Petrol Bombs and Peace: Welcome to Belfast

This programme contains some strong language and some scenes which some viewers may find upsetting

This is Belfast.

It's 15 years since The Troubles came to an end here,

and these days, it looks like any other city in the UK.

On the surface, at least.

SHOUTING AND SIRENS

But this city is still divided up between Catholics and Protestants,

and summertime here often means rioting.

GLASS SMASHES

I've spent this summer on the front line

with a Loyalist marching band, trying to find out why

so many young people who grew up with peace are now feeling so angry.

They're trying to stop our culture,

they're trying to stop it altogether.

And they'll not be happy until it does stop.

And I've met people on the other side of a deeply-divided city.

It's a territorial thing, really, here.

That's their land and this is our land.

This is the story of how one band marched into the eye of a storm,

and how I found myself caught in the middle, as it all went wrong.

There are bricks and bottles coming through

and the water cannon's being used and plastic bullets.

It's a full-on riot.

Welcome to Belfast.

I'm Alys Harte.

I moved here four years ago to work for the BBC.

I enjoy living and working here - it's usually a fun and safe city.

Until last year, when this happened.

SHOUTING AND SIRENS

Massive riots kicked off when the British flag

was taken down from Belfast City Hall.

Protestant Loyalists, who are staunchly British,

saw it as an insult.

They went crazy for weeks.

We want our flag back up. That flag means more to us than just a symbol.

This riot happened just a few minutes' walk from my flat.

FIREWORK EXPLODES

It's all a long way

from where I grew up.

This is where I'm from -

County Donegal, in the Republic of Ireland.

It's close to the border with Northern Ireland,

but it's a different country and a very different place.

I was brought up a Catholic. But, for me, the kind of division

that is part of life in Northern Ireland

just wasn't an issue.

Religion plays such a huge role in Northern Ireland.

My mum tells a story, I think I was 11 before I piped up and said,

"Am I a Catholic or a Protestant?"

I didn't feel divided like that.

It was more straightforward here and people didn't have

a complicated relationship with their national identity,

or with what religion they were. It was...

So, it's just much more straightforward here.

For some people in Belfast, what religion you are,

or where you're from, still really matters.

I'm on my way to a part of Belfast where most Catholics would never go.

To enter a world that's usually closed to outsiders.

These Loyalist flute bands walk the streets here every summer.

They are loyal to the Queen and proud of being British,

and this is how they show it.

Many Catholics despise bands like this.

They see them as celebrating Protestant supremacy

over Catholics and they find it really offensive.

Now I'm going to meet one of the most controversial bands around.

So, here we are.

It feels pretty... It's very British -

they've flags flying everywhere.

I think now that I'm just here, I'm a wee bit...

a wee bit apprehensive.

This isn't my part of town,

so I don't know how welcome I am or how often, really, you know,

Catholics would go into a building like that, erm...

Yeah.

DRUMMING GROWS LOUDER

This band is called Pride of Ardoyne.

They have a reputation amongst some Catholics as being offensive.

It's very rare for an outsider like me to be invited in like this.

But some members of this band

say they want to set the record straight.

Gary is the band's lead drummer.

He's 22 and he works in a factory.

He recently became a dad.

The band takes up the rest of his time.

It's always been there, if you know what I mean? It's part of my life.

It's kind of always been practice every week, parades most weekends.

It's just... It's been part of me growing up. I've always been there.

Gordie's also just become a dad.

He's out of work, so being in the band means a lot to him.

The band, it's a...

It's like a...an escape, if you like, to get away from...

Like, not that family life is crap,

but just to get away from it and to have your own group,

have a laugh and stuff, and...

take your mind off things. It's brilliant.

Being here in this room is a bit strange for me.

You can't even be in a band like this

if you're a Catholic - only Protestants get to beat these drums.

It's also men only.

We're going to teach Alys how to play the bass drum.

INDISTINCT CHATTER

'So when band leader Michael asks ME to join in,

'I'm not sure what to do.'

I have no rhythm at all.

