Seán Duignan reports on a bomb left at a church in Saintfield, Belfast. The parish priest defused it by cutting a wire connected to the device.

A RUC spokesman told Duignan that the parish priest of Carrigmannon, Fr. O'Neill, arrived at the church at about 8 o'clock and spotted the bomb which had been placed on a sloping window inside the church. It consisted of three sticks of gelignite, a twin cell battery and some kind of mechanism of an alarm clock. Father O'Neill cut one of the wires on the bomb which had been set to go off at ten minutes past the hour.

The RUC spokesman described it as a "clumsy attempt at violence". Although it is not thought that the bomb could have done much damage, it is a symptom of heightening sectarian tension at a time when the Ulster Volunteer Force has announced "... that it would be going into action".

A report from the 'This Week' programme broadcast on 27 April 1969.

'This Week' was a RTÉ Radio production featuring daily news and analysis of the week's top stories, with interviews, comment, opinion and the voices of the newsmakers. 'This Week' was presented by Mike Burns and Sean Duignan.

The photograph accompanying this clip shows RTÉ broadcaster Seán Duignan in 1969.

The photographer was Roy Bedell.
© RTÉ Stills Library 1010/027

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