s opinion.”
In recent years, The Wolfe Tones have come under scrutiny and been accused of ‘glorifying terrorism’. The band were called out by unionist MPs in Stormont and some media for the popularity of their song ‘Celtic Symphony’ at Irish sporting events.
In 2003, the band also had their music banned from Aer Lingus in-flight entertainment after UUP member Roy Beggs Jr complained about their music being available on the airline calling it “blatant promotion of militant, armed republicanism”.
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