Marian Price
Encyclopedia
Marian Price also known by her married name as Marion McGlinchey, is an Irish republican militant, one of the so-called "Price sisters", who was jailed for her part in the IRA
London bombing campaign of 1973. Price was part of a unit who placed four car bomb
s in London
on 8 March 1973. The Old Bailey
(Central Criminal Court and Hillgate House – a Government Building) and Whitehall army recruitment centre were damaged with 200 injured and one man died of a heart attack.
The two sisters were apprehended along with Hugh Feeney
and seven others as they were boarding a flight to Ireland and, they were tried and convicted at the Great Hall on Winchester Castle on 14 November after a 2 day discussion by a jury.
She and her sister Dolours Price
, along with Gerry Kelly
and Hugh Feeney, immediately went on hunger strike
in a campaign to be repatriated to a prison in Northern Ireland. The hunger strike lasted over 200 days, with the hunger strikers being force-fed
by prison authorities for 167 of them.
In an interview with Suzanne Breen
, Marian described being force-fed:
Marian Price resumed a private life, emerging only in the 1990s – as a vocal opponent of Sinn Féin
's "peace strategy". Of the Good Friday Agreement she said: "It is not, certainly not, what I went to prison for."
Price gave the graveside oration at the funeral of Joseph O'Connor, a member of the Real IRA in Belfast
killed by the Provisionals.
She is now a prominent republican and member of the 32 County Sovereignty Movement
and spokesperson for the Irish Republican Prisoners Welfare Association.
On 17 November 2009 she was named as being one of two people arrested in connection with an attack on the Masereene Barracks in Northern Ireland in March 2009 in which two British soldiers were shot dead.
On 15 May 2011 she was charged with encouraging support for an illegal organisation. This related to her involvement in a statement given at an Easter Rising
rally in Derry
in 2011. On the same day the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Owen Paterson
revoked her release from prison on licence. Peterson said the decision was made because the threat posed by Price had "significantly increased".
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
London bombing campaign of 1973. Price was part of a unit who placed four car bomb
Car bomb
A car bomb, or truck bomb also known as a Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device , is an improvised explosive device placed in a car or other vehicle and then detonated. It is commonly used as a weapon of assassination, terrorism, or guerrilla warfare, to kill the occupants of the vehicle,...
s in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on 8 March 1973. The Old Bailey
Old Bailey
The Central Criminal Court in England and Wales, commonly known as the Old Bailey from the street in which it stands, is a court building in central London, one of a number of buildings housing the Crown Court...
(Central Criminal Court and Hillgate House – a Government Building) and Whitehall army recruitment centre were damaged with 200 injured and one man died of a heart attack.
The two sisters were apprehended along with Hugh Feeney
Hugh Feeney
Hugh Feeney was a volunteer of the Provisional Irish Republican Army who, together with Dolours Price and Marian Price, organised the car bombings of the Old Bailey and Scotland Yard on March 8, 1973...
and seven others as they were boarding a flight to Ireland and, they were tried and convicted at the Great Hall on Winchester Castle on 14 November after a 2 day discussion by a jury.
She and her sister Dolours Price
Dolours Price
Dolours Price is a former volunteer of the Provisional Irish Republican Army . She is also a politicial activist and critic of Gerry Adams and the current leadership of Sinn Féin.-Early life:...
, along with Gerry Kelly
Gerry Kelly
Gerard "Gerry" Kelly is an Irish republican politician and former Provisional Irish Republican Army volunteer who played a leading role in the negotiations that led to the Good Friday Agreement on 10 April 1998...
and Hugh Feeney, immediately went on hunger strike
Hunger strike
A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance or pressure in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke feelings of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most hunger strikers will take liquids but not...
in a campaign to be repatriated to a prison in Northern Ireland. The hunger strike lasted over 200 days, with the hunger strikers being force-fed
Force-feeding
Force-feeding is the practice of feeding a person or an animal against their will. "Gavage" is supplying a nutritional substance by means of a small plastic tube passed through the nose or mouth into the stomach, not explicitly 'forcibly'....
by prison authorities for 167 of them.
In an interview with Suzanne Breen
Suzanne Breen
Suzanne Breen is the Northern Ireland editor for the Sunday Tribune newspaper. She has also written for Village magazine about Northern Ireland....
, Marian described being force-fed:
"Four male prison officers tie you into the chair so tightly with sheets you can't struggle," says Price. "You clench your teeth to try to keep your mouth closed but they push a metal spring device around your jaw to prise it open. They force a wooden clamp with a hole in the middle into your mouth. Then, they insert a big rubber tube down that. They hold your head back. You can't move. They throw whatever they like into the food mixer – orange juice, soup, or cartons of cream if they want to beef up the calories. They take jugs of this gruel from the food mixer and pour it into a funnel attached to the tube. The force-feeding takes 15 minutes but it feels like forever. You're in control of nothing. You're terrified the food will go down the wrong way and you won't be able to let them know because you can't speak or move. You're frightened you'll choke to death."
Marian Price resumed a private life, emerging only in the 1990s – as a vocal opponent of Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
's "peace strategy". Of the Good Friday Agreement she said: "It is not, certainly not, what I went to prison for."
Price gave the graveside oration at the funeral of Joseph O'Connor, a member of the Real IRA in Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
killed by the Provisionals.
She is now a prominent republican and member of the 32 County Sovereignty Movement
32 County Sovereignty Movement
The 32 County Sovereignty Movement, often abbreviated to 32CSM or 32csm, is an Irish republican political organisation.The 32CSM's objectives are:* "The restoration of Irish national sovereignty"....
and spokesperson for the Irish Republican Prisoners Welfare Association.
On 17 November 2009 she was named as being one of two people arrested in connection with an attack on the Masereene Barracks in Northern Ireland in March 2009 in which two British soldiers were shot dead.
On 15 May 2011 she was charged with encouraging support for an illegal organisation. This related to her involvement in a statement given at an Easter Rising
Easter Rising
The Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...
rally in Derry
Derry
Derry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
in 2011. On the same day the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Owen Paterson
Owen Paterson
Owen William Paterson is a British Conservative Party politician and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. He is the Member of Parliament for North Shropshire.-Early life and career:Paterson was born in Whitchurch, Shropshire...
revoked her release from prison on licence. Peterson said the decision was made because the threat posed by Price had "significantly increased".
External links
- "Fire in the Blood", Italian interview, January 2007
- Radio Free Eireann intervies Marian Price
- Suzanne Breen interviews Marian Price
- "I have no regrets", The Guardian, March 2003
- Source material (2000 Electronic Telegraph article)
- Interview with Marian Price, The Blanket, Winter 2002
- Who Killed Joseph O'Connor?
- Graveside Oration for Joseph O'Connor
- Graveside Oration for Volunteer Joe O'Connor (Italian version)