I'll keep you right...

CHEERING

Oh, yeah, you've got me fired now!

'I can't believe I played a bass drum for a Loyalist flute band.'

I'm in so much trouble!

Band practice is over for tonight,

but it looks like my time with Pride of Ardoyne is just beginning.

They've agreed to let me follow them this summer

as they march the streets.

In a week, they'll bring me to my first parade.

To many people in Belfast, especially Catholics,

Loyalist bands like Pride of Ardoyne exist in a different world.

Meet Tania and Roisin.

Tania is 19 and hoping to train to be a nurse.

Roisin has just finished her A-Levels

and wants to be airline cabin crew.

Tonight, they're out in Belfast city centre.

20 years ago, the violence meant that much of the city centre

was a no-go area after dark.

Not any more.

Belfast is actually a really, really good place to go out.

Like, the nightlife is really nice and there's no bother

when you go out. The city centre in Belfast

is a really neutral place.

You wouldn't get anybody that's going to worry about

where you're from or what religion you are.

No-one asks questions like that when you come into town.

But Tania and Roisin don't live in the city centre.

They're from Ardoyne, in the north of the city.

In fact, the Pride of Ardoyne band hall isn't very far away.

But that's not somewhere Tania and Roisin could ever go -

because they're Catholics.

This part of Belfast is really divided along religious lines.

Even the bus stops are Catholic or Protestant.

The girls would never consider using the Protestant one.

Do you not think it's funny that

you don't get the bus stop closest to your house?

I think it's quite funny that people think that's weird,

because if you go to a bus stop that's not in your area,

you're kind of at risk, anything could happen,

there's no definite thing that you're safe.

Like, if we've got a bus stop in our own area and we know that

if we get on the bus, we're going to know somebody

and it's more local, then we're going to get that bus.

Roisin, what about you?

Why would I get a bus over there if I've got a bus stop here?

You know, it wouldn't make a difference, like.

I wouldn't put myself at risk of someone saying, "She's a Catholic."

It's not as if you're fighting for your church or anything.

It probably started about religion, but it's not about religion no more.

God doesn't come into it, doesn't he not?

SHE LAUGHS

It's absolutely nothing to do with religion, whatsoever.

I think people have been so brainwashed by politics.

Whatever they think it is, people still act on it -

so you have to react.

Tania and Roisin say it's about two tribes and their turf.

And Tania told me she would consider

leaving this area to get away from it all.

It's a territorial thing, here.

Like, that's their land and this is our land.

That's the way it is, that's how they see it.

The divisions don't just exist in people's heads.

When one side feels their turf is under threat,

it can get very ugly very quickly.

Every summer, Pride of Ardoyne band marches past the Catholic estate

where Tanya and Roisin live.

The Catholics don't want them

and every summer, it leads to violence.

The kind of violence that,

if it happened anywhere else in the UK, would be big news.

I want to know what it is about these parades

that Catholics find so offensive,

so it's about time I went to one.

-You going to leave your car there?

-Aye, mate.

It's Friday night and for Gordie and Gary, it's time to march.

This is what it's all about for them.

I've never been to a Loyalist band parade before.

This parade is staying on the Loyalist side of the lines,

so it won't attract any protests from Catholics.

In fact, the only Catholic here will be me.

The whole point of band parades is about asserting that

you're Protestant and British.

Lots of the songs celebrate historical victories

when Protestants beat Catholics in battle.

The song they're playing now, The Sash, is a famous one.

That's one reason why Catholics

don't like bands like this marching past.

But the band see it differently.

The reputation, kind of,

people think is...we're young yobs,

either are looking to disrupt

and to cause chaos, and we're not.

It's a family band out looking to enjoy themselves

for the community and to support our culture.

On their flags, drums, and uniforms

are the names of four band members who were killed

during the conflict here, which became known as The Troubles.

Through the '70s, '80s and '90s,

there was carnage on the streets of Northern Ireland.

Republican groups like the IRA wanted the British Government

to leave Ireland and thought violence was the way to get there.

