大象传媒

The series that blends archive with the thumping hits of the time.

This week Pop Goes Northern Ireland focuses on 1990. The year starts with secretary of state for NI Peter Brooke calling for all-party talks. The Stevens Inquiry's offices are destroyed by fire and the Stevens team continues with its work uncovering collusion between the security forces and loyalist paramilitaries.

The Supreme Court in Dublin refuses to extradite a number of prominent republicans and the violence continues, with four UDR officers killed in one attack. Ian Gow, a Conservative MP and friend of Margaret Thatcher, is also killed by the IRA. September sees two joyriders shot dead by an army patrol and Private Lee Clegg is charged with murder. Autumn sees a upsurge in violence culminating in the murder of six soldiers and one civilian caused by two IRA "human bombs".

Mary Robinson becomes the first woman to be elected president of Ireland and on the same day Peter Broke declares that the government has "no selfish strategic or economic interest" in Northern Ireland and Margaret Thatcher resigns as prime minister, to be replaced by John Major.