04: Union and Disunion | Union with David Olusoga

Duration: 59'33''

Synopsis

The 20th century sees partition in Ireland. A sense of national unity emerges in the aftermath of the Second World War, but economic challenges in the 1970s create new divisions and questions about the union's future.

Further Information

More clips from Union with David Olusoga

01: The Making of Britain | Union with David Olusoga

01: The Making of Britain | Union with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2023 | 59'34''

David Olusoga tells the story of attempts to form a united Britain in the 17th and early 18th centuries, a period define...

02: Creating Britishness | Union with David Olusoga

02: Creating Britishness | Union with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2023 | 59'16''

David Olusoga reveals how, in the 18th century, a new British identity was forged in the face of multiple threats from wi...

03: The Two Nations | Union with David Olusoga

03: The Two Nations | Union with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2023 | 59'09''

The 19th-century union appears secure, but beneath the surface run deep divisions, leading to the emergence of a new working-c...

Chartism | Union with David Olusoga

Chartism | Union with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2023 | 3'55''

Discover the history of class unity in the fight for voting rights across nations with David Olusoga. Explore the Chartism movement and t...

01: The Making of Britain | Union with David Olusoga

01: The Making of Britain | Union with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2023 | 59'34''

David Olusoga tells the story of attempts to form a united Britain in the 17th and early 18th centuries, a period define...

02: Creating Britishness | Union with David Olusoga

02: Creating Britishness | Union with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2023 | 59'16''

David Olusoga reveals how, in the 18th century, a new British identity was forged in the face of multiple threats from wi...

03: The Two Nations | Union with David Olusoga

03: The Two Nations | Union with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2023 | 59'09''

The 19th-century union appears secure, but beneath the surface run deep divisions, leading to the emergence of a new working-c...

Chartism | Union with David Olusoga

Chartism | Union with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2023 | 3'55''

Discover the history of class unity in the fight for voting rights across nations with David Olusoga. Explore the Chartism movement and t...

More resources about The Troubles

Episode 1 | Spotlight on the Troubles: A Secret History

Episode 1 | Spotlight on the Troubles: A Secret History

BBC Four | 2019 | 1'29'18''

Northern Ireland's leading team of investigative journalists reveal important new discoveries about the outbreak of t...

01: It Wasn't Like a Movie Anymore | Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland

01: It Wasn't Like a Movie Anymore | Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland

BBC Two | 2023 | 1'15'11''

A time of relative peace in Northern Ireland escalates to full-blown conflict. When tensions betwee...

Bloody Sunday: Fifty Years On

Bloody Sunday: Fifty Years On

BBC News | 2022 | 22'48''

Fifty years ago this month, paratroopers shot dead 13 innocent civil rights marchers in Northern Ireland. It is forever known as Bloody Sunday....

03: Enemies | Thatcher: A Very British Revolution

03: Enemies | Thatcher: A Very British Revolution

BBC Two | 2019 | 59'31''

Mrs Thatcher confronts her enemies, leading the country to war, taking the economic fight to her opponents in the trade uni...

04: The Age of Union | Story of Ireland

04: The Age of Union | Story of Ireland

BBC One | 2011 | 59'07''

In this edition he reveals how Ireland became part of the UK for the first time following the 1801 Act of Union. Presented by Fergal ...

The Day the Troubles Began

The Day the Troubles Began

BBC One Northern Ireland | 2008 | 59'23''

Documentary looking back at the historic Civil Rights march in Derry that took place on October 5th, 1968. Featuring interviews with many of those...

03: Ceasefire | Endgame in Ireland

03: Ceasefire | Endgame in Ireland

BBC Two | 2001 | 59'03''

With Sinn Fein seeking credibility on the international stage, conditions were set for Gerry Adams' visit to the US. It was the first IRA ...

50 Years of the Troubles: a Journey through Film

50 Years of the Troubles: a Journey through Film

Channel 4 | 2019 | 46'45''

Film maker Mark Cousins, who left Belfast at 18, returns to his home town to reflect on how the place and its history have b...

Belfast (2021)

Belfast (2021)

BBC Two | 2023 | 1'31'23''

Young Buddy's happy home life is rocked by the eruption of the Troubles, on top of his concerns about ailing grandparents, a crush on a girl at school, and do...

S01E01: 1969 | Pop Goes Northern Ireland

S01E01: 1969 | Pop Goes Northern Ireland

BBC Two | 2010 | 28'59''

A bad moon arisin - from Civil Rights to the outbreak of the Troubles.

S02E04: 1998 | Pop Goes Northern Ireland

S02E04: 1998 | Pop Goes Northern Ireland

BBC Two | 2016 | 28'52''

This episode focuses on 1998: the year when the peace process comes to fruition with the Good Friday Agreement but the DUP are set a...

