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The Handler Episode 6: The Irish Englishman

Dramatised memoir of a Special Branch officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James recalls Seán Mac Stíofáin, the PIRA’s first chief of staff.

Dramatised memoir of a Special Branch officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both handler and source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.

Episode 6: The Irish Englishman
When James and the Military Intelligence officer meet a source in a Dublin department store, he tells them PIRA chief of staff SeΓ΅n Mac StΓ­ofΓ΅in will address an IRA meeting that same evening. They attend and gather valuable intelligence, but the Military Intelligence officer makes a mistake, placing them both in peril.

Cast:
James – Jonathan Harden
Interviewer – Michael Patrick
Source – J D Ruddy
Military Intelligence Officer – Paul Mallon
A Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Northern Ireland Production

Available now

31 minutes

Broadcast

  • Sat 25 Jun 2022 12:03

Podcast