BAD FELLAS, a three part documentary series, written and narrated by Paul Williams, tells the story of some of the pivotal moments in the growth of organised crime in Ireland.
Telling a story that starts in the 1960s and runs through to the present day, BAD FELLAS uses the testimonies of eye-witnesses be they Justice Ministers, Gardai, victims of crime, or ordinary citizens, in order to recount seminal moments in the growth of organised crime, as well as examining the reactions to that growth by Government, Gardai, and the broader society.
Analysing key events, BAD FELLAS looks at how paramilitary violence led to organised crime gangs, armed robberies led to drug trafficking, and Irish gangs became some of the most sophisticated in the world.
BAD FELLAS will tell the story of how decade by decade Ireland changed – for the better, and for the worse.
Programme 1 of 3:
Tonight on BAD FELLAS, how the explosion of paramilitary crime in the early 1970s ended an age of innocence and spawned a culture of the gun in Ireland. The culture of organised crime that was created by the activities of paramilitaries was watched closely by petty criminals who had aspirations for the big time and would soon replicate the activities of those paramilitaries. Organised crime was born in Ireland in this period, and allowed to grow, as the Irish state was busy trying to fight subversion with an explosion in armed robberies, kidnappings and murder.