02: Talking to Terrorists | Endgame in Ireland

02: Talking to Terrorists | Endgame in Ireland

BBC Two | 2001 | 59'01''

In April 1981, Bobby Sands, an IRA prisoner on hunger strike, won a seat at Westminster, inadvertently starting the endgame in...

Episode 2 | Spotlight on the Troubles: A Secret History

Episode 2 | Spotlight on the Troubles: A Secret History

BBC Four | 2019 | 59'11''

New revelations about how the IRA went from anticipating victory to fighting a bloody, long war against Britain, with...

Episode 3 | Spotlight on the Troubles: A Secret History

Episode 3 | Spotlight on the Troubles: A Secret History

BBC Four | 2019 | 59'04''

Jennifer O'Leary uncovers IRA arms connections around the world and charts how republicans built a political strategy...

Episode 5 | Spotlight on the Troubles: A Secret History

Episode 5 | Spotlight on the Troubles: A Secret History

BBC Four | 2019 | 59'11''

This episode traces how unionist anger grew as IRA attacks on the security forces killed members of their community.

Episode 7 | Spotlight on the Troubles: A Secret History

Episode 7 | Spotlight on the Troubles: A Secret History

BBC Four | 2019 | 1'29'22''

The inside story of how the Troubles ended, told by those who fought the IRA's war and by those at the heart of peace...

My Dad, the Peace Deal and Me

My Dad, the Peace Deal and Me

BBC One | 2018 | 58'36''

Documentary in which Patrick Kielty, whose father was murdered by paramilitary gunmen, returns home to explore the legacy of Northern Ireland's...

S02E01: 1971 | Pop Goes Northern Ireland

S02E01: 1971 | Pop Goes Northern Ireland

BBC Two | 2016 | 28'55''

This episode focuses on 1971. Events take a darker turn when the first British soldiers die in the Troubles, Brian Faulkner becomes ...

S05E01: 1963-1968 | Pop Goes Northern Ireland

S05E01: 1963-1968 | Pop Goes Northern Ireland

BBC Two | 2019 | 29'00''

When Terence O'Neill becomes the new prime minister of Northern Ireland, there is hope that sectarian tensions will reduce as h...

01: Separate Government | Study Ireland History

01: Separate Government | Study Ireland History

BBC Two Northern Ireland | 1995 | 29'14''

This opening programme in the series traces the history of Northern Ireland from the Government of Ireland Act 1920 to the 19...

More from David Olusoga

Social housing development | A House Through Time

Social housing development | A House Through Time

BBC Two | 2020 | 2'28''

A new block of social housing is built next to 10 Guinea Street, in space left from the Blitz.

Treatment of Aboriginals in Australia | Empire with David Olusoga

Treatment of Aboriginals in Australia | Empire with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2025 | 15'35''

David explains the horrendous treatment of the Aboriginal peoples of Tasmania by the British.

03: The Two Nations | Union with David Olusoga

03: The Two Nations | Union with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2023 | 59'09''

The 19th-century union appears secure, but beneath the surface run deep divisions, leading to the emergence of a new working-c...

04: Behaviour | Extra Life: A Short History of Living Longer

04: Behaviour | Extra Life: A Short History of Living Longer

BBC Four | 2021 | 52'44''

Documentary series about the effect of medicine on life expectancy. How the readiness of communities to engage w...

The Unwanted: The Secret Windrush Files

The Unwanted: The Secret Windrush Files

BBC Two | 2019 | 58'55''

How black immigrants who made Britain their home came face to face with the government's 'hostile environment'. David Olusoga exposes...

08: The Cult of Progress | Civilisations

08: The Cult of Progress | Civilisations

BBC Two | 2018 | 59'00''

David Olusoga explores the artistic reaction to imperialism in the 19th century.

Shifting historical opinions on the British Empire | A Timewatch Guide

Shifting historical opinions on the British Empire | A Timewatch Guide

BBC Four | 2017 | 5'58''

David Olusoga explains how historical perspectives of the British Empire have shifted through time.

Neil Kenlock - Photographing the black British experience | Black and British: A Forgotten History

Neil Kenlock - Photographing the black British experience | Black and British: A Forgotten History

BBC Two | 2016 | 4'26''

David Olusoga talks to Neil Kenlock about his photographs of the experienc...

01: Profit and Loss | Britain's Forgotten Slave Owners

01: Profit and Loss | Britain's Forgotten Slave Owners

BBC Two | 2015 | 59'21''

In 1834 Britain abolished slavery, a defining and celebrated moment in our national history. What has been largely for...

French troops from Sub-Saharan West Africa | The World's War: Forgotten Soldiers of Empire

French troops from Sub-Saharan West Africa | The World's War: Forgotten Soldiers of Empire

BBC Two | 2014 | 4'06''

David Olusoga investigates the WW1 experiences of French troops from Sub-Saharan W...