Chronicles of Long Kesh

Synopsis

The hilarious, painful and shocking story of Northern Ireland's infamous prison--Long Kesh--told through the eyes of Prison Officers, Republicans and Loyalists, a rich assortment of patriots, chancers, leaders, wives, escapers and hypochondriacs! A huge crowd-pleaser, full of 1960’s Mo-Town songs and wild, irreverent humour, this is the inside story of The Troubles. Chronicles of Long Kesh premiered in Belfast in January 2009 and played to more than 9,000 people during its sold-out run with standing ovations every single night! Don't miss the show Irish audiences are raving about! Suitable for over 16s only.

Our Review:

17 March 2010

The Maze prison at Long Kesh (Long Meadow) outside Lisburn, County Down, had a relatively short but dramatic history dating from 1971 to 2000, when the last prisoners were released. It was mostly demolished eight years later and remains notorious for the IRA hunger strikes of 1980-81, when strike leader Bobby Sands was the first to die, 25 days after being elected as an MP.

Martin Lynch’s Chronicles of Long Kesh recreates the turbulent political history of those days through the lives of five inmates, their wives, and various other characters, both Republican and Loyalist, in a helter-skelter production reminiscent in style of the mould-breaking Oh! What A Lovely War.

Scenes blend seamlessly into each other as the years pass and the performers break into perfectly harmonised a cappella versions of Smokey Robinson hits, which serve as commentary on the action. The show is at once joyous, scary, comical, vicious and poignant. It’s not...

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Latest User Review

Gareth James - 1 April 2010:

A play set in and about the infamous Northern Ireland internment camp in the 1970’s, with pop songs sung a capella. Mmm…....Well, it’s good to report that it works. There’s no set as such, just an ensemble of six terrific actors , five of whom play multiple roles. It moves from angry to sad to funny to poignant on the turn of an actor from one role to another. The pace is fast, the precision is astonishing and the ‘gallows humour’ is delicious. At the time it was on my TV and in my newspaper almost daily, yet when I read the programme before it started I realised how much I’d forgotten. Though it doesn’t take sides, there is a risk (particularly for those who weren’t even alive then) that it will bury the evil many of these people were responsible for and even glamourise them as ‘lovable rogues’; this made me feel a little uneasy and would be my only reservation for what is otherwise an original idea executed with real panache. The WOS Q&A with the cast afterwards explained why it was so slick – these people have extraordinary chemistry with each other and seemed like lifelong friends rather than acting colleagues....

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