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Billy McCurrie


Explore how grief can perpetuate a cycle of violence through revenge in Billy’s story about the loss of his father during the Northern Ireland conflict and his subsequent recruitment to an extremist group.

Billy McCurrie was 12 years old when his father was killed by the IRA. Consumed with anger, Billy joined the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) at 16, and a year later was ordered to kill. Sentenced to life at 17, Billy spent 10 years in the Maze Prison and it was there that a Christmas Eve reading of the crucifixion story changed his life. Feeling guilt for his crime for the first time, Billy repented and rediscovered God, becoming one of the first prisoners to renounce violence before eventually being released.

Today, Billy works as a Baptist Minister in Ormskirk, near Liverpool, and shares his story to prevent other young people from going down the same path.

“Your Daddy’s not coming home, he said. Your Daddy’s dead.”

Billy McCurrie


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