The Living Flame

Ireland's Deep Atlantic

A special live broadcast on both BBC and UTV, hosted by Eamonn Holmes, celebrating the best of Northern Ireland television over the past 60 years and marking the occasion of digital switchover.

Brothers addicted to speed at any price. Documentary following the motorcycle road racing careers, and fate, of the Dunlop family.

The evolution of skateboarding culture in Ireland since the late 1980s.

"Man of Arran" is a cinematic exploration of the beauty of Ireland's coastline, juxtaposed with the inner strength of 83-year-old Paddy Conaghan, a man who refuses to let age define him. Embarking on an extraordinary adventure: circumnavigating Ireland, diving into winter seas, literally immersing himself in Irelands rugged coastal beauty, and promoting the cause of mental health awareness. Through, stunning visuals, heartfelt interviews, and Paddy's captivating storytelling, Man of Arran aims to transport the audience into Paddy's world and his mission.

A short documentary exploring the ways LGBT couples show affection, and how small interactions like holding hands in public can carry, not only huge personal significance, but also the power to create social change.

Narrated by Oscar-winning actor Jeremy Irons, The Genius of George Boole assembles academics and industry leaders from across the globe to explore the life and importance of one of the world’s greatest unsung heroes.

Ornithologist Seán Ronayne from Cobh, Co. Cork is on a mission to record the sound of every bird species in Ireland – that’s nearly 200 birds. Often joined by his partner Alba, he travels to some of the country’s most beautiful and remote locations to capture its most elusive species and soundscapes: the busy seabird colony of Skellig Michael; a native woodland free from road noise in the Burren; the corncrake stronghold of Tory Island; a solitary nest in the Donegal uplands. Along the way we get to know Seán, whose hypersensitivity to sound has proven both a struggle and a strength. At once inspiring and cautionary, Seán’s journey illustrates the beauty and importance of sound, and what listening can tell us about the state of our natural world.

Ireland's victory over Italy at the World Cup in New Jersey in 1994, remains a source of Irish pride. But it is haunted by memories of a massacre: terrorists opened fire and killed six innocents while they watched the match in a small village pub in Northern Ireland. Remarkably, no one was ever charged for the crime. For more than twenty years the victims' families have searched for answers. Now, at last, they may have found them. But what they learn turns a murder mystery into bigger inquiry relevant for us all: what happens when governments cover up the truth?

In 2012, Stephen Vaughan and Kay Ferreter are invited to address the congregation at St. Joseph's Redemptorists Church in Dundalk, Ireland for the Solemn Novena Festival. In a powerful speech, the pair describe their experiences being gay and lesbian in Ireland, feeling excluded by Catholic doctrine, and the importance of a more inclusive church.

A documentary on the 1916 Easter Rising, written and performed by the duo Rubberbandits.

A biography of the poet W. B. Yeats and his contribution to the Irish independence movement as a Protestant nationalist.

A documentary tracking the daily lives, struggles and triumphs of some young Irish people living with schizophrenia. They speak openly about what it's like to live with such a severe mental health disorder and struggle with delusional thoughts and the internal voices that are so associated with schizophrenia.

‘Sit Down and Shut Up’ is an exciting new short documentary about when Limerick FC played football giants Real Madrid in the 1980 European Cup. It’s a David vs Goliath tale about the opera of football, the city of Limerick and a game that few remember but three men can never forget.

An emotional look at the struggle for marriage equality in Ireland.

The women of Belfast played a unique role in holding together their families and communities during the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Filmed during the fragile 17-month paramilitary cease-fire, Daughters of the Troubles: Belfast Stories looks at the challenges facing women trying to put their direct experience of grassroots problems on the agenda of the established political parties. Their strength, first exhibited on the community level, started to reach a wider public.

A documentary on the life of the people of the Aran Islands, who were believed to contain the essence of the ancient Irish life, represented by a pure uncorrupted peasant existence centred around the struggle between man and his hostile but magnificent surroundings. A blend of documentary and fictional narrative, the film captures the everyday trials of life on Ireland's unforgiving Aran Islands.

Mr. McArevey is a visionary headmaster at a Catholic primary school in one of the toughest neighborhoods of Belfast, Northern Ireland. He loves Elvis and teaches his students to connect with their feelings, while taking on the legacies of the “The Troubles.” In this exceptional portrait of a community still healing from trauma, we follow this educator extraordinaire as he uses Ancient Greek wisdom as an antidote for pessimism, violence, and historical despair.

This observational feature– at times intimate, at times epic – embeds itself in the Big Wave surf community to present a thoroughly engaging and visually stunning portrait of the ever-changing life at land's end. Against the backdrop of Ireland's stunning west coast, this film digs deep into the day to day lives of the surf community, taking the audience beyond the bluster of the typical adrenaline fueled film to create a very real portrait of those who choose the surf lifestyle.

Presenter Holly Hamilton tells the feelgood story of the Glentoran team who left Belfast on a European football adventure just before the First World War to win the Vienna Cup, the first ever European Cup.