A hard-hitting drama about two Loyalist friends whose bond is tested by the Northern Ireland peace process.
With a Loyalist ceasefire in place, the leadership of the UDA has banned all paramilitary activity. This directive creates a crisis for young men like Kyle (Stuart Graham) and Freddie (Patrick O’Kane), who have been groomed for conflict. Kyle finds his loyalties divided between the organisation and his best friend. His dilemma intensifies when he is reluctantly recruited to lead a punishment squad tasked with disciplining renegades. When the volatile Freddie deliberately breaks the ceasefire, Kyle is forced into a violent and personal confrontation where political duty and friendship collide.
The film is a screen adaptation of the stage play by Gary Mitchell, a significant chronicler of working-class Protestant life during The Troubles. Mitchell’s writing is distinguished by its ground-level authenticity, interrogating the pressures within loyalist communities as they adjust to the demands of peace. Rather than function as a political thriller, the story is an intimate examination of how the peace process creates a crisis of identity and purpose for men conditioned for violence. The direction gives the narrative a claustrophobic intensity, creating a powerful study of personal loyalty cracking under political strain.
Broadcast: BBC Two, 1 Episode, 3 February 2002
Written by: Gary Mitchell
Director: Harry Bradbeer
Producers: Tony Rowe, Robert Cooper
Main Cast: Stuart Graham (Kyle), Patrick O’Kane (Freddie), Laine Megaw (Sandra), David Hayman (Alec), Alan McKee
