“I want to re-examine what we signed up for.”
Patrick Kielty will head up a new BBC documentary in light of the 20th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, set to air on Wednesday 4 April.
My Dad, The Peace Deal and Me will focus on Kielty’s especially personal relationship to the Agreement, aiming to “unpick the past, present, and future of an agreement that had a profound impact on his life and the whole of the United Kingdom.”
The comedian and broadcaster was just 16 years old when his father was murdered by loyalist paramilitaries at the height of the Troubles in 1988.
Three men were charged with the killing, subsequently convicted of the crime, and sentenced to life in prison.
10 years later, the Good Friday Agreement was signed in a bid to establish peace in Northern Ireland. As a consequence for Kielty, his father’s killers were set free.
“When my dad was killed I honestly believed that peace in Northern Ireland was a pipedream,” says Kielty.
“But the Good Friday Agreement achieved the impossible and largely brought an end to the bloodshed. Even though my dad’s killers were released as part of the process, I welcomed the deal as it promised an end to violence once and for all.
“Now 20 years later, I want to re-examine what we signed up for – what its legacy has really been for future generations, and if it can survive the gathering storms.”
My Dad, The Peace Deal and Me airs on BBC One this Wednesday 4 April at 9pm.
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