Assume Nothing

Ireland, 1984. St Brides School for young ladies opens its doors in the quiet fishing village of Burtonport, county Donegal - but all is not as it seems.A BBC crew attends the opening ceremony for the school, hosted by an enigmatic headmistress who appears to change her name regularly – but what is the real purpose of St Brides?A newspaper journalist visits the house and recalls a strange evening full of unexpected surprises, what can she reveal?Meanwhile, Conor tracks down a former resident of the house who helps him piece together more parts of puzzle – but is she prepared to tell her own story?Produced and presented by Conor McKay Executive Editor: Andy Martin A BBC Northern Ireland Production

Irish journalist Martin Barry was only 30 years old when he died at the Dignitas Clinic in Zurich, accompanied by his ex girlfriend Laura McDaid.The night before he died, he asked Laura to fulfil his last request: to track down his birth mother and pass on a message.Martin had been born in a mother and baby home in Co. Cork in Ireland. He'd never met his birth mother.Twenty years later, along with her producer Kerry Jamison, Laura embarks on a search that will take her from the top of this island to the bottom and across the Irish sea, to fulfil the promise she made to Martin.

Laura McDaid held her ex's hand as he died at the Dignitas Clinic. Seventeen years later, she begins a search to fulfil his last request: to find his birth mother and pass on a message.As the search intensifies, Laura speaks to a Bessborough survivor who tells her that she suspects records were deliberately falsified at the institution.As Laura makes contact with a woman she think's could be Martin's mother, a chance phone call could change everything.

Laura McDaid is searching for the birth mother of a close friend who died 17 years ago at Dignitas.She revisits a story Martin worked on 20 years ago - and speaks to his source for that story. Might it hold some clues?

Dramatised memoir of a Special Branch officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both handler and source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.Episode 1: The First Good SourceJames sees an opportunity when a young IRA volunteer is arrested on a burglary charge. Working together, they are soon disrupting IRA activity – but it’s a high stakes game, and the informer’s life is soon in grave danger. Cast:James – Jonathan Harden Interviewer – Michael Patrick Source – Marty Maguire Military Intelligence Officer – Paul Mallon Army Radio Voice – Marty MaguireA BBC Northern Ireland Production.

A dramatized memoir of a Special Branch officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both Handler and Source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.Episode 3: Dangerous LiaisonsFrustrated by the lack of cooperation between governments north and south, James decides to take matters into his own hands and makes a dangerous trip across the border. Meanwhile, he develops a friendship with Captain Robert Nairac and is soon liasing with the SAS – but this leads to serious friction between the two jurisdictions when Gardaí grow suspicious of an intelligence operation.Cast:James – Jonathan Harden Interviewer – Michael Patrick Garda Special Branch officer – Faolan Morgan Captain Robert Nairac – Patrick Fitzsymons Source – Marty Maguire Wife – Megan ArmitageA BBC Northern Ireland Production.

A dramatised memoir of a Special Branch officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both Handler and Source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.Episode 5: The Quartermaster James is working late at Newry Police Station when a shot is fired. Amid the confusion, a crucial IRA suspect is arrested – but how did he get there? Captain Robert Nairac invites James to join him on a trip, but James is shocked when he discovers their destination.Cast: James – Jonathan Harden Interviewer – Michael Patrick Source – JD Ruddy Robert Nairac – Patrick Fitzsymons Newry Police officer/phone police officer – Michael Patrick A BBC Northern Ireland Production.

A dramatized memoir of a Special Branch Officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both Handler and Source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.Episode 7: Blurred linesJames is worried that too many agencies have become involved in intelligence gathering, and shares his thoughts on allegations of collusion between the security forces and loyalist paramilitaries. Captain Robert Nairac assists James by helping a new IRA Officer Commanding have a change of heart, but Nairac’s risk-taking is placing him in ever increasing danger.Cast:James – Jonathan Harden Interviewer – Michael Patrick Robert Nairac – Patrick Fitzsymons PIRA Officer Commanding – Michael PatrickA BBC Northern Ireland Production