Loyalists wanted Northern Ireland to remain part of the UK

and they fought back.

In the violence that followed, 3,600 people died

and up to 50,000 were injured.

Two of the men remembered by the band,

Sammy Rocket and William Hanna,

were reported to be Loyalist paramilitaries.

These were illegal groups who murdered many Catholics,

so Catholics find it offensive that when the band goes out marching,

the names of paramilitaries are on the band uniforms.

They see these men as villains.

The band see them as martyrs.

We don't class them as paramilitary. They were band members.

They were in the band. Anybody who was killed in The Troubles

with the band... That's why they're on our bannerette.

Don't think paramilitaries are anything to do with it.

It was just... they were members of the band.

Same with anybody in the band, doesn't matter who they are,

they're getting remembered because past band members have been killed.

I was walking along with the band and the music was rousing

and everyone's out on their front step cheering them on,

and everyone's in a really good mood and the sun is shining,

and they've had a couple of drinks, and I kind of get it.

I know why they love it, and I know why it feels so important to them.

I'm just always left with...

the question about Northern Ireland

is that every time people say we're celebrating our culture,

it is at the detriment to someone else's culture.

In some ways, it's not surprising how divided this place is,

when you consider the recent history here.

Even though 15 years ago, a majority of people voted for peace,

there have been plenty of disturbing incidents since.

Tania and Roisin were caught up in one of the worst of them.

Aged just seven and eight,

the girls were pupils at

Holy Cross Primary School.

It's a Catholic school,

but it's in the Protestant Loyalist part of Ardoyne...

SHOUTING

..and in 2001, things went very wrong.

INDISTINCT SHOUTING

Some Protestant residents began picketing the Catholic children

and their parents as they walked to school.

Get over the other side!

It got out of control very quickly

and it made headlines around the world.

There has been more violence tonight in North Belfast, on the second day

of protests about the route Catholic children are taking to school.

We didn't really take in that they hated us,

because we knew there was no reason, like, we hadn't done anything wrong.

And it wasn't really our business, as such.

So we kind of just walked up the road and protected ourselves.

The main thing was to stay away from whatever they were throwing in.

We were making a tunnel out of all the parents and the police.

We were just kind of making our way through, because we were so small.

The Holy Cross dispute stretched out over weeks.

Roisin remembers having bags of urine thrown at her and her friends.

SHOUTING

Yelling, blowing whistles,

throwing water balloons with piss. Disgusting.

It had to be explained to me, like,

what a Protestant was and what a Catholic was,

so I understood why everyone was fighting.

You're a fucking dirt-bag!

It doesn't matter what side of the line you live on.

Many people here, even the younger ones, have been touched by violence.

Gordie, the drummer in the band, was almost killed when he was a child.

Today, he's taking us to the place where it happened.

..me and my daddy was walking down the Shankill. I can't remember

what building it was that blew up, but we were just three shops away.

We only stopped because I saw a motorbike in the shop window,

or something, that was the only reason why we stopped.

So if I hadn't, we probably would have been right outside it.

A lot of people was murdered.

Ten people died when the IRA bombed the Shankill fish shop in 1993.

It was one of the worst incidents

of the whole conflict in Northern Ireland.

What kind of experience have you and your family had of The Troubles?

My granddad, he was shot when he was standing in the kitchen

washing his hands - through the head, by the IRA.

But there was no-one ever caught or brought to justice for it.

A few years later

and the IRA came to Gordie's house to kill his father.

His father and grandfather were targeted

because they were in the British Army.

My daddy's next-door neighbour at the time...

The IRA came out to shoot...

It was meant to be for my daddy,

but he was away in work at the time

and the next-door neighbour got shot dead in place.

So that was a bit of an upset, like,

so they had to pack up and move

because of death threats and stuff. Because that happened.

See, I was only a young boy when I was hearing those stories,

and I thought all this here - guns and the army and stuff -

I thought... I used to think it was great.

But now when you're older and really take into consideration what...

People trying to murder my father and stuff,

and my grandfather WAS murdered. It's...

