David Alexander Mulholland
Encyclopedia
David Alexander Mulholland (1938 – 10 December 2003) was a Northern Irish loyalist
paramilitary, known to the security forces for his alleged involvement in bombing attacks. He was a member of the Ulster Volunteer Force's Mid-Ulster Brigade
and was a prime suspect in the 1974 Dublin car bombings
. He was named as the driver of the first of the three car bombs which exploded minutes apart in the city centre of Dublin on 17 May 1974 and left a total of 26 people dead and almost 300 injured. He was identified from police file photographs by three separate eyewitnesses during the investigation into the bombings by the Garda Síochána
. According to journalist Joe Tiernan, he was offered immunity from prosecution by the Gardaí in exchange for information on his accomplices.
, County Armagh
, Northern Ireland and was brought up a Protestant. He lived in the town's Killycomain estate and made his living as a butcher. He also served as a part-time member of the Ulster Defence Regiment
(UDR). Mulholland had been raised in Mourneview Street in Portadown but had moved across town to the newly built Killycomain estate upon getting married. He joined the Mid-Ulster Brigade
of the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) sometime in the early 1970s. This brigade was founded in 1972 by UDR captain and Staff Instructor Billy Hanna
, who had appointed himself its commander. Mulholland engaged in carrying out a series of bombing attacks and therefore he became known to the authorities as a senior UVF member.
According to the sworn affidavit made by Special Patrol Group
officer John Weir
in 1999, the Dublin car bombings which took place in the city centre on Friday 17 May 1974 during evening rush hour were organised by Billy Hanna, who led two UVF bombing teams, one from Belfast, the other from his own Mid-Ulster Brigade. The bombings were carried out on the third day of the Ulster Workers' Council Strike
which was a general strike in Northern Ireland called by hardline loyalists and Unionists in protest against the Sunningdale Agreement
and the Northern Ireland Assembly
that had proposed their sharing political power with Catholic Nationalists
and planned a greater role for the Republic of Ireland in the governance of Northern Ireland.
The bombs were collected from a Glenanne, County Armagh farm
where they had been constructed and stored. Weir alleged that the farm, owned by Royal Ulster Constabulary
(RUC) reservist James Mitchell
, was used as a UVF arms dump and bomb-making site. Journalist Joe Tiernan then suggested that the bombs were placed onto a poultry lorry belonging to senior Mid-Ulster UVF member Robin Jackson
, who drove it across the border into the Republic of Ireland and down to a carpark in the northern suburbs of Dublin. He was accompanied by Hanna. The two men met up with the rest of the bomb team and the vehicles which were to be used in the attacks. After the bombs had been activated by Hanna, he and Jackson loaded the devices into the boots of the three designated cars that had been hijacked and stolen that morning in Belfast by a UVF gang known as "Freddie and the Dreamers", led by William "Frenchie" Marchant
. Mulholland was ordered by Hanna to drive a metallic green 1970 model Hillman Avenger
registration number DIA 4063 into Parnell Street
, located on the northside
of Dublin's city centre. The Avenger, along with the second of the three bomb cars, was preceded by a lead "scout" car. Hanna and Jackson meanwhile headed back to Northern Ireland in the latter's poultry lorry.
Upon reaching the city centre, Mulholland, according to one eyewitness, drove up the wrong way of a one-way street (Cathedral Street), thereby attracting attention. He then drove back down the same street and turned left into Marlborough Street where he proceeded towards Parnell Street. At about 17.12 he arrived at a parking bay in Parnell Street which was occupied by a married couple, Mortimer and Teresa O'Loughlin, who were just leaving. The latter had got a good, clear look at him. As soon as they pulled out, Mulholland moved into their space and parked the car bomb. This was close to the southwestern intersection with Marlborough Street, facing the direction of O'Connell Street
, Dublin's main thoroughfare. The green Avenger, hijacked that morning in Belfast, had reached its final destination in the parking bay outside the "Welcome Inn" pub and "Barry's Supermarket", with a butcher's shop and a petrol station, the "Westbrook Motors Company", nearby. Mulholland then got out of the car and walked away.
