Marshalling 5,000 members of the Defence Forces for a parade, organising the delivery of flags to 900 schools, bringing together a choir of 1,000 singers for the first time, reading the proclamation outside the GPO for a huge massive audience on TV, encouraging huge public participation in local and national events, trying to deal with political sensitivities and make the commemorative period as inclusive as possible.
These were just some of the challenges faced by those who organised and took part in the 1916 commemorations. In this special programme presented by Mary Kennedy, RTÉ has assembled the TV highlights of the commemorations and goes behind the scenes with the Defence Forces, public servants, singers, musicians, and relatives of those who died during the Rising. The programme also looks at the lengths to which Irish people living abroad went to mark the Rising and asks why people decided to participate in such huge numbers in national events. It also examines the legacy of this commemorative year.