3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Belfast Telegraph
The Miami Showband Massacre:‘ They tried to wipe out the entire band.'
The Irish showband scene was in full flight, young people were dancing and romancing.
The bands, who performed to thousands of people every night, brought a new lease of life both north and south of the border, creating superstars such as Dickie Rock, Big Tom and Joe Dolan.
And, at the peak of their prowess was The Miami Showband, a phenomenon so beloved they were affectionately dubbed 'The Irish Beatles'.
It seemed as if nothing could go wrong for them. But all that changed on July 31, 1975.
Five members of the band were travelling from a gig in Banbridge, Co Down, to Dublin late that night when they were stopped by what they thought was a routine army checkpoint – some of those there were real soldiers, but all were members of the UVF.
What transpired shook not just the showband scene, but left a lifelong trauma on the musicians, their families and those who loved them.
Tessa Fleming is joined by former Sunday Independent news editor Liam Collins, and Des Lee, surviving member of The Miami Showband and author of 'My Saxophone Saved My Life', as they discuss one of the darkest nights in Irish music history: the Miami Showband Massacre.
