On Bloody Sunday
On sale
20th January 2022
Price: £25
Genre
SHORTLISTED FOR THE PEN HESSELL-TILTMAN PRIZE
*****
‘There have been many books written about the events of Bloody Sunday, however, none has wrenched the reader as violently back to those CS gas-choked streets, dumping them right in the heart of the screaming, running, shooting and crying, as Julieann Campbell’s On Bloody Sunday. A powerful chronicle of one of the darkest episodes of modern times.’ – Sunday Times
‘Powerful and moving … The strength of this important new book lies in the artistry the author brings to the tasks of portraying both the community upon which the massacre was perpetrated, and the individuals within it.’ – Irish Times
‘Meticulous…. On Bloody Sunday possesses a veracity and cumulative power that sets it apart from previous accounts’ – Observer
‘A momentous chronicle, timely and vital, which highlights that the burden of change rests, as always, upon the shoulders of those who suffered and yet, have nurtured the desire that lessons be learned.’ – Michael Mansfield QC, who represented a number of families during the Bloody Sunday Inquiry.
‘It is a vital record of the time, the city, and its people, and more impressive still it does so almost entirely in their own words, their heartbreak, their anger, their resilience, their humour. Julieann Campbell has given their voices, so long silenced, the dignity they deserve. It is a staggering achievement.’ – Séamas O’Reilly
‘It’s a wonderful book. The technique used – multiple voices speaking directly to us – is very simple but it has a profound effect. It puts us into the middle of the chaos of Bloody Sunday and keeps us there throughout the grief and anger that follow. A wonderful, wonderful book.’ – Jimmy McGovern, BAFTA winning screenwriter, creator of ‘Sunday’ (2002)
In January 1972, a peaceful civil rights march in Northern Ireland ended in bloodshed. Troops from Britain’s 1st Battalion Parachute Regiment opened fire on marchers, leaving 13 dead and 15 wounded. Seven of those killed were teenage boys. The day became known as ‘Bloody Sunday’.
The events occurred in broad daylight and in the full glare of the press. Within hours, the British military informed the world that they had won an ‘IRA gun battle’. This became the official narrative for decades until a family-led campaign instigated one of the most complex inquiries in history.
In 2010, the victims of Bloody Sunday were fully exonerated when Lord Saville found that the majority of the victims were either shot in the back as they ran away or were helping someone in need. The report made headlines all over the world.
While many buried the trauma of that day, historian and campaigner Juliann Campbell – whose teenage uncle was the first to be killed that day – felt the need to keep recording these interviews, and collecting rare and unpublished accounts, aware of just how precious they were. Fifty years on, in this book, survivors, relatives, eyewitnesses and politicians, shine a light on the events of Bloody Sunday, together, for the first time.
As they tell their stories, the tension, confusion and anger build with an awful power. ON BLOODY SUNDAY unfolds before us an extraordinary human drama, as we experience one of the darkest moments in modern history – and witness the true human cost of conflict.
*****
‘There have been many books written about the events of Bloody Sunday, however, none has wrenched the reader as violently back to those CS gas-choked streets, dumping them right in the heart of the screaming, running, shooting and crying, as Julieann Campbell’s On Bloody Sunday. A powerful chronicle of one of the darkest episodes of modern times.’ – Sunday Times
‘Powerful and moving … The strength of this important new book lies in the artistry the author brings to the tasks of portraying both the community upon which the massacre was perpetrated, and the individuals within it.’ – Irish Times
‘Meticulous…. On Bloody Sunday possesses a veracity and cumulative power that sets it apart from previous accounts’ – Observer
‘A momentous chronicle, timely and vital, which highlights that the burden of change rests, as always, upon the shoulders of those who suffered and yet, have nurtured the desire that lessons be learned.’ – Michael Mansfield QC, who represented a number of families during the Bloody Sunday Inquiry.