At 17.28 the 100 pound bomb exploded and the Avenger came apart in a ball of flame. The blast blew out shop fronts, caused considerable damage to vehicles and buildings in the vicinity, and hurtled bodies, body parts, pieces of the car, glass and shrapnel in all directions. The blast also created a six-by-three feet crater in the street. Ten people were killed, including a young inner-city Dublin couple, John and Anne O'Brien, and their two infant daughters. An elderly man had his leg and half his head blown away. Many others were seriously injured, among them a teenaged petrol-pump attendant and a four year-old boy, who suffered severe facial injuries. His father was one of the dead. The force of the explosion had catapulted a brown Mini
which had been parked behind the Avenger onto the pavement outside the "Welcome Inn" at a right angle. Two minutes later a second car bomb, a blue mink Ford Escort
(whose driver remains unidentified), exploded in Talbot Street
, killing another 14 people, mostly young women. One of the victims, Colette Doherty, was nine months pregnant. The third bomb, planted inside a blue Austin 1800 Maxi, went off in South Leinster Street at 17.32 and two more women were killed outright. No warnings had been given and the bombs were so well constructed that 100% of each bomb exploded upon detonation. The bombers escaped from central Dublin in the scout cars and crossed the Northern Ireland border at Hackballscross, County Louth
at about 19.30. Thirty minutes earlier a fourth bomb had exploded in Monaghan
. This had been delivered by a team from the Portadown unit of the Mid-Ulster UVF inside a stolen Hillman Minx
. A further seven people were killed in this final attack.
, it stated that Mulholland was identified as the driver of the Parnell Street car bomb by three separate eyewitnesses. They picked him out from police file photographs during the investigation carried out by the Garda Síochána
following the attacks. A Garda report described him as follows:
having asked him directions, which he had given to her before getting inside a green car with the registration letters DIA. She later saw him driving the same green car onto O'Connell Street from North Earl Street against the direction of traffic. She additionally suggested that he had spoken with an English accent rather than Northern Irish which confused the police.
The RUC arrested and questioned Mulholland for two days; a Garda detective was present during the interviews. Although, Mulholland admitted to knowing the other leading suspects, he denied involvement in the attacks. It was revealed in an RUC report that he was an occasional visitor to the Irish Republic, mainly to the border towns of Castleblaney, Dundalk
and Monaghan. He was released from custody without being charged. The Gardai never interrogated him about the bombings.
Tiernan alleged that sometime after the bombings, Mulholland was approached by an RUC detective who was acting on behalf of the Gardai. When the detective threatened him with extradition to the Republic of Ireland due to the overwhelming evidence against him, Mulholland named Hanna as the leader of the UVF bombing team. Hanna was on the list of suspects for the Dublin bombings of both the Garda and the RUC, however he was never arrested or interrogated in connection with the attacks. The two men were subsequently offered immunity from prosecution on the condition that they both become informers and reveal the identities of their accomplices. They accepted the deal, although none of the UVF bomb unit were ever charged. The British Army
was aware of this arrangement; Hanna allegedly had links to Military Intelligence
. On 27 July 1975 Hanna was shot dead outside his home in Lurgan
. His purported assassin, Robin Jackson, assumed command of the Mid-Ulster UVF. Immediately after Hanna's killing, Mulholland and his family fled to Chester
, England.
In 1993, Yorkshire Television aired a documentary The Hidden Hand: The Forgotten Massacre about the Dublin and Monaghan bombings. Mulholland was questioned after the broadcast regarding his alleged central role in the Parnell Street blast; he staunchly denied involvement. No one was ever charged with the bombings which, with a final death toll of 33 people, resulted in the most casualties in any single day in the history of The Troubles
. When British journalist Peter Taylor
asked former UVF member and Progressive Unionist Party
(PUP) politician David Ervine
the motive behind the attacks, Ervine replied that the UVF were "returning the serve". Although Ervine had nothing to do with the bombings, he explained to Taylor that the UVF had wanted Catholics in the Republic to suffer as the Protestants in Northern Ireland had on account of the intense bombing campaign waged by the Provisional IRA
.
