The BelTel

Lord Lucan dramatically disappeared after the murder of his family’s nanny Sandra Rivett in 1974. The aristocrat vanished after Rivett’s murder and thus began decades of claimed sightings of the British aristocrat. Despite a global manhunt for Lord Lucan, he could not be found. Can could the latest sighting really be him? HOST: Fionnán Sheehan, GUEST: John Downing See omnystudio.com/listener for p...

How failures contributed to the death of a young Belfast Joseph Rainey died in 2013, 10 days after attempting to take his own life in Hydebank Wood Young Offenders Centre near Belfast. An inquest jury found that Prison Service and health trust errors or omissions contributed to the 20-year-old Belfast man’s death. Allison Morris interviews film maker Sean Murray about his short film, “My Name is J...

Denis Donaldson answered to former Sinn Féin leader, Gerry Adams, and was at the heart of the republican movement for 20 years. So, how did he manage to spy for so long for the British? The Bel Tel finds out. Host: Ciarán Dunbar. Guest: Belfast Telegraph Political Editor, Suzanne Breen. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information...

In February 2005, 25-year-old Lisa Dorrian went missing from a caravan park in Co Down and has never been seen again. Almost two decades on, her family and the PSNI are still searching for her body in the hope for answers and justice. They have only one suspect in mind as to who killed Lisa, and her sister Joanne reveals she has even spoken to him. Host: Niamh Campbell. Guests: Joanne Dorrian, Cia...

Billy Wright, 'King Rat’, was gunned down inside the Maze maximum security prison. How did the INLA manage to get a gun inside the jail and what was the LVF’s bloody response? Host: Ciarán Dunbar. Guest: Belfast Telegraph security correspondent, Allison Morris. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This year saw the death of the Queen and a major war in Europe. In Northern Ireland we have seen hitmen gunning down their victims in broad daylight. It’s all been very heavy, but we have also had a fair share of farce. Among which was that slap at the Oscars, Kanye West declaring his sympathy for Hitler and the Nazis, and of course there was Liz Truss. Host: Ciarán Dunbar. Guests: Eoin Brannigan,...

Rural Castlerock in 1991; Embroiled in a sordid affair, Hazel Stewart and Colin Howell plot the double murder of their spouses, disguising them as suicides. Their crimes would not be revealed until 19 years later, when a guilt-ridden Howell confessed and provided evidence against his ex-lover in trial. But is Hazel Stewart truly a cold and callous killer as some think she is portrayed? Or is there...

In 2002 the IRA walked into a Belfast PSNI station and walked out with the secret security files they were looking for. Who planned it and why? There was huge interest in this podcast when first published in May 2022.Host: Ciarán Dunbar. Guest: Belfast Telegraph security correspondent, Allison Morris. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for m...

He was a millionaire by 30, but Sean Quinn's rise and fall is documented in a new book, which looks at his many investments, and how nothing, not even an ancient fairy fort, could get in the way of his plans. Host: Siobhán Maguire. Guest: Trevor Birney. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ireland was partitioned in 1921 when most of the island left the UK to form the Irish Free State. Six Counties of the north-east immediately left to form Northern Ireland and to continue in Union. The majority have voted to stay in the UK ever since, but many nationalists want a referendum on the border. Prof Colin Harvey is Professor of Human Rights Law in Queens, he makes the case for Irish unit...

Northern Ireland is come into existence on the the 3rd of May 1921 and Ireland as it was to that point, is partitioned. Most of the island became the Irish Free State but Northern Ireland continued to be a part of the United Kingdom. Lee Reynolds, a former advisor to Arlene Foster, a former Director of Policy for the DUP, and the Northern Ireland Director for the Vote Leave campaign, is the expert...

One of the founders of the SAS, Blair ‘Paddy’ Mayne was a great soldier and a hero in his native town, Newtownards. But his legacy is a complicated one, he was not a model officer. His exploits in battle saw him earn many honours but he denied the Victoria Cross. Did the complex nature of the man muddy his legacy? Host: Ciarán Dunbar, Guest: Andrew Madden. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy i...

Northern Ireland’s gangland bloodletting continues with the latest hit has claiming the life of a man in Newry. Mark Lovell was shot up to 15 times by gunmen who had been lying in wait outside his home in the Carnagat area. Sources in Newry predict a blood bath as revenge is sought for his death. Sharon O’Neill and Brett Campbell join Ciarán Dunbar to discuss the bad blood on the border. See omnys...

