How to Defuse a Bomb: The Project Children Story (2016) User Reviews

History based on the children during the troubles!

[Irishchatter · 8/10 · 16 December 2016]

I was watching this with my parents last night on BBC Four and I have to say, it really opens your eyes on how the children during the troubles, were really effected by the IRA. I found it really interesting that Project Children was set up to give the children of the troubles a chance to get away from the destruction for only 6 weeks. That's a very short amount of time and you can see that some of the host families, were gutted that they had to go back to Belfast. Including the host family who took Seamus Morris, who unfortunately was killed by the IRA just because he was a catholic. It was heartbreaking and he was only 18 years old. Why him? Why did the Catholics and protestants have to fight against each other for of both of their religions? What triggered each other off? Guess we'll never know who actually started it.

No one won in the end and even though you don't hear much of the IRA anymore, there's still crime in Belfast and of course it's everywhere you go in the world including third world countries you hear on the news today! Sad world eh?

This documentary is excellent, I applaud Liam Neeson for his brilliant narration for this and I would definitely recommend this to anyone that's interested in Irish history!

Excellent! Inspiring!

[jcoll-07571 · 10/10 · 16 February 2017]

High recommend. It's not often we get to see ordinary people doing extraordinary things but "How To Defuse A Bomb" shows us just that and more. The documentary tells the story of how one person with vision can make a difference and how Denis Mulcahy was able to engage so many people who were looking to bring happiness to children who desperately needed it. I highly recommend this film as a reminder that the world can be a better place simply because there are those who decide it will be so and do the hard work required to make it a reality.

Extremely inaccurate and self serving by Denis Mulcahy.

[pmcveigh-11563 · 1/10 · 8 August 2023]

As the long time Long Island Project Children coordinator, the largest area in Project Children, this is a very false and badly researched "documentary." It is extremely self serving on the part of Denis Mulcahy.

The mistakes of facts and facts that were left out make this a non "documentary" but a fable and distortion. One was the way children were selected.

One example is the mention of Bernadettee McDonnell, the daughter of Joe McDonnell,the fifth Hunger Striker to die. She was brought out by and paid for by me in 1980. We arranged for her to return in the Summer of 1981. Several months before she was due, her father became the fifth Hunger Striker.

There are a dozen or more incidences like that which made Project Children what it became. There is hints in the "documentary" of these and slight mention of Long Island but no follow up.

Two very important then happened which "rescued" Project Children and created the Project Children you attempted to "document" but failed to do. The end result was a feeble attempt. Instead of research, you seem to reply on Denis Mulcahy and a very narrow circle which became an exaggeration of the role of Denis, which was more a figure head (central figure) than anyone of substance.