Bernadette: Notes On A Political Journey (2011)

Part of the Tyneside Irish Festival

Director: Lelia Doolan
Certificate: Unknown
Length:
Format: DigiBeta
Language: English
Country: Ireland
The youngest woman ever elected to the British Parliament, Bernadette Devlin (born 1947) personified the young radical Catholics of Northern Ireland at the onset of the modern troubles. She intermixed socialism, Irish republicanism, anti-clericalism, and feminism with general political impracticality and radical brashness. This documentary, made over a nine year period, charts the story of Bernadette Devlin McAliskey's political journey since her explosive entry into the public arena in the late sixties. Combining archive footage with a series of intimate interviews conducted with Bernadette Devlin McAliskey, director Lelia Doolan perfectly encapsulates the idiosyncrasies and rebelliousness which has fuelled her subject's pivotal role at the heart of civil rights, feminism and socialism in Northern Ireland. 

Bernadette Devlin McAliskey currently co-ordinates a publicly funded cross-community grassroots organisation in her home in County Tyrone. Chance for a discussion after the film.

      

Other films in the Tyneside Irish Festival:

17

Film: Broken Song (2003)

17 Oct 2014, 7:30 p.m.

Irish Festival Film: A black and white documentary about the 'underground' rap scene in Ballymun and Finglas, Dublin. A film about music, redemption and the struggle to find and articulate meaning in an often chaotic world.

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19

Film: The Secret Of Kells (2009).

19 Oct 2014, 3:30 p.m.

Irish Festival Film- Enchanting animation for all the family where magic, fantasy and celtic mythology comes together. A fictionalised story about 12 year old Brendan, the boy behind the creation of the Book of Kells. The Book of Kells is an illuminated manuscript and is an Irish National treasure. Vikings and St Aidan of Iona also feature. It has been nominated for an Oscar. Family tickets are available.

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22

Film: Adam & Paul (2004)

22 Oct 2014, 7:30 p.m.

Irish Festival Film: A stylized, downbeat comedy, the film follows a pair of Dublin drug addicts through a single day, which, like every other, is entirely devoted to the business of scrounging and robbing money for drugs. It is tender and unsentimental and a testament to the persistence of the human spirit.

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