Ballymena company Wrightbus collasped in 2019, now the Department for the Economy’s Insolvency service is taking a civil action against 14 people over alleged unfit conduct as directors And, in yet another twist, Green Pastures, the evangelical mega-church founded by Jeff Wright, is being taken to court by the administrators of the bus company. Host: Ciarán Dunbar. Guests: Margaret Canning and And...

On the night of 3 December 2012, Belfast City Council took a vote which led to instant protests. The union flag had flown every single day from City Hall for over one hundred years, but now Nationalist and Alliance councillors voted to fly it on only 18 so-called designated days a year. The reaction was immediate, passionate, and sometimes violent. Host: Ciarán Dunbar. Guest: Allison Morris. See o...

August 2013 and Dungannon woman Michaella McCollum – along with her travelling companion Melissa Reid, attempted to leave Peru with €1.6million worth of cocaine. Nabbed by the airport authorities – they both would begin a perilous and treacherous life behind bars at the notorious Ancon 2 prison. We look at the story of the ‘Peru Two’ that is now the subject of a new series on Netflix - ‘High: Conf...

Portadown teenager Marian Beattie was just 18 years old when she was murdered. She had gone to a dance in the company of her brother and best friend near the Co. Tyrone village of Aughnacloy in 1973. She left in the company of a young man and was never seen alive again. The Police Ombudsman found failings in how her killing was investigated by the RUC. Belfast Telegraph reporter Niamh Campbell tel...

A judge has revealed new details about the NAMA controversy, one of Northern Ireland’s biggest ever political scandals. Among the controversies surrounding the sale of Nama’s entire loan book here eight years ago was disagreement about the purpose of £7.5m - transferred to an Isle of Man bank account in highly unusual circumstances. Ciarán Dunbar is joined by Sam McBride, to explain the significan...

Men are more likely to commit crimes, but why is that, is the system stacked against them, or do men simply have a greater propensity towards ‘evil’? At the time of recording this podcast almost 1,650 men were incarcerated in Northern Ireland. That compared to about 80 women. The difference is staggering but why is it so great? Host: Ciarán Dunbar. Guests: Dr Michelle Butler and Prof David Canter....

Monica McWilliams tells the story of the Northern Ireland Womens’ Coalition  From 1996 to 2006, Northern Ireland had a political party with a difference.   It was a party, for women- just for women.   In 1998, two of its members, co-founder, Monica McWilliams and Jane Morrice, were elected to the assembly, playing an integral role in the Good Friday Agreement.     Jessica Rice interviews Monica Mc...

The latest Belfast Telegraph Lucid talk polls tells us Sinn Féin is soaring above the pack but that the DUP has launched a successful fight back. 41% of voters think that if it stays like that – it should mean Dublin sharing power in Northern Ireland but is that possible under the Good Friday Agreement? The Belfast Telegraph’s political editor Suzanne Breen gives us an in-depth analysis into the s...

In 1974, two IRA bombs in Birmingham pubs took the lives of 21 people. The incident would result in six innocent Irishmen being wrongfully convicted of the crime. We tell the story of the Birmingham Six and how those responsible have not been brought to justice. Host: Siobhan Maguire. Guest: John Downing. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy f...

It’s possible you mightn't notice that the price of some individual items in your trolley has gone up in recent months but when the cashier totals up – you notice All of us have noticed it’s getting harder and harder to get to the end of the month and to reach the next paycheck. We are in a 'cost-of-living crisis,’ but what exactly is it, whose fault is it and how did we get out of it? And are som...

It reads like the blurb on the back of an improbable spy thriller, but it’s a true story. The French Secret Service hacks an exclusive mobile phone system. Known as an ‘EncroChat’, it has an exclusive client base, it’s the phone of choice for the underworld. Some of those phones ended up at the bottom of Belfast’s Lagan River. Host: Ciarán Dunbar, Guest: Allison Morris. See omnystudio.com/listener...

Louis Mountbatten was a beloved member of the Royal family and mentor to King Charles. But now allegations of child sex abuse at Kincora, a notorious Belfast children’s home, have been made against him. The Indo Daily uncovers the story of the man known in the royal family as Uncle Dicky. Host: Fionnán Sheahan. Guests: Senan Molony Political and Sharon O'Neill. See omnystudio.com/listener for priv...