History, poetry and songs

Northern Ireland has been a thorn in England’s side for hundreds of years. The most rebellious part of Catholic Ireland, the English King subdued it by massive colonization in the seventeenth century. And that was by no means the end of the story: even today the resulting conflict has caused by far the largest problem in the Brexit negotiations. Bruce Mathers, himself a native of Northern Ireland, will describe the tragedy, comedy and beauty of the country in a selection of its songs and poetry and images of its towns and countryside.