Ulster loyalism
Ulster loyalism is an ideology that is opposed to a united Ireland. It can mean either support for upholding Northern Ireland's status as a constituent part of the United Kingdom , support for Northern Ireland independence, or support for loyalist paramilitaries...
paramilitary, known to the security forces for his alleged involvement in bombing attacks. He was a member of the Ulster Volunteer Force's Mid-Ulster Brigade
UVF Mid-Ulster Brigade
UVF Mid-Ulster Brigade formed part of the loyalist paramilitary Ulster Volunteer Force in Northern Ireland. The brigade was established in Lurgan, County Armagh in 1972 by its first commander Billy Hanna. The unit operated mainly around the Lurgan and Portadown areas. Subsequent leaders of the...
and was a prime suspect in the 1974 Dublin car bombings
Dublin and Monaghan Bombings
The Dublin and Monaghan bombings of 17 May 1974 were a series of car bombings in Dublin and Monaghan in the Republic of Ireland. The attacks killed 33 civilians and wounded almost 300 – the highest number of casualties in any single day during the conflict known as The Troubles.A loyalist...
. He was named as the driver of the first of the three car bombs which exploded minutes apart in the city centre of Dublin on 17 May 1974 and left a total of 26 people dead and almost 300 injured. He was identified from police file photographs by three separate eyewitnesses during the investigation into the bombings by the Garda Síochána
Garda Síochána
, more commonly referred to as the Gardaí , is the police force of Ireland. The service is headed by the Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Government. Its headquarters are located in the Phoenix Park in Dublin.- Terminology :...
. According to journalist Joe Tiernan, he was offered immunity from prosecution by the Gardaí in exchange for information on his accomplices.
Ulster Volunteer Force
David Alexander Mulholland was born in PortadownPortadown
Portadown is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town sits on the River Bann in the north of the county, about 23 miles south-west of Belfast...
, County Armagh
County Armagh
-History:Ancient Armagh was the territory of the Ulaid before the fourth century AD. It was ruled by the Red Branch, whose capital was Emain Macha near Armagh. The site, and subsequently the city, were named after the goddess Macha...
, Northern Ireland and was brought up a Protestant. He lived in the town's Killycomain estate and made his living as a butcher. He also served as a part-time member of the Ulster Defence Regiment
Ulster Defence Regiment
The Ulster Defence Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Army which became operational in 1970, formed on similar lines to other British reserve forces but with the operational role of defence of life or property in Northern Ireland against armed attack or sabotage...
(UDR). Mulholland had been raised in Mourneview Street in Portadown but had moved across town to the newly built Killycomain estate upon getting married. He joined the Mid-Ulster Brigade
UVF Mid-Ulster Brigade
UVF Mid-Ulster Brigade formed part of the loyalist paramilitary Ulster Volunteer Force in Northern Ireland. The brigade was established in Lurgan, County Armagh in 1972 by its first commander Billy Hanna. The unit operated mainly around the Lurgan and Portadown areas. Subsequent leaders of the...
of the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) sometime in the early 1970s. This brigade was founded in 1972 by UDR captain and Staff Instructor Billy Hanna
Billy Hanna
William Henry Wilson "Billy" Hanna MM was a high-ranking Northern Irish loyalist who founded and led the Mid-Ulster Brigade of the Ulster Volunteer Force until he was killed, allegedly by Robin Jackson, who took over command of the brigade.According to RUC Special Patrol Group officer John Weir,...
, who had appointed himself its commander. Mulholland engaged in carrying out a series of bombing attacks and therefore he became known to the authorities as a senior UVF member.
The attacks
Special Patrol Group (RUC)
The Special Patrol Group in the Royal Ulster Constabulary was a police unit tasked with counter terrorism. Each SPG had 30 members. Many of the SPG units were accused of collusion with the illegal paramilitary group the Ulster Volunteer Force, particularly the actions of a unit based in Armagh.-A...
officer John Weir
John Weir (loyalist)
John Oliver Weir , is an Ulster loyalist born in the Republic of Ireland. He served as an officer in Northern Ireland's Royal Ulster Constabulary's Special Patrol Group , and was a volunteer in the illegal Ulster Volunteer Force...
in 1999, the Dublin car bombings which took place in the city centre on Friday 17 May 1974 during evening rush hour were organised by Billy Hanna, who led two UVF bombing teams, one from Belfast, the other from his own Mid-Ulster Brigade. The bombings were carried out on the third day of the Ulster Workers' Council Strike
Ulster Workers' Council Strike
The Ulster Workers' Council strike was a general strike that took place in Northern Ireland between 15 May and 28 May 1974, during "The Troubles". The strike was called by loyalists and unionists who were against the Sunningdale Agreement, which had been signed in December 1973...