It's daunting, like. You wouldn't know what to do

when you're in the situation yourself, like.

It's the middle of June,

four weeks away from the Twelfth of July celebrations.

On the Loyalist side, one of the big summer traditions is under way.

The night before the bands take to the streets

on the twelfth of July, they'll gather round a massive bonfire.

This tradition goes back over 300 years,

to the victory of the Protestant King William

over Catholic King James at the Battle of the Boyne.

The bonfire will be huge -

so huge, they have to start building it weeks in advance.

They collect as many wooden pallets from local businesses as they can.

Every year, there's fierce competition between

Loyalist neighbourhoods.

Size is everything.

Tully's a flag-carrier in the band -

he's been building these bonfires for years.

Lee, also in the band, is his right-hand man.

How long does it take you to build a bonfire?

You'd start usually about mid-June, have it done,

you'd work right up until the 11th of July

and you'll have it finished there for it getting lit that night.

And what are you celebrating?

We're just celebrating our culture, cos it's been going on

for so many years, you were brought up to do it.

It's just something you want to keep going.

They start by building a hut.

From now until the bonfire is built, they'll use this as a guard-post

to protect it, in case Catholics come in from

the other side and set it alight or other Loyalists steal their wood.

So you guys stay overnight in the hut?

Aye, we'll just stay till the next morning,

till the kids come out of their beds and then they'll be running about.

And for how long are you staying in there?

-In the hut?

-Yeah.

-That there's us out every night.

-Every night?

-Aye.

On the Twelfth of July, hundreds of marching bands

will take to the streets

and many of them will march past Catholic areas.

Tania is already dreading it,

because the parade traditionally goes right past her house.

-The house is just on the edge...

-Yeah.

-..of the Ardoyne and the parades would go...

-Yeah.

..straight across the... Or just outside your house.

What's it like here on the 12th?

It's hectic, it's really bad here.

People on the front of the road would probably cover their windows

and stuff like that, so missiles and stuff don't come through your window.

Last year, just before Christmas,

someone managed to throw a brick through Tania's window.

It means she no longer really feels safe in her own bedroom.

Does that make you feel nervous?

Would you sleep in here on the night of the 12th?

No. Like, most years so far, I haven't even been in my house,

I've stayed at my granny's or went to a friend's house.

Or I would sleep in my mum's room, or in the living room,

on the floor, yeah.

Because it's too dangerous, like, it's such an easy target.

What does the Twelfth represent to you?

In all seriousness, it doesn't mean anything to me -

it's just a day of trouble.

The wall outside Tania's house is the dividing line

between Protestant and Catholic.

But it's small, compared to some of the other ones in Ardoyne.

These huge barricades are called peace walls.

They're there for one reason - to keep the two communities apart.

There's talk of trying to take some of these walls down,

but Tania doesn't want that.

I probably wouldn't feel safe in my house,

and there'd be no escaping it, either,

because I couldn't sleep in all the rooms now

that I go to because I can't sleep up here.

I don't think many people would continue living here

if there was no protection there.

It's the 21st of June and tonight,

the band are getting ready for the first big parade

of the marching season.

It's in Belfast and it's called the Tour of the North.

And they've agreed to let me follow them.

I feel like I should have a drum or something.

Once, these bands could pretty much march anywhere they wanted to.

But more protests by Catholics mean that these days,

they are often re-routed away from Catholic areas.

When that happens, the band don't like it.

People are feeling very angry about it, like.

It's upset a lot of people.

They've been taking away, chipping away at us, year by year,

taking bits and bits away from us - like not walking down

certain roads, not playing certain tunes at certain points.

And they're trying to stop our culture,

they're trying to stop it altogether.

And they'll not be happy until it does stop.

On tonight's march,

the band have already been told they won't be allowed to walk

their usual way home, past the Catholic part of Ardoyne.

They'll have to go home another way.

CHANTING DROWNS SPEECH

Somewhere up ahead is a police roadblock.

We're coming up to the blockade now.

