MCGURK’S BAR BOMBING – LOSS OF INNOCENCE
Northern Visions | 03 March 2017
Relatives of those who were killed and injured in the McGurk’s Bar bombing talk of that night and its aftermath. On 4 December 1971, the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF), exploded a bomb at McGurk’s Bar in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The explosion caused the building to collapse, killing fifteen civilians and wounding seventeen more. It was the highest death toll from a single incident in Belfast during the Troubles.
Despite evidence to the contrary, the security forces publicised the theory that a bomb had accidentally exploded while being handled by IRA members inside the pub. This inferred that the victims themselves were to blame. The victims’ relatives talk about the campaign to clear their family members’ names.