which was a general strike in Northern Ireland called by hardline loyalists and Unionists in protest against the Sunningdale Agreement
Sunningdale Agreement
The Sunningdale Agreement was an attempt to establish a power-sharing Northern Ireland Executive and a cross-border Council of Ireland. The Agreement was signed at the Civil Service College in Sunningdale Park located in Sunningdale, Berkshire, on 9 December 1973.Unionist opposition, violence and...
and the Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
that had proposed their sharing political power with Catholic Nationalists
Irish nationalism
Irish nationalism manifests itself in political and social movements and in sentiment inspired by a love for Irish culture, language and history, and as a sense of pride in Ireland and in the Irish people...
and planned a greater role for the Republic of Ireland in the governance of Northern Ireland.
The bombs were collected from a Glenanne, County Armagh farm
Glenanne gang
The Glenanne gang was a name given, since 2003, to a loose alliance of Northern Irish loyalist extremists who carried out sectarian killings and bomb attacks in the 1970s against the Irish Catholic and Irish nationalist community. Most of its attacks took place in the area of County Armagh and mid...
where they had been constructed and stored. Weir alleged that the farm, owned by Royal Ulster Constabulary
Royal Ulster Constabulary
The Royal Ulster Constabulary was the name of the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2000. Following the awarding of the George Cross in 2000, it was subsequently known as the Royal Ulster Constabulary GC. It was founded on 1 June 1922 out of the Royal Irish Constabulary...
(RUC) reservist James Mitchell
Glenanne gang
The Glenanne gang was a name given, since 2003, to a loose alliance of Northern Irish loyalist extremists who carried out sectarian killings and bomb attacks in the 1970s against the Irish Catholic and Irish nationalist community. Most of its attacks took place in the area of County Armagh and mid...
, was used as a UVF arms dump and bomb-making site. Journalist Joe Tiernan then suggested that the bombs were placed onto a poultry lorry belonging to senior Mid-Ulster UVF member Robin Jackson
Robin Jackson
Robert John "Robin" Jackson, known as the Jackal was a Northern Irish loyalist who held the rank of brigadier in the Ulster Volunteer Force during the period of violent religious and political conflict in Northern Ireland known as the Troubles.From his home in the small village of Donaghcloney,...
, who drove it across the border into the Republic of Ireland and down to a carpark in the northern suburbs of Dublin. He was accompanied by Hanna. The two men met up with the rest of the bomb team and the vehicles which were to be used in the attacks. After the bombs had been activated by Hanna, he and Jackson loaded the devices into the boots of the three designated cars that had been hijacked and stolen that morning in Belfast by a UVF gang known as "Freddie and the Dreamers", led by William "Frenchie" Marchant
William Marchant (loyalist)
William "Frenchie" Marchant was a Northern Irish loyalist and a middle-ranking volunteer in the Ulster Volunteer Force . He was on a Garda list of suspects in the 1974 Dublin car bombings which left a total of 26 people dead, and close to 300 injured...
. Mulholland was ordered by Hanna to drive a metallic green 1970 model Hillman Avenger
Hillman Avenger
The Hillman Avenger was a rear-wheel drive small family car originally manufactured under the Hillman marque by the Rootes Group from 1970–1976, and made by Chrysler Europe from 1976–1981 as the Chrysler Avenger and finally the Talbot Avenger...
registration number DIA 4063 into Parnell Street
Parnell Street
Parnell Street is located on Dublin's Northside and runs from Capel Street in the west to Gardiner Street and Mountjoy Square in the east, and is at the north end of O'Connell Street, where it provides the south side of Parnell Square....
, located on the northside
Northside (Dublin)
The Northside is the area in County Dublin, Ireland bounded to the south by the River Liffey to the east by Dublin Bay, to the north and west by the boundaries of County Dublin.- Introduction :...
of Dublin's city centre. The Avenger, along with the second of the three bomb cars, was preceded by a lead "scout" car. Hanna and Jackson meanwhile headed back to Northern Ireland in the latter's poultry lorry.
