Inside stories

Memories from the Maze and Long Kesh Prison

Catalyst Arts Gallery 8 April - 7 May 2005

Directed by Cahal McLaughlin

Long Kesh Prison (later renames the Maze) was a microcosm of the political conflict that raged for over thirty years in Northern Ireland. It was the largest high security prison in Europe and was both the tinderbox and the touchstone of political developments outside its walls. As a result of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, its prisoners were released and the prison finally closed down in 2000.

In 2003/4 Cahal McLaughlin separately recorded the testimonies of three ex-occupants back inside the empty compounds and H-Blocks; Billy Hutchinson - a loyalist, Gerry Kelly - a republican and Desi Waterworth - a prison officer. This allows the materiality of the sites - the wire, the nissan huts, the yard, the cells and the circle - to stimulate memories and guide the narratives.

The documentary consists of three half hour stories running consecutively. The material itself suggested sequential storytelling with jump-cuts. Short visual sequences that book-end the stories are not used as ‘cutaways’, but speak for themselves, as moments for reflection.

The three-screen installation allows the participants to remain separate in the same space, a physical relationship that was campaigned for in prison. The issue of segregation was the focus of protests, riots and hunger strikes. Audiences can choose to select whom to listen to and for how long.