Everyone's getting really excited, the band are all shouting

and all the supporters are kind of getting excited.

They're coming up to the police lines now,

they're going to march right up - it's totally hectic.

GLASS BOTTLE SMASHES

They're starting to throw glass bottles,

so why don't we stay right back?

-But...

-INDISTINCT SHOUTING

The band is angry that they have been stopped,

but they disperse quickly and the situation calms down.

Tonight, the band will take this decision on the chin,

because they know the most important day to get up this road

is the 12th of July.

On that day, they have always been allowed through...

..and they expect this year to be no different.

Now, the big day is just three weeks away.

It's the end of June and it's Roisin's last day of school.

But this school is different to most others in Northern Ireland.

Here, Catholics and Protestants go to school together...

..and it seems to work.

Lots of people think this may be a solution to the division.

But in Northern Ireland,

it's still very rare. Only 7% of young people are in mixed schools.

There's a reason Roisin wanted to go to school here...

EXPLOSION

..Holy Cross.

After the ordeal of being attacked by Protestants

on her way to primary school, Roisin made a big decision.

I just thought I didn't want to judge them all for what, like,

some of them had just done.

I wanted to give, like, other people a chance.

Cos not everyone's the same, so...

Why do you think there aren't more integrated schools?

Cos not everyone agrees with it, no way.

Really? Do you think people would disagree with a mixed school?

-Yeah, definitely.

-Even if... Yeah.

The thought of little kids mixing with other people

-of different religions, definitely, like.

-Really?

-Yeah.

I know people that didn't want me to be sent here - my family.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-Why?

-Disagreed with it. They didn't think it was right.

What do you think the best bit is about integrated school?

It doesn't teach one solid religion, like, it's open-minded to everybody.

It doesn't teach you that they're different

or you're different. It's, like, yous are all equal,

so yous'll all be treated as equal. Religion doesn't come into it.

But back in Ardoyne, the divisions still matter.

Even Roisin has to live with them when she's on home turf.

Tania has only recently started walking up to the school

to pick up her cousin.

Roisin hasn't walked up the road to Holy Cross since it happened.

Until today.

Do you remember the last time you walked up the road?

No, I was trying to think, but no.

-Does it feel a little weird?

-Yeah, it feels really weird.

I want to hide behind Tania!

THEY LAUGH

Would you be conscious of who's looking at you?

Yeah, really. Definitely.

-Why?

-Cos this is a Protestant area and we're Catholic.

Everywhere you look, you can see the letters K-A-T

written on the walls.

What does that say there on...?

Kill All Taigs.

What does that mean?

Kill all Catholics.

GIRL CRIES

The graffiti, it does say K-A-T everywhere.

Taig is just slang for Catholic, really. Um...

And they paint the pavements red, white and blue -

it's kind of just marking their territory.

I did say before, "There's our land and their land,"

and it's completely different,

and you can see the invisible division,

you can feel it, and you just don't cross it.

The Holy Cross protests may have stopped,

but it feels like the hatred is still here, written on the walls.

It's no wonder Roisin isn't happy.

-Hello, Amy.

-Want to say hello?

When I was walking up the road that day,

I was just so nervous, I don't know why.

It's not just like a normal Protestant area,

where you can be like, "Oh, right, I'll chance it."

But because so much has happened up there...

-See you later.

-Bye!

That's a really bizarre experience,

not least for the girls, because one thing that was really clear

was that Roisin, in particular,

was looking over her shoulder every few minutes.

I mean, it was really concerning

and it's just so frightening to think that now, after all this time,

that they really, genuinely, are concerned about walking to a school

that they went to, to pick up their wee cousin, which is, like,

300 metres up the road.

Just around the corner from the school,

on the Loyalist side of the peace wall, the bonfire is taking shape.

It's only a fortnight until the 12th of July,

when it has to be finished.

Tully and Lee are working on it

almost every day -

staying out most nights to guard it.

But when the sun is out, there's always time for a barbecue.

The band doesn't just march together -

they and their families hang out together, too.

