Drama over school dispute

The protests lasted for 12 weeks

A dispute at a north Belfast Catholic primary school is to be the basis for a new drama being produced by BBC Northern Ireland.

The fact-based programme, Red and Blue, tells the story of two fictional families caught up in the row at Holy Cross primary school in the Ardoyne area of north Belfast.

The three-month protest in 2001 by loyalist residents at the Ardoyne interface saw pupils of Holy Cross being escorted to and from school by the security forces on a daily basis.

It ended after local Protestant residents were promised social improvements and new security measures.

Robert Cooper, head of drama at BBC Northern Ireland, said it was an important story which had attracted world attention.

"Many of the problems and issues facing these communities reflect issues facing the wider community in Northern Ireland," he said.

Red and Blue attempts to go behind the anger and the headlines

Jane Tranter
Controller of drama commissioning

"This story is about fear, identity, community, territory, trust and enmity in a polarised society where politics and community relations have failed."

He said the drama "provides an insight into the actions and emotions of those involved on both sides - an insight which goes beyond the blunt images of hatred and anger shown in the news reports of the time".

Controller of drama commissioning, Jane Tranter, said the programme was part of a growing slate of original, ambitious dramas for BBC One.

"Red and Blue is an important part of these commissions because it attempts to go behind the anger and the headlines to discover why the people involved in this particular dispute felt they had to see it through no matter what the consequences," she said.

"We want to give audiences an opportunity to see new perspectives on historic, social and personal situations that people have had to deal with in real life."