PODCAST

Assume Nothing

BBC Radio Ulster

The teams assume nothing as they examine events through fresh eyes.

true crime documentary

All Episodes

25:38

Episode 1: A Nightmare About to Dawn

Assume Nothing ·

2022/08/20

Irish journalist Martin Barry was only 30 years old when he died at the Dignitas Clinic in Zurich, accompanied by his ex girlfriend Laura McDaid.The night before he died, he asked Laura to fulfil his last request: to track down his birth mother and pass on a message.Martin had been born in a mother and baby home in Co. Cork in Ireland. He'd never met his birth mother.Twenty years later, along with her producer Kerry Jamison, Laura embarks on a search that will take her from the top of this island to

32:35

The Handler Episode 8: The Enemy Within

Assume Nothing ·

2022/05/21

Dramatised memoir of a Special Branch officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both handler and source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.Episode 8: The Enemy Within James is shocked to discover his home phone has been tapped by British

31:10

The Handler Episode 7: Blurred Lines

Assume Nothing ·

2022/05/21

A dramatized memoir of a Special Branch Officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both Handler and Source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.Episode 7: Blurred linesJames is worried that too many agencies have become involved in intelligence

31:26

The Handler Episode 6: The Irish Englishman

Assume Nothing ·

2022/05/21

Dramatised memoir of a Special Branch officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both handler and source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.Episode 6: The Irish Englishman When James and the Military Intelligence officer meet a source in a

26:41

The Handler Episode 5: The Quartermaster

Assume Nothing ·

2022/05/21

A dramatised memoir of a Special Branch officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both Handler and Source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.Episode 5: The Quartermaster James is working late at Newry Police Station when a shot is fired

34:31

The Handler Episode 4: Internment day

Assume Nothing ·

2022/05/21

A dramatized memoir of a Special Branch Officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both Handler and Source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.Episode 4: Internment day James recalls the chaos of the 9th August 1971, when hundreds of men were

27:51

The Handler Episode 3: Dangerous Liaisons

Assume Nothing ·

2022/05/21

A dramatized memoir of a Special Branch officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both Handler and Source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.Episode 3: Dangerous LiaisonsFrustrated by the lack of cooperation between governments north and

34:34

The Handler Episode 2: The Interrogation

Assume Nothing ·

2022/05/21

A dramatised memoir of a Special Branch officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both Handler and Source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.Episode 2: The InterrogationA key informer continues to provide invaluable intelligence and helps

28:50

The Handler Episode 1: The First Good Source

Assume Nothing ·

2022/05/21

Dramatised memoir of a Special Branch officer operating at the outset of the Northern Ireland Troubles. James (not his real name) runs a network of informers and sources operating along the border area of South Down and South Armagh during the worst years of violence. For both handler and source, it’s a matter of life and death. Some names, dates and details have been changed to protect the living.Episode 1: The First Good SourceJames sees an opportunity when a young IRA volunteer is arrested on a

16:53

The Heiress and The General Episode 6: Tango One

Assume Nothing ·

2022/02/19

One priceless art collection, two of the most daring robberies in art heist history - carried out by two very different criminals. The Heiress and The General examines the lead up to the robberies, the aftermath and the hunt for the missing art – two priceless paintings remain missing to this day.Episode 6: Tango OneIn his desperation to get rid of the stolen art, Cahill takes drastic and dangerous action. His dealings with Loyalist paramilitaries in Ulster reawaken an old and very bitter feud with

13:59

The Heiress and The General Episode 3: Alone on the Pier

Assume Nothing ·

2022/02/19

One priceless art collection, stolen twice - by two very different criminals. The Heiress & The General examines the lead up to both robberies, the aftermath and the hunt for the missing art – two paintings remain missing to this day.Episode 3: Alone on the PierPolice think they’ve found their chief suspect but as they wait for back-up, the suspect leaves and travels to the southern tip of Ireland, where she stands alone on a remote pier. When she returns, the police are waiting. A search of the

14:13

The Heiress and The General Episode 2: The Heiress

Assume Nothing ·

2022/02/19

One priceless art collection, stolen twice - by two very different criminals. The Heiress & The General examines the lead up to both robberies, the aftermath and the hunt for the missing art – two paintings remain missing to this day.Episode 2: The HeiressAs a police hunt for the paintings and the thieves intensifies across the country, a ransom note arrives on the desk of the director the National Gallery in Dublin. Clues point to an unlikely key suspect, a millionaire heiress who is already on

13:30

The Heiress and The General Episode 1: A Knock on the...

