ABOUT THE COLLECTION: N&W BELFAST

Belfast has the highest level of deprivation in Northern Ireland, with some of the most deprived local areas being within north and west Belfast. This deprivation translates into lower life expectancy, inequalities in health and housing, lower educational attainment, higher unemployment and a greater burden of disease. Out of the recorded 3,532 deaths during the Northern Irish conflict, 1,541 people killed were from north and west Belfast. The scale of conflict-related trauma remains arguably immense. This community archive includes documentaries made with local people in various districts of north and west Belfast, attempts at regeneration such as Conway Mill and the Ashton Centre, almost forgotten experiments with cooperatives and the development of the Gaeltacht Quarter, with its aims to promote the Irish language, social enterprise, tourism and education.

There is one documentary in the Exposition section which is intended as an explanatory, interpretative guide and a selection of archive materials in this Special Collection.

Mike Tomlinson, Brendan Mackin, Pilib Ó Runai, Seamus McAloran, Fergus O’Hare, Jackie Redpath, Rev. Philip Agnew, Joe Baker, Paul Roberts, Bill Andrews, Barry Fegan, William ‘Plum’ Smith, Máirtín Ó Muilleoir, Jake Mac Siarcais, Noel Large, Tracy Harrison, Sam Uttley, Betty Carlisle, Stevie Nolan, Jeffrey Donaldson, Kevin Ball, Brian Burns, John Magowan, Colma McKee, Aisling Ní Labhraí and the Ashton Centre.