Go over and get them.

Go and get the baps out.

HE LAUGHS

Excellent work, Gordie.

-All my hard work. All me, no-one else.

-I know.

You've been vindicated now, all the hard work's paid off.

INDISTINCT CHATTER

'Tully tells me the bonfire-building is on course.

'When it's finished, the bonfire will be as high as the peace wall.'

Can the people over the peace wall see the bonfire?

They can see in their houses, they can see right over.

Sometimes, they sit and talk to you

and give you a wee wave, or you could be lucky and get a finger from them!

Do you give one back?

I just laugh. You have to.

HUBBUB DROWNS SPEECH

'When the bonfire is finished,

'they'll put an Irish flag on top of it,

'because the Republic of Ireland is seen as

'the traditional enemy of Loyalism.

'There's no getting around it - that's pretty provocative

'and offensive to most Catholics.

'Michael, the band leader, makes an appearance.'

Why do you put the Irish flag on top of the bonfire?

It's not the flag of our country, it's a foreign flag in our country.

Just like they burn the Union Jack. It's a foreign flag.

INDISTINCT CHATTER

The Tricolour?

The Tricolour, yeah, that's my flag.

It's your flag - I know it's your flag. But why is it your flag?

-Cos I'm from Donegal.

-Oh, you're Donegal.

Our flag's the Union Jack.

We just put it up cos it's always been the way.

'With the big Twelfth of July marches just around the corner,

'the band still hasn't found out whether they will be allowed

'to march past the Catholic estate at Ardoyne.

'They feel they have a right to walk down the road.'

How do you think people would feel

if you weren't allowed to march past Ardoyne at all?

It's supposed to be a shared space. They're allowed to walk to

their schools, but we're not allowed to walk down onto the Shankill.

Of course they should be able to walk to their schools.

Does that happen?

Our kids coming home from school and the abuse they're getting,

-it's terrible.

-Getting spat at, getting chased.

'Kill all Huns' is the other side's answer to 'Kill all Taigs'.

It means - kill all Protestants.

On both sides of the fence, it feels like people

are prepared to believe almost anything about each other.

If you were walking down past the Ardoyne shops,

through the Catholic area on your own, what would happen to you?

It depends, they could know you, they might not know you, so...

But if they knew that you were from up here?

Good luck to you. That's all I would say.

You're not getting by there.

SMOKE ALARM GOES OFF

It is really surprising that three miles from where I live,

these guys are living with such huge division and hatred.

It feels dangerous.

It feels like it wouldn't take very much

for it to really kick off.

Those boys, as lovely as they are, are angry, angry, angry boys.

And the other side are angry.

And just because we've had 15 years of peace

doesn't mean and doesn't seem to be changing the way that they feel...

..or reaching them, quite. So...

It does... It feels like it could be very dangerous. It feels volatile.

RADIO: 'This is BBC Radio Ulster.

'The Parades Commission has ruled that the Orange Order

'cannot parade past the sectarian interface at Ardoyne.'

It's the 11th of July, the day before the parade,

and there's some surprising news.

For the first time ever, the band have been told

they won't be allowed to march home past the Catholic estate.

Loyalists right across Northern Ireland are outraged.

I think the Protestant people have just pushed too far this time.

I think we kind of took it on the chin for a couple years,

but I think it's been pushed too far

and somebody's going to have to sort it out.

It's like a powder keg, they've been...

The fuses are there and I think now it's been lit.

I think now it's just ready to erupt.

It looks like there's going to be trouble.

I go to see Tania, who's starting to get worried.

What do you think will happen now?

It's kind of changed the game, hasn't it?

A lot of people are saying they don't know,

they can't expect anything and this is different

than any other year, but I think it's going to be a lot worse.

I think it's going to be the worst yet.

Why so?

Because it was such a dramatic change,

it's such a dramatic decision to make.

And this has never happened before. The parade's always went up.

It's time for Tania to batten down the hatches.

She has to move her bed away from the window...

..and cover the glass with bin bags, in case it's broken.