Upon reaching the city centre, Mulholland, according to one eyewitness, drove up the wrong way of a one-way street (Cathedral Street), thereby attracting attention. He then drove back down the same street and turned left into Marlborough Street where he proceeded towards Parnell Street. At about 17.12 he arrived at a parking bay in Parnell Street which was occupied by a married couple, Mortimer and Teresa O'Loughlin, who were just leaving. The latter had got a good, clear look at him. As soon as they pulled out, Mulholland moved into their space and parked the car bomb. This was close to the southwestern intersection with Marlborough Street, facing the direction of O'Connell Street
O'Connell Street
O'Connell Street is Dublin's main thoroughfare. It measures 49 m in width at its southern end, 46 m at the north, and is 500 m in length...
, Dublin's main thoroughfare. The green Avenger, hijacked that morning in Belfast, had reached its final destination in the parking bay outside the "Welcome Inn" pub and "Barry's Supermarket", with a butcher's shop and a petrol station, the "Westbrook Motors Company", nearby. Mulholland then got out of the car and walked away.
At 17.28 the 100 pound bomb exploded and the Avenger came apart in a ball of flame. The blast blew out shop fronts, caused considerable damage to vehicles and buildings in the vicinity, and hurtled bodies, body parts, pieces of the car, glass and shrapnel in all directions. The blast also created a six-by-three feet crater in the street. Ten people were killed, including a young inner-city Dublin couple, John and Anne O'Brien, and their two infant daughters. An elderly man had his leg and half his head blown away. Many others were seriously injured, among them a teenaged petrol-pump attendant and a four year-old boy, who suffered severe facial injuries. His father was one of the dead. The force of the explosion had catapulted a brown Mini
Mini
The Mini is a small car that was made by the British Motor Corporation and its successors from 1959 until 2000. The original is considered a British icon of the 1960s, and its space-saving front-wheel-drive layout influenced a generation of car-makers...
which had been parked behind the Avenger onto the pavement outside the "Welcome Inn" at a right angle. Two minutes later a second car bomb, a blue mink Ford Escort
Ford Escort
Ford Escort may refer to:* Ford Escort , a vehicle manufactured by Ford Motor Company's European division from 1968 through 2003* Ford Escort , a compact car that was manufactured by the Ford Motor Company for the North American market...
(whose driver remains unidentified), exploded in Talbot Street
Talbot Street
Talbot Street is a city-centre street located on Dublin's Northside and is one of the principal shopping streets of Dublin, running from Connolly station and the IFSC at Amiens Street in the east to Marlborough Street in the west. The street is named after Charles Chetwynd, 3rd Earl of Talbot,...
, killing another 14 people, mostly young women. One of the victims, Colette Doherty, was nine months pregnant. The third bomb, planted inside a blue Austin 1800 Maxi, went off in South Leinster Street at 17.32 and two more women were killed outright. No warnings had been given and the bombs were so well constructed that 100% of each bomb exploded upon detonation. The bombers escaped from central Dublin in the scout cars and crossed the Northern Ireland border at Hackballscross, County Louth
County Louth
County Louth is a county of Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Louth. Louth County Council is the local authority for the county...
at about 19.30. Thirty minutes earlier a fourth bomb had exploded in Monaghan
Monaghan
Monaghan is the county town of County Monaghan in Ireland. Its population at the 2006 census stood at 7,811 . The town is located on the main road, the N2 road, from Dublin north to both Derry and Letterkenny.-Toponym:...
. This had been delivered by a team from the Portadown unit of the Mid-Ulster UVF inside a stolen Hillman Minx
Hillman Minx
The Hillman Minx was a series of middle-sized family cars produced under the Hillman marque by the Rootes Group between 1932 and 1970...
. A further seven people were killed in this final attack.
Aftermath
In the 2003 Barron Report which was the findings of an official investigation into the Dublin and Monaghan bombings commissioned by Irish Supreme Court Justice, Henry BarronHenry Barron
Henry Barron was an Irish judge. He sat on the Irish Supreme Court from 1997 until his retirement in 2000. He was the first Jew to hold this position....
