BBC to examine what makes the GAA More Than A Game

This Sunday June 11 BBC Two Northern Ireland will feature Kingspan Breffni Park in a new show Níos Mó Ná Cluiche (More Than A Game).

The GAA is a major influence in Irish sporting and cultural life. It has immense reach into communities all over Ireland, including in Ulster, which has its own unique story of how the organisation has evolved here through the decades.

In a new two part series for BBC Two Northern Ireland, Jarlath Burns, former Armagh captain and GAA commentator, explores the history of Gaelic games in Ulster. He discovers this is a story of people, passion, place and parish. He looks at how the Troubles impacted on the association and how it has survived and thrived through some of the toughest challenges in its history.

Interweaving the history of the games with access-all-areas footage from the 2016 Gaelic season, and using previously unseen archive, Níos Mó Ná Cluiche (More Than a Game) captures the grassroots commitment in clubs and counties right across Ulster. A century and a quarter after the foundation of the first Gaelic games' organisation, the series examines how the games still thrive on their ethos of volunteerism.

With contributions from leading GAA commentators, former and current players and managers like Joe Kernan and Mickey Harte, Jarlath explores how, from humble beginnings, the GAA in Ulster survived the turbulent years of Civil War and Partition.

The series also considers how the hope and optimism of the Down footballers’ monumental All-Ireland victories in the 1960s was dashed by the onset of the Troubles. Jarlath explores how the Troubles in turn, while challenging the GAA membership, created a hothouse effect that led to a striking resurgence in Ulster football from the 1990s onwards. It seemed that Ulster, in spite of all it had been through, was back.

Presenter Jarlath Burns said: 'The Ulster GAA is a unique organisation, even within the context of the national GAA, which is different from sporting organisations throughout the world. The aim of the series is to give the audience an insight into the history, culture and psyche of the Gaelic games.'

Director Damian McCann adds: “In some ways the story of Gaelic Games in Ulster can be seen as a metaphor for the story of the province itself during those years. This is an epic and dramatic tale, with an extraordinary cast of wonderful, larger than life characters - essential to any great story.”

Níos Mó Ná Cluiche is made by DoubleBand Films for BBC Gaeilge and TG4, with funding from Northern Ireland Screen's Irish Language Broadcast Fund.

The programme is aired at 10.30pm