It is a really bizarre way to have to live, but, unfortunately,

for people that live in Ardoyne, that's usual -

that's normal for us and that's just what you have to do.

On the other side of the peace wall, Tully has done his job.

From the top of the bonfire, he can look over the wall

into the Catholic estate and they can see him.

The Fire Brigade turn up to make sure the bonfire

isn't going to collapse once it's lit -

something that happens pretty often to bonfires of this size.

-Good, isn't it?

-Aye, are you pleased?

Oh, aye. Happy with that, like.

What'll happen now?

Gets burnt. Twelve o'clock.

How do they burn it?

Petrol. Down it, then a big pipe and then just light it.

Light it by a petrol bomb, or just petrol?

Don't know. See what happens.

The bonfire is covered in Irish flags,

and there's that slogan again - Kill all Taigs,

or kill all Catholics.

This is really bizarre for me.

By now, I feel welcome in this community,

but they're burning the flag of my country

and writing slogans about killing anyone

who happens to be Catholic, like me.

It's midnight. The big moment is finally here...

..and the petrol bombs come out.

CHEERING

CLAPPING

That's something else.

I don't know if they have any Health and Safety rules, but...

The band won't get a lot of sleep tonight.

In just five hours from now, they will meet to march.

But this 12th of July won't be like previous ones.

It's obvious that trouble is brewing.

What about the decision to stop yous on the way back?

Dreadful, don't know how they came up with that.

I'm disgusted, sure.

-Do you reckon people are pretty cross?

-Aye.

What do you think could happen? Do you think it could kick off?

I could see it happening.

You can just tell that tensions are high at the minute.

Tully thinks that the Catholics on the other side have managed to get

the parade banned because they've rioted every year when it happens.

We want to see what happens if we kick off.

It's the morning of the 12th of July,

and it promises to be one of the hottest days

Belfast has seen in years.

Today, the band will march almost 20 miles in 28-degree heat.

It's like waking up Christmas morning,

getting everything you've ever wanted -

goose-bumps running up and down your back.

Your hairs stand on end when you hear them cheering and stuff.

It's brilliant.

Today, Pride of Ardoyne will be at the centre of a storm.

Everyone will be watching them to find out what will happen

at the end of the day when they are stopped from marching home.

I'm the only outsider who's been allowed to walk with them.

It's 8:30am. The band have been joined by their supporters

and they're marching into the city centre.

Everyone is hyped-up.

On this early-morning outward leg of the parade,

the band are allowed to march past the Catholic area.

But they won't be allowed to return this way.

The band are just coming down towards the flash-point part.

And they've been joined by loads and loads of supporters.

And just behind us is where the Republican protest is going to be.

They're allowed to walk past this morning,

but later, they'll be stopped before they get to this point.

Suddenly, the police move in.

So the supporters are going to try and actually get down through here,

but the police and shields are barricading up.

The band were supposed to walk past the Catholic area

with only 100 supporters,

but many more have turned up and they're not allowed through.

It's not even nine o'clock in the morning and already,

there's a stand-off with police.

On the Catholic side, Tania is getting nervous.

Last night, I went to bed quite early because I was too scared.

Maybe I thought I'd fall asleep before anything happened.

There was shouting and stuff, People were singing, like,

"Kill all Taigs" and stuff and I was, like,

"Wow, I've never had to go to sleep with that kind of lullaby before!"

Bit weird. No, I didn't sleep very well

and I woke up at about eight o'clock

to wait and see what the news was up here.

The band are wondering if their big day is over

before it has even begun.

So what happens if you don't get down, do you think?

Don't know. Have to wait and see.

Play the waiting game now.

'But after a bit of negotiation, they are on the move again,

'towards the Catholic area and the protestors.'

Band on this side, police on this side,

and the other side, the protestors.

And along this stretch, they're not allowed to have any hymns,

sing, chant - just a single drumbeat.

And there's lots of people just over here.

SINGLE DRUMBEAT CONTINUES

That parade is offensive. It's celebrating the death of Catholics.

