Available online
Description
William ‘Plum’ Smith left Ballygomartin Secondary School in Belfast after passing his O Levels and worked as an apprentice printer. Aged eighteen he was imprisoned in 1972 in Crumlin Road and Armagh Gaols and was among the first Loyalists to be transferred to the newly opened Ulster Volunteer Force/Red Hand Commando Compounds at Long Kesh (the Maze and Long Kesh Prison). He was Education Officer for the UVF/RHC Compounds where he took English classes for fellow prisoners gained an O level in Sociology and learned Irish from a Republican prisoner in an adjacent Compound. In 1974 he was in the first group of students to study Humanities ...with The Open University in Long Kesh. Plum was released in 1977 and was a member of the Loyalist delegation for the negotiation of the Good Friday Agreement. At the time of interview in 2012 he worked for EPIC (Ex-Prisoners Interpretative Centre working with ex-prisoners from an Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) or Red Hand Commando (RHC) Background). In 2014 Plum wrote an account of his life in prison entitled Inside Man: Loyalists of Long Kesh the Untold Story which was published by Colourpoint Books.
William ‘Plum’ Smith left Ballygomartin Secondary School in Belfast after passing his O Levels and worked as an apprentice printer. Aged eighteen he was imprisoned in 1972 in Crumlin Road and Armagh Gaols and was among the first Loyalists to be transferred to the newly opened Ulster Volunteer Force/Red Hand Commando Compounds at Long Kesh (the Maze and Long Kesh Prison). He was Education Officer for the UVF/RHC Compounds where he took English classes for fellow prisoners gained an O level in Sociology and learned Irish from a Republican prisoner in an adjacent Compound. In 1974 he was in the first group of students to study Humanities ...with The Open University in Long Kesh. Plum was released in 1977 and was a member of the Loyalist delegation for the negotiation of the Good Friday Agreement. At the time of interview in 2012 he worked for EPIC (Ex-Prisoners Interpretative Centre working with ex-prisoners from an Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) or Red Hand Commando (RHC) Background). In 2014 Plum wrote an account of his life in prison entitled Inside Man: Loyalists of Long Kesh the Untold Story which was published by Colourpoint Books.
| Title: | The first person to get an Open University degree was a Loyalist |
|---|---|
| Description: | William ‘Plum’ Smith counters the misconception that only Republicans studied in prison. He reflects on how studying The Open University in the Ulster Volunteer Force/Red Hand Commando Compounds at Long Kesh (the Maze and Long Kesh Prison) in the early 1970s gave Loyalist prisoners alternatives and a chance in education they didn’t get on the outside and the impact of education in Long Kesh on Loyalist ex-prisoners in politics and in the negotiation of the Good Friday Agreement. | Rights statement: | Rights owned or controlled by The Open University |
| Restrictions on use: | Contact the OU Archive prior to any re-use. Contact university-archive@open.ac.uk |
| Contributor: | William Plum Smith |
| Duration: | 00:01:35 |
| Master programe code and title: | William Plum Smith Interview |
| Master programme start time: | 00:33:27 |
| Master programme end time: | 00:35:00 |
| Master programme production number: | 047_S_01 |
| Available to public: | yes |
