Northern Ireland Screen's Digital Film Archive is a free public access resource for teachers, students, historians and anyone who has an interest in moving images. Spanning from 1897 to the present day, the films in the Digital Film Archive cover all aspects of life in Northern Ireland and includes everything from dramas to documentaries, newsreels and features, animation to amateur footage.
This film is part of Free
Christmas in Belfast
Christmas in Belfast at the height of 'The Troubles'. Not the most wonderful time of year.
From the collection of:
Overview
Traditional holiday activities and images - Santa on his sleigh, the tree outside City Hall, a children's choir - are punctuated by reminders that not all is as it should be. British Army jeeps prowl the streets and shoppers make small talk as they have their bags searched at security checkpoints.
The film concludes with interviews with religious representatives of the Catholic and Protestant communities. Despite the difficulties that are apparent, they sound a note of optimism and envisage better times ahead. This government film is a public record, preserved and presented by the BFI National Archive on behalf of The National Archives, home to more than 1,000 years of British history.
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