Assume Nothing ·

2022/02/19

One priceless art collection, stolen twice - by two very different criminals. The Heiress & The General examines the lead up to both robberies, the aftermath and the hunt for the missing art – two paintings remain missing to this day.Episode 1: A Knock at the doorWicklow, 1974. A mysterious woman arrives at Russborough House speaking French. She claims her car has broken down. 45 minutes later, the biggest art heist in history is over. Who is behind the robbery - and what connects it to a

15:33

The Heiress and The General Episode 4: The General

Assume Nothing ·

2022/02/19

One priceless art collection, two of the most daring robberies in art heist history - carried out by two very different criminals. The Heiress & The General examines the lead up to the robberies, the aftermath and the hunt for the missing art – two priceless paintings remain missing to this day.Episode 4: The GeneralMay 1986. Under cover of darkness, thieves break into Russborough House. They steal 19 paintings and escape unnoticed. When the alarm is raised, police initially suspect Republican

15:25

The Heiress and The General Episode 5: The Hunt

Assume Nothing ·

2022/02/19

One priceless art collection, two of the most daring robberies in art heist history - carried out by two very different criminals. The Heiress and The General examines the lead up to the robberies, the aftermath and the hunt for the missing art – two priceless paintings remain missing to this day.Episode 5: The HuntMartin Cahill continues his feud with the Garda but is unaware that an elaborate sting operation is already being planned, involving multiple police forces from around the world – will he

26:26

Chuck's Secret Bucks Episode 2: Money Making Machine

Assume Nothing ·

2022/01/15

Chuck's global money-making machine seemed unstoppable but what was the source? And how did it disappear? We enter into a world of savvy intelligence, tax free havens & a yearning to reconnect with ancestral ties in Ireland - all shrouded in secrecy and wrapped in a fortune. Roma Downey tries to piece together the story of this mysterious man across continents and airport terminals.Presenter: Roma DowneyProducer: Cathy MooreheadExec Editor: Andy Martin

25:35

Chuck's Secret Bucks Episode 1: Clandestine Encounters

Assume Nothing ·

2022/01/15

In a tiny apartment in San Francisco, lives an apparently ordinary, elderly man, with only the shirt on his back, a cheap plastic watch and one pair of shoes. Few know who he is, or what he was. This is the story of the backroom broker, who, through brown envelopes and the handover of billions, may just have changed the course of history. Some say he was recruited at a young age by the secret service, others tell a very different tale. His activities were shrouded in secrecy and wrapped in a

26:27

Chuck's Secret Bucks Episode 3: Cigars with Fidel

Assume Nothing ·

2022/01/15

Living the American dream, Chuck makes a life altering decision that has a knock on effect across the world. Looking for new opportunities, Chuck meets with world leaders like Fidel Castro, and behind the scenes, plays a role in peace negotiations in Northern Ireland.Roma Downey pieces together the story of this man, as the truth unravels on how he went from being a billionaire to broke - as told by the people in his life, from close family members to Microsoft Tycoon Bill Gates.Presenter: Roma

25:39

Episode 2: Secrecy's Veil

Assume Nothing ·

2021/11/27

Across three serialised episodes, Ophelia Byrne follows a line on the map into the world of the Irish Boundary Commission – set up in 1924 to finalise the shape of the Irish border. It takes her into an improbable world of high statecraft, split communities, broken promises and many thousands of lives changed forever. Through original testimonies, secret letters and classified police reports, Ophelia tries to uncover what really happened up to the moment in 1925 when proposals for the new, final

26:11

Episode 1: Drawing the Line

Assume Nothing ·

2021/11/27

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