The BelTel Belfast Telegraph

The PSNI had journalists they considered “troublemakers” under surveillance. It’s led to the force being accused of acting like the Stasi.  But who was being spied on? Why and how?  
Ciarán Dunbar is joined by the Belfast Telegraph’s security correspondent, Allison Morris and solicitor Niall Murphy.


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The Covid-19 pandemic was an unprecedented event all over the world. NI Officials and ministers are now under scrutiny as they appear before the Covid-19 Inquiry to account for the decisions they made. The Belfast Telegraph’s Sam McBride is following the inquiry. He tells Ciarán Dunbar what it has revealed about Northern Ireland’s politics.
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During the troubles, South Armagh became known as ‘Bandit Country’ - a heartland of paramilitary activity. The Provisional IRA’s notorious south Armagh brigade took the lives of hundreds of people, including British soldiers, RUC officers and civillians, whilst being widely accused of smuggling across the Irish border. Journalist Toby Harnden, author of ‘Bandit Country: The IRA and South Armagh’ joins Ciarán Dunbar.
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After the murder of Adrian Donohoe, the main suspect Aaron Brady boarded a one-way flight to America. He had no intention of ever returning to Ireland. His departure instigated an international police investigation that would span multiple years, resulting in a murder trial plagued with dirty tricks and witness intimidation.   
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What goes in to catching a garda killer?  
In January 2013, Detectives Joe Ryan and Adrian Donohoe from Dundalk garda station were tasked with escorting credit union takings across Cooley Peninsula, on the border with Northern Ireland. The men were ambushed and Garda detective Donohoe was shot dead. What followed was the largest murder investigation in the history of the Irish state. Aaron Brady, a tug from Crossmaglen, was the lead suspect from early in the case. He later vanished.

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Stephen Grimason was the journalist who waved the Belfast Agreement on our television screens with the iconic quote: “I have it in my hand”. The former BBC political editor Stephen Grimson later became the head of Stormont’s press operations. He passed away last week following a long illness. Last year, Belfast Telegraph’s Northern Ireland Editor Sam McBride sat down with Grimason to discuss his extraordinary career. 
This episode originally aired on 5th April 2023. 

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