A whiskey distillery has been officially opened in the wing of a former Belfast prison, which once held loyalist and republican prisoners, including a current Stormont minister.
McConnell's Distillery hopes to attract 100,000 people a year to Crumlin Road Gaol, expanding the city's tourist offering.
It already employs 34 staff. That will be increased to 50 and it hopes to export its 'McConnell's Irish whisky' all around the world.
The distillery was built over the last two years in 'A' wing of the Grade A listed Victorian building, which dates back to 1845.
It is a £30m project and the investors had to get a lease from a Stormont department to build it inside the protected building.
Crumlin Road prison was in use all through the Troubles and was the place where both loyalist and republican remand prisoners were held while awaiting trial.
It was synonymous with the violence of the period. The IRA murdered two loyalist prisoners in a bombing in the prison canteen.
Loyalists later fired an RPG rocket at the canteen as republicans were having their meal.
It closed as a working jail in 1996 before reopening after extensive refurbishment as a visitor attraction and exhibition centre.
Among the Stormont ministers to attend the opening today was Economy Minister Conor Murphy who spent time on A wing of the jail for IRA offences in the early 1980s.
"I was a resident here for a period, not voluntarily, and its remarkable to be back in here and see how it has transformed," he said.
He said the prison was an example of how Northern Ireland was moving from conflict to opportunity.
"It kind of epitomises that journey. I suppose I'm the living personification of that having been resident here and I'm thrilled to be back and it's amazing to see the difference."
The prison is in one of the most economically deprived parts of the city.
Eamon De Valera was held in solitary confinement in the jail in 1924 for six months for illegally entering Northern Ireland.
In all, 17 men were executed in the prison between 1854 and 1961, with many of the bodies buried in unmarked graves in the grounds.
There were also several prisoner escapes over the years.
John Kelly of McConnell's said the official opening of the distillery was a proud day.
"We have turned an empty wing of an historic jail into a place of investment, employment and opportunity," he said.