We have every right to say,

"Look, that's offensive. You can't just walk past our area

"and offend people like that."

The second the band cross the invisible dividing line

into a Loyalist area, the restrictions are lifted.

When these boys hit the roundabout, then they can play.

SINGLE DRUMBEAT CONTINUES

DRUMMING SPEEDS UP

So that's it. We've come through the tense bit.

The police, by and large, will step back now.

It just depends what happens later on this evening

when they try to come back up home.

That was tense. I can breathe now!

In the city centre, tens of thousands of people

are out on the streets.

Halfway through, the band gets a break.

On the way home, they know they'll meet a police roadblock,

and no-one is expecting it to be peaceful.

What do you reckon will happen when you get stopped by the police?

I think once the police go heavy-handed...

Our ones aren't going to stand and take it.

I think our ones will come out in force and show them.

So I can see it just going nuts.

Lee, what do you reckon?

I don't know what will happen. I don't know.

Anything could happen.

It's early evening and the band are marching home.

CHEERING

When the band come into town, they get a really big reception

because of all the controversy.

Watch how the crowd react.

The atmosphere is different now.

A lot of people have been drinking.

Pride of Ardoyne is getting a huge reception.

The crowd knows they're minutes away from hitting the roadblock.

At Catholic Ardoyne, crowds have gathered

and there are hundreds of police.

It's tense, but they know the band won't be allowed past this time

and, for the first time in years,

there's no rioting on the Catholic side.

Back in the middle of the Loyalist parade,

we're almost at the police roadblock.

CHEERING

At first, there's a street party atmosphere.

Then the first bottles are thrown at police.

The police helicopter's just above

and they're starting to throw missiles across.

Guys are coming up on top of the Land Rovers.

A water cannon is brought out...

..and very quickly, it's used.

We are caught in the middle.

The atmosphere changes very quickly.

Then a man approaches the camera and threatens us,

telling us to stop filming and to get out.

I film on my phone, as Gary moves back and Gordie is soaked.

Up at the police lines,

members of another band are attacking the police.

Some of them are using ceremonial swords.

It's getting serious and it's clear we're not safe here any more.

We've just had to move from the other side of the police lines

where, basically, we were threatened by a man

I can only assume was a paramilitary,

and the band got very tetchy

and asked us to get out as quickly as possible.

There are people lying in there

with their heads split open from the water cannon.

I'm totally soaked.

And it doesn't look like that's going to end any time soon.

When we were leaving, there was reams of boys

running through with bricks in their hands.

You just knew it was time to go.

And soon, it gets a lot worse.

There's bricks and bottles coming through

and the water cannon's being used and plastic bullets -

it's a full-on riot.

Across Belfast, 32 police officers will end up being injured tonight.

I watched the riots for several hours,

but I didn't see any of the band members I knew taking part.

The 12th of July is drawing to a close

and my marching season is over.

It's the end of the biggest day of the marching season,

but I've no idea how long this is going to go on for.

It might go on for a couple of hours, the way some of the band

were speaking to me, it might go on for a couple of days.

But even beyond that, this is Belfast today.

You know, so many years after an agreement. And this isn't normal,

this isn't normal society.

It doesn't give me a lot of hope, really, for the future.

It kind of feels like this is deja vu,

and it's the kind of thing that's just going to go on and on.

I'm just going to up and leave North Belfast,

I don't think I'll be here.

The fact that when people don't get their own way, chaos breaks out

and all they do is riot. And that's the only solution,

and nobody even offers to sit down and just talk something out,

which is the most mature thing to do,

which will actually get things done.

No, I don't want to be here, it makes life too difficult

and I don't want my kids, when they grow up, having the same trouble.

I'm going to stay at it.

Hopefully, we'll get up this road and keep on supporting

and marching and celebrating our culture.

If I get up this road, it will be a big bonus.

We're not going to push for anything else - this is all we want.

We don't want any violence ourselves, or...

We just want up home, to be able to celebrate,

to be able to finish our 12th.

It's not over yet.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd