In the sands of justice the truth will always come out says Terry after 30 years

In the sands of justice the truth will always come out says Terry after 30 years

14 February 2024

CONEY Island Oscar-winner Terry George has reflected on the legacy of the critically acclaimed film ‘In the Name of the Father’, three decades after its release.

Based on the memoir ‘Proved Innocent: the Story of Gerry Conlon of the Guildford Four’, the movie starred Daniel Day-Lewis as Conlon, who spent 15 years in a British jail after being falsely convicted of the 1974 Guildford pub bombings that killed four off-duty soldiers and a civilian.

“I can’t believe it’s 30 years – it seems like yesterday,” said Terry.

“Obviously a lot of water has gone under the bridge and a lot of things have happened about the movie and all the people involved with it, particularly Gerry, who is sadly no longer with us.

“It’s strange to think that amount of time has passed, but I still think the movie in many ways is as relevant today as it was back then.”

Terry, who now resides in Los Angeles, wrote the screenplay for the non-fiction biopic which garnered acclaim for presenting the story of Gerry and his father, Giuseppe Conlon’s struggle to prove their innocence against what he described as the “manipulation of the legal system” and “a miscarriage of justice”.

While the film was marvelled by international audiences, it was disputed by some members of the UK government and UK media outlets.

“At the time it had a big political impact,” Terry explained. “It created a huge amount of controversy – at one point the film was sued.

“The director, Jim Sheridan, and I marketed the film as a true story because it was, but some Conservative MPs decided to challenge that.

“They cited the fact that Giuseppe and Gerry never shared a jail cell, which was true, but creatively it didn’t make any sense for the actors to talk to each other through a wall.”

Terry continued: “I think some politicians still believed that the Guildford Four were still guilty even though in the middle of their sentence, the IRA’s Balcombe Street Gang admitted to the bombings.

“Others wanted to deflect responsibility for the injustice these men endured, so they focused on irrelevancies that didn’t take away from the film’s impact and its overall truth.

“Politicians and newspapers engaged in a disinformation campaign about the film, but 10 years later Tony Blair apologised on behalf of the British government to Gerry and his family. In many ways that vindicated us.

“The reception on the other side of the Atlantic was the complete opposite,” Terry continued.

“I was told that the film influenced President Clinton and his involvement in the peace process talks, which is something we were all immensely proud of.”

Terry (71), moved to the United States with his wife Rita and infant daughter Oorlagh in 1981, but he closely followed the Conlon’s case, having met Gerry in England in the 1970s.

“I met Gerry in Southampton shortly before he was arrested,” Terry recalled. “I knew from that meeting that there was no way he was involved in that bombing – he just wasn’t capable of something like that.”

Gerry was exonerated in 1989, with his conviction being quashed after evidence that was deliberately withheld from his defence by the prosecution, confirmed his alibi.

He watched his father die in a British prison in 1980 as one of the so-called Maguire Seven.

Gerry went on a book tour in the United States, where he and Terry met at one of his book parties and later campaigned for victims who wrongly accused of crimes they didn’t commit.

“He remembered our meeting in Southampton – he was gifted with a phenomenal memory,” said Terry.

“We spoke for about a lot of things that night.  I ended up joining Gerry on his tour of the States, driving from New York to Florida, and we became really close.”

Terry began to develop the for the film and brought a draft to his friend, Jim Sheridan, who Terry met through the Irish Arts Centre.

Jim had directed the Oscar-winning movie ‘My Left Foot’, which was released in 1989 and also featured Daniel Day-Lewis.

Day-Lewis, who Terry said was up for the film Shakespeare in Love at the time was captivated by an early draft of the script and committed himself to the role of Gerry Conlon.

“Daniel wasn’t hard to convince to take the role,” Terry said. “He met with Gerry a number of times and we kept Gerry involved as much as we possibly could.

“He was on set a number of times but eventually Daniel needed the space to focus on his own performance – Gerry understood this.”

The film went on to be nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Director and Best Picture.

Despite this, the film still endured criticism about the accuracy of its depiction of events, most notably the courtroom scenes featuring Conlon’s defence solicitor Gareth Pierce.

As a solicitor, Pierce would not have been able to appear in court at the time, but Terry argued that it was essential Pierce’s contribution was conveyed on the screen.

“Gareth Pierce’s work on this case was seminal,” Terry explained. “It would have been silly to have her findings be presented by someone else in the courtroom.

“A lot of people criticise the somewhat Americanisation of the courtroom scenes, but if you want to find out precisely what happened, then people should watch a documentary.”

Terry continued: “We had to present 18 years of events into two hours and 10 minutes of film, so some distillation was always going to take place, but we always remained true to the story and did not alter anything pertaining to the facts.”

Three decades later the biopic is still talked about and the story of Gerry Conlon, who sadly died in June 2014, and the Guildford Four is still remembered.

“I do find Gerry’s name comes up a lot,” Terry said. “Around the time of Shane McGowan’s death in December, he was mentioned because they used to be friendly with one another and party together.

“It’s incredibly sad that Gerry is no longer with us.”

The Coney Island man said that the lesson of the movie is to ensure that nothing like this ever happens again.

“These men were forced to confess to something they didn’t do,” said Terry.

“It raises questions about police interrogation methods and criminal injustice and thankfully there has been a complete overhaul of policing in the North.

“Ultimately I hope the film is remembered for the individual heroism of these men, particularly Giuseppe who triumphed over institutional evil.

“We are still seeing attempt to conceal the truth to this day,” added Terry.

“In my opinion that’s what this current government legacy bill is about – it’s there to stop the truth and it’s a manipulation of legacy.

“It’s backed by neither Unionists or Nationalists and I hope it is squandered.”

The screenplay writer ranks the film as one his proudest achievements lamenting it as the “springboard to everything else” in his career.

“I can’t say it’s my greatest achievement because that would be like trying to pick a favourite child,” Terry joked.

“We’re extremely proud of the story we told and I hope at 30 years old more people watch it or give it a rewatch.

“The message of the film is to not let anything like this happen again and it’s a lesson to the authorities who may abuse their powers that in the sands of justice, the truth always comes out.”