The Journey (2016)

the journey 2016

The Journey is a joint British-Irish motion picture, directed by Nick Hamm and released in 2017. It stars Timothy Spall as Ian Paisley, Colm Meaney as Martin McGuinness, Toby Stephens as Tony Blair, John Hurt as Harry Patterson and Ian Beattie as Gerry Adams. The Journey is a fictionalised account of how Loyalist firebrand Paisley and former Provisional IRA chief McGuinness established a working relationship after the Troubles. The film is set in October 2006, with Northern Ireland leaders assembled in St Andrews to finalise a power-sharing government. Paisley leaves the talks briefly to fly home for his 50th wedding anniversary. McGuinness is also sent back to Belfast, purportedly to maintain balance at the negotiations. Despite their diametrically opposed political views and mutual dislike, the two leaders are forced to share a car to Edinburgh Airport.

Their journey begins with some hostility and unpleasantness. After this, Paisley and McGuinness begin to open up. They debate and discuss Northern Ireland, their own part in the Troubles and the significance of the St Andrews negotiations. This discussion is being monitored from afar by Tony Blair, MI5 boss Patterson and other agents, via a hidden camera installed in the limousine. The car’s driver, who pretends not to know his passengers, is in fact a British security agent receiving instructions via a Bluetooth headset. What was intended to be an hour-long drive becomes much longer, thanks to several contrived stops and an accident involving a deer. These delays allow Paisley and McGuinness to become more comfortable and honest with each other. They thrash out their differences, albeit never conceding ground, and come to understand the historical significance of peace and power-sharing.

The Journey is clearly no factual account of history. Paisley and McGuinness never shared a car in 2006 (in fact they did not speak in private until six months after the St Andrews meetings). Nor did Paisley fly home during the talks, since his wife was in St Andrews with him. The film’s premise – isolating radical opponents in a car as a form of proxy negotiation, while others watch over their shoulder – seems contrived and forced. The Journey grossly simplifies a complex peace process, condensing years of negotiation into a road trip. It also overemphasises the importance of Paisley and McGuinness, John Hurt’s character declaring that “these men are anarchy. They are the Troubles”. For all these problems The Journey does have value. There are few if any motion pictures about the Northern Ireland peace process. The film’s skilled leads capture Paisley’s blustering rectitude and McGuinness’ pragmatism and understated humour. The dialogue and debates between Paisley and McGuinness, though fictionalised, explore the troubled politics and sectarianism of Northern Ireland, and the challenges of building a lasting peace.


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This page was written by Jennifer Llewellyn and Steve Thompson. To reference this page, use the following citation:
J. Llewellyn and S. Thompson, “The Journey” (2017)”, Alpha History, accessed [today’s date], https://alphahistory.com/northernireland/the-journey-2017/.