User:Sevenplusone/Sandbox
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Frédéric Dindeleux
[edit]Timesbold
[edit]Give My Head Peace is a political Northern Irish sitcom that is set around the troubles. It centres around two families of the two different denominations. The Catholic family, comprising Da, Ma, and their son Cal, live in the Divis tower in the Catholic dominated False Road in Belfast. Their daughter Emer is married to the Protestant RUC police officer Billy. Emer and Billy share a house with Billy’s uncle Andy in an unnamed Loyalist area of Belfast. Although the two families are constantly taunting each other, and although they pretend to hate each other, they seem to spend a lot of their time enjoying each other’s company.
The programme mirrors the value system in the separated Northern Irish communities and criticises a lot of established attitudes and political views and events of the troubles. Whereas other TV productions highlight rather the tragic side of the troubles of the past like violence, terror, bombs, and death, Give My Head Peace presents the Troubles from a humorous point of view. It focuses on contemporary Northern Ireland after the Good Friday Agreement and ridicules the still existent sectarian thinking.
In 1997, Give My Head Peace was broadcast for the first time as a television film called “Two Ceasefires and a Wedding” on BBC One Northern Ireland, linking the two families through the wedding of the Billy and Emer. Since then, four series have been produced for BBC One Northern Ireland, that are usually broadcast during the prime time Friday night slot. According to BBC, it was the most popular BBC Northern Ireland programme in 2003/2004 (c.f. www.bbc.tv.northernireland/bbcandyou/annualreview/facts.shtml). In 2004, a selection of episodes was also shown across the UK and Ireland. The award-winning programme is directed by Martin Shardlow and written by the actors playing the characters Da (Tim McGarry), Cal (Damon Quinn), and Billy (Michael McDowell).
(from here)