, it stated that Mulholland was identified as the driver of the Parnell Street car bomb by three separate eyewitnesses. They picked him out from police file photographs during the investigation carried out by the Garda Síochána
Garda Síochána
, more commonly referred to as the Gardaí , is the police force of Ireland. The service is headed by the Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Government. Its headquarters are located in the Phoenix Park in Dublin.- Terminology :...
following the attacks. A Garda report described him as follows:
"David Alexander Mulholland, of 113 Ulsterville Park, Portadown. This man is a member of the UVF and has a history of involvement in car bomb explosions in Northern Ireland. He is 35 years of age, 6 feet in height, well built, blue eyes, light brown hair, turning grey, large round features, very pale complexion".Teresa O'Loughlin picked out three different photographs of him from two albums, maintaining that he was the driver of the green car that had taken their car's parking space in Parnell Street at 17.12. A second witness claimed to have seen Mulholland driving the Avenger at Sheephouse, County Louth at about 13.00. Journalist Joe Tiernan alleged that Mulholland was collected in Portadown by the hijacker of the Avenger and he then drove the car down to Dublin. The third eyewitness, Nora O'Mahoney, picked out two separate photos of Mulholland and alleged that she had spoken to him at about 16.20 in D'Olier Street
D'Olier Street
D'Olier Street is a street in the southern city-centre of Dublin, the capital of Ireland. It and Westmoreland Street are two broad streets whose northern ends meet at the southern end of O'Connell Bridge over the River Liffey...
having asked him directions, which he had given to her before getting inside a green car with the registration letters DIA. She later saw him driving the same green car onto O'Connell Street from North Earl Street against the direction of traffic. She additionally suggested that he had spoken with an English accent rather than Northern Irish which confused the police.
The RUC arrested and questioned Mulholland for two days; a Garda detective was present during the interviews. Although, Mulholland admitted to knowing the other leading suspects, he denied involvement in the attacks. It was revealed in an RUC report that he was an occasional visitor to the Irish Republic, mainly to the border towns of Castleblaney, Dundalk
Dundalk
Dundalk is the county town of County Louth in Ireland. It is situated where the Castletown River flows into Dundalk Bay. The town is close to the border with Northern Ireland and equi-distant from Dublin and Belfast. The town's name, which was historically written as Dundalgan, has associations...
and Monaghan. He was released from custody without being charged. The Gardai never interrogated him about the bombings.
Tiernan alleged that sometime after the bombings, Mulholland was approached by an RUC detective who was acting on behalf of the Gardai. When the detective threatened him with extradition to the Republic of Ireland due to the overwhelming evidence against him, Mulholland named Hanna as the leader of the UVF bombing team. Hanna was on the list of suspects for the Dublin bombings of both the Garda and the RUC, however he was never arrested or interrogated in connection with the attacks. The two men were subsequently offered immunity from prosecution on the condition that they both become informers and reveal the identities of their accomplices. They accepted the deal, although none of the UVF bomb unit were ever charged. The British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
was aware of this arrangement; Hanna allegedly had links to Military Intelligence
Military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....
. On 27 July 1975 Hanna was shot dead outside his home in Lurgan
Lurgan
Lurgan is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town is near the southern shore of Lough Neagh and in the north-eastern corner of the county. Part of the Craigavon Borough Council area, Lurgan is about 18 miles south-west of Belfast and is linked to the city by both the M1 motorway...
. His purported assassin, Robin Jackson, assumed command of the Mid-Ulster UVF. Immediately after Hanna's killing, Mulholland and his family fled to Chester
Chester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
, England.
In 1993, Yorkshire Television aired a documentary The Hidden Hand: The Forgotten Massacre about the Dublin and Monaghan bombings. Mulholland was questioned after the broadcast regarding his alleged central role in the Parnell Street blast; he staunchly denied involvement. No one was ever charged with the bombings which, with a final death toll of 33 people, resulted in the most casualties in any single day in the history of The Troubles
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
. When British journalist Peter Taylor
Peter Taylor (Journalist)
Peter Taylor born in Scarborough, North Riding of Yorkshire is a British journalist and documentary-maker who had covered for many years the political and armed conflict in Northern Ireland, widely known as the Troubles...
asked former UVF member and Progressive Unionist Party
Progressive Unionist Party
The Progressive Unionist Party is a small unionist political party in Northern Ireland. It was formed from the Independent Unionist Group operating in the Shankill area of Belfast, becoming the PUP in 1979...
(PUP) politician David Ervine
David Ervine
David Ervine was a Northern Irish politician and the leader of the Progressive Unionist Party .-Biography:...
the motive behind the attacks, Ervine replied that the UVF were "returning the serve". Although Ervine had nothing to do with the bombings, he explained to Taylor that the UVF had wanted Catholics in the Republic to suffer as the Protestants in Northern Ireland had on account of the intense bombing campaign waged by the Provisional IRA
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
.