TV | ‘The Road To Partition’

In June 1921 King George V arrived in Belfast for the official state opening of the first Northern Ireland parliament. One hundred years on, this compelling two-part landmark documentary series for BBC Northern Ireland and BBC Two explores the dramatic events, brutal violence and political battles that marked the road to the partition of Ireland, creating two states – on either side of a new border.

Dr Chandrika Kaul from the University of St. Andrew's who features in The Road to Partition

Dr Éamon Phoenix who features in The Road to Partition

Dr Marie Coleman from Queen's University, Belfast features in The Road to Partition

Bringing fresh insights to the story of partition, an extensive range of striking archival material and location filming in Belfast, Dublin and London, the series explores one of the most turbulent periods in Anglo-Irish history – one that was dominated by violence or the threat of it.

Dr Margaret O'Callaghan from Queen's University, Belfast

Dr Robert Lynch from University of Glasgow

Professor Alvin Jackson, University of Edinburgh

The Road To Partition features contributors from leading historians from across the UK including: Professor Alvin Jackson, Dr Marie Coleman, Dr Robert Lynch, Professor Diane Urqhuart, Professor Fearghal McGarry, Professor Patricia Clavin, Dr Piers Brendon, Dr Chandrika Kaul, Dr Éamon Phoenix, Professor Roy Foster, Dr Margaret O’Callaghan and Professor Diarmaid Ferriter.

Professor Diane Urquhart from Queen's University, Belfast

Professor Fearghal McGarry, Queen's University, Belfast

Professor Roy Foster, University of Oxford

The Road To Partition is a DoubleBand Films production for BBC Northern Ireland. It will be broadcast on BBC One Northern Ireland on Thursday 27 May, 9pm concluding on Thursday 3 June, 9pm and available on BBC iPlayer.

Road To Partition is part of BBC Northern Ireland’s wider portfolio of programmes marking the centenary of the creation of Northern Ireland in 1921, with a range of content exploring partition from different perspectives.

Professor Thomas Hennessey, Canterbury Christ Church University

Other content includes: BBC News NI’s weekly podcast Year ’21 with Tara Mills and Declan Harvey on BBC Sounds; the NI 100 tab on BBC News NI online; and Queen’s University’s The Partition of Ireland: Causes and Consequences talks at bbc.co.uk/qubtalks100.

Further television and radio content will be broadcast later in the year.

The Road To Partition | Thursday 27 May

BBC One Northern Ireland | 9pm

Concludes Thursday 3 June

BBC One Northern Ireland | 9pm

Available on BBC iPlayer