‘It is a vital record of the time, the city, and its people, and more impressive still it does so almost entirely in their own words, their heartbreak, their anger, their resilience, their humour. Julieann Campbell has given their voices, so long silenced, the dignity they deserve. It is a staggering achievement.’ – Séamas O’Reilly
‘It’s a wonderful book. The technique used – multiple voices speaking directly to us – is very simple but it has a profound effect. It puts us into the middle of the chaos of Bloody Sunday and keeps us there throughout the grief and anger that follow. A wonderful, wonderful book.’ – Jimmy McGovern, BAFTA winning screenwriter, creator of ‘Sunday’ (2002)
In January 1972, a peaceful civil rights march in Northern Ireland ended in bloodshed. Troops from Britain’s 1st Battalion Parachute Regiment opened fire on marchers, leaving 13 dead and 15 wounded. Seven of those killed were teenage boys. The day became known as ‘Bloody Sunday’.
The events occurred in broad daylight and in the full glare of the press. Within hours, the British military informed the world that they had won an ‘IRA gun battle’. This became the official narrative for decades until a family-led campaign instigated one of the most complex inquiries in history.
In 2010, the victims of Bloody Sunday were fully exonerated when Lord Saville found that the majority of the victims were either shot in the back as they ran away or were helping someone in need. The report made headlines all over the world.
While many buried the trauma of that day, historian and campaigner Juliann Campbell – whose teenage uncle was the first to be killed that day – felt the need to keep recording these interviews, and collecting rare and unpublished accounts, aware of just how precious they were. Fifty years on, in this book, survivors, relatives, eyewitnesses and politicians, shine a light on the events of Bloody Sunday, together, for the first time.
As they tell their stories, the tension, confusion and anger build with an awful power. ON BLOODY SUNDAY unfolds before us an extraordinary human drama, as we experience one of the darkest moments in modern history – and witness the true human cost of conflict.
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Reviews
A momentous chronicle, timely and vital, which highlights that the burden of change rests, as always, upon the shoulders of those who suffered and yet, have nurtured the desire that lessons be learned.
Bloody Sunday was a pivotal moment in Irish history. Julieann Campbell places it perfectly in its time and place. The dominant notes are of anger and grief, and admiration for the indomitable spirit of the families and other campaigners who strove against daunting odds to vindicate the memory of the murdered.
Heartbreaking, poignant, powerful.
Powerful and moving ... The strength of this important new book lies in the artistry the author brings to the tasks of portraying both the community upon which the massacre was perpetrated, and the individuals within it... Campbell takes the voices of marchers, leaders, family members, doctors, priests and others and works her material like a woman knitting an Aran jumper, using a complicated pattern to create something that looks in the end simply beautiful. The book is animated by nothing less than love. The people of Derry are Campbells's people. She is from one of the Bloody Sunday families - her uncle, Jackie Duddy, was the first of the 12 people who were murdered that day. He was just 17.
So many people - judges, politicians, generals, journalists - have had their say on Bloody Sunday. his book allows the voices of the people of Derry to be heard. Their accounts are exciting, tragic, infuriating, but, above all, authentic. The fear, anger and grief leap off the pages.
The technique used - multiple voices speaking directly to us - is very simple but it has a profound effect. It puts us into the middle of the chaos of Bloody Sunday and keeps us there throughout the grief and anger that follow. A wonderful, wonderful book.
This was a day like no other in my lifetime ... a day that affected the lives of countless thousands on this Island.
Through multiple voices, Campbell puts us in the thick of history and humanity in this chronicle that throbs with grief, anger and frustration. It also frames the legacy of that tragic day in the context of the greater historical picture, how the people of Derry's efforts to get justice lay down a benchmark for similar campaigns across the world to this day.
Raw, meticulous and deeply personal, On Bloody Sunday is a remarkable act of public memory. The book gathers hundreds of different voices in testimony and reflection, retelling the unresolved story of the massacre of unarmed civilians in 1972. In doing so, it expands the possibilities of oral history as a resource for truth and justice.