Inside Accounts, Volume I

Graham Spencer is Distinguished Senior Research Fellow at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for Conflict Intervention at Maynooth University, Visiting Fellow at Northumbria University, and Reader in Social and Political Conflict at Portsmouth University

‘A remarkably intimate record of a high stakes project to end the violence that had plagued this island for 30 years. … The accounts are often riveting and there is a welcome frankness from retired civil servants and diplomats now free to roam widely in their assessments. … There is also an abundance of intelligence, modesty and decency on display here.’Diarmaid Ferriter, Irish Times‘An outstanding contribution to the contemporary history of Britain and Ireland. While historical analysis and judgments are always subject to revision, these first-hand accounts by key participants in the story of the Troubles and the peace process are irreplaceable.’Sir John Chilcot GCB‘Graham Spencer has a remarkable ability to get those most directly involved in the Northern Ireland peace process to reveal the deepest secrets. Unmissable.’Jonathan Powell, former British Government chief negotiator on Northern Ireland and author of Talking to Terrorists: How to End Armed Conflicts‘Masterful and magisterial in their sweep and depth, no account of the Northern Ireland peace process is complete without reference to these two volumes. The interviews are meticulously framed, capturing the shifting nuances in seemingly intractable positions and how they were exploited. A magnificent achievement.’Padraig O’Malley, John Joseph Moakley Distinguished Professor of Peace and Reconciliation, University of Massachusetts, Boston

• Notes on intervieweesAcknowledgementsBrief chronology of the Troubles and origins of the Peace ProcessParties, offices and organisationsKey documentsIntroduction1 Sunningdale and the problem of power-sharing: An interview with Sean Donlon2 Fermenting the Irish Dimension – Sunningdale to the Anglo-Irish Agreement: An interview with Noel Dorr3 Political imagination and the Anglo-Irish Agreement: An interview with Michael Lillis4 Tightening Anglo-Irish relations: An interview with Daithi O’Ceallaigh 5 Foundations and principles of a peace process: An interview with Sean O hUiginn6 Back-channels and the possibilities of movement: An interview with Martin Mansergh7 Critical minimums and the expectations of change: An interview with Tim O’Connor8 The management of dialogue: An interview with Dermot GallagherConclusion