Uncharted: Crime and Mayhem in the Music Industry, episode 50: The Miami Showband Massacre
The 1970s were a dangerous time in Ireland. An era called “The Troubles” began in the late 60s. It was Protestants vs. Catholics, British loyalists against Irish unionists, the British Army vs. the IRA, the UDA, and other groups.
There were bombings, assassinations, guerrilla campaigns, and roaming paramilitary groups, both official and unofficial.
It saw civil disobedience, riots, mass protests, segregation, and many, many deaths. More than 3,500 people, mostly civilians, died before things calmed down in the late 90s.
At about 2:30 in the morning on July 31, 1975, something happened at what appeared to be a military checkpoint on a rural road near the town of Bushkill in County Down, Northern Ireland. Such checkpoints were not uncommon in those days. A minibus carrying half a dozen people was ordered to stop.
Things escalated quickly. Everyone was ordered outside at gunpoint, and in the confusion that followed, five people were shot and killed by the Ulster Volunteer Force, one of those paramilitary groups.
Three of the victims were musicians, members of a group often called “the Irish Beatles,” who were heading back to Dublin after a gig. And when the news broke, the entire island was shocked. Why would anybody want to hurt these guys? They were politically and religiously neutral—and everyone loved them. In some ways, this grief brought the North and South together—at least for a while.
This is episode 50 of Uncharted: Crime and Mayhem in the Music Industry. And this is the story of what became known as The Miami Showband massacre.”
In addition to the podcasts, you can hear Uncharted on these Corus radio stations (all times local):
- Toronto: AM 640 (4-5am)
- London: 980 CFPL (4-5am)
- Vancouver: 980 CKNW (1-2am)
- Edmonton: 630 CHED (1-2am)
- Calgary: QR77 (770 AM) (1-2am)
- Winnipeg: 680 CJOB (1-2am)