April 1933. Belfast Gaol. Prisoner 1192, Harold Courtney, is executed for the brutal murder of Minnie Reid. Or was he? Did the right man hang?Digging deep, journalist Gordon Adair attempts to find out*, because locally, he’s heard a strange tale. Of plots, threats, deceit and cover-up. It’s a trail that takes the investigation across the globe – and of people who, 90 years on, still believe this is a case that shouldn’t be talked about.Was there a miscarriage of justice? Was justice not done for the young Minnie Reid? And how much of this tale is true? To unravel it takes Gordon back almost a century, and from rural Northern Ireland to urban melting-pot Australia. Tracking down witnesses like the children who found Minnie’s body in a lonely Armagh lane, and uncovering secret records, maps and letters not seen since 1933, Gordon also consults police, pathology, and capital punishment experts.The results surprise him. Shining a light on a ‘lost decade’ in Northern Ireland, they uncover a shadowy taboo history that’s rarely explored. Assume Nothing, BBC Northern Ireland’s new podcast strand goes to air before this increasingly unpredictable investigation is concluded.PRONI documents in the series featured by kind permission of the Deputy Keeper of the Records, Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. (PRONI)

3/6 April 1933. Belfast Gaol. Prisoner 1192, Harold Courtney, is executed for the brutal murder of Minnie Reid. Or was he? Did the right man hang? Digging deep, journalist Gordon Adair attempts to find out*, because locally, he’s heard a strange tale. Of plots, threats, deceit and cover-up. It’s a trail that takes the investigation across the globe – and of people who, 90 years on, still believe this is a case that shouldn’t be talked about. Was there a miscarriage of justice? Was justice not done for the young Minnie Reid? And how much of this tale is true? To unravel it takes Gordon back almost a century, and from rural Northern Ireland to urban melting-pot Australia. Tracking down witnesses like the children who found Minnie’s body in a lonely Armagh lane, and uncovering secret records, maps and letters not seen since 1933, Gordon also consults police, pathology, and capital punishment experts. The results surprise him. Shining a light on a ‘lost decade’ in Northern Ireland, they uncover a shadowy taboo history that’s rarely explored. Assume Nothing, BBC Northern Ireland’s new podcast strand goes to air before this increasingly unpredictable investigation is concluded.PRONI documents in the series featured by kind permission of the Deputy Keeper of the Records, Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. (PRONI)

April 1933. Belfast Gaol. Prisoner 1192, Harold Courtney, is executed for the brutal murder of Minnie Reid. Or was he? Did the right man hang? Digging deep, journalist Gordon Adair attempts to find out*, because locally, he’s heard a strange tale. Of plots, threats, deceit and cover-up. It’s a trail that takes the investigation across the globe – and of people who, 90 years on, still believe this is a case that shouldn’t be talked about. Was there a miscarriage of justice? Was justice not done for the young Minnie Reid? And how much of this tale is true? To unravel it takes Gordon back almost a century, and from rural Northern Ireland to urban melting-pot Australia. Tracking down witnesses like the children who found Minnie’s body in a lonely Armagh lane, and uncovering secret records, maps and letters not seen since 1933, Gordon also consults police, pathology, and capital punishment experts. The results surprise him. Shining a light on a ‘lost decade’ in Northern Ireland, they uncover a shadowy taboo history that’s rarely explored. Assume Nothing, BBC Northern Ireland’s new podcast strand goes to air before this increasingly unpredictable investigation is concluded. PRONI documents in the series featured by kind permission of the Deputy Keeper of the Records, Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. (PRONI)

April 1933. Belfast Gaol. Prisoner 1192, Harold Courtney, is executed for the brutal murder of Minnie Reid. Or was he? Did the right man hang? Digging deep, journalist Gordon Adair attempts to find out*, because locally, he’s heard a strange tale. Of plots, threats, deceit and cover-up. It’s a trail that takes the investigation across the globe – and of people who, 90 years on, still believe this is a case that shouldn’t be talked about. Was there a miscarriage of justice? Was justice not done for the young Minnie Reid? And how much of this tale is true? To unravel it takes Gordon back almost a century, and from rural Northern Ireland to urban melting-pot Australia. Tracking down witnesses like the children who found Minnie’s body in a lonely Armagh lane, and uncovering secret records, maps and letters not seen since 1933, Gordon also consults police, pathology, and capital punishment experts. The results surprise him. Shining a light on a ‘lost decade’ in Northern Ireland, they uncover a shadowy taboo history that’s rarely explored. Assume Nothing, BBC Northern Ireland’s new podcast strand goes to air before this increasingly unpredictable investigation is concluded. PRONI documents in the series featured by kind permission of the Deputy Keeper of the Records, Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. (PRONI)