Troubles book writer sickened by high resale asking price

Author: David McKittrick ONE of the authors of a book which documents the lives of all those killed during the Troubles has said he is “disgusted” by the inflated prices it’s being offered for sale at online.

David McKittrick compiled Lost Lives with Chris Thornton, Brian Feeney, David McVea and the late Seamus Kelters.

The book was first published in 1999 and documents the deaths of all 3,700 people killed during the 30-year sectarian conflict.

It’s been described as the greatest single piece of scholarship ever conducted in Northern Ireland.

The book has now been out of print for a decade.

Mr McKittrick said: “When we see people saying we’d like £500 for a copy, £1,000 for a copy, it’s verging on the obscene.”

After the death of one of the co-authors, the BBC journalist Seamus Kelters, Mr McKittrick said the group lost heart when it came to updating the book.

“It was never about money. It began as a small pamphlet, we decided we’d better put down on paper what was happening for future generations.”

A film inspired by the project, and with the same name, has now premiered at the London Film Festival.

Liam Neeson, Sir Kenneth Branagh, Bronagh Gallagher, James Nesbitt, Adrian Dunbar, Ciaran Hinds and Bronagh Waugh are among the Northern Ireland acting stars who have lent their voices to the project.

“We were very careful about the language, we decided to make it as dispassionate as possible,” said Mr McKittrick of the book.

“The movie shows you things where you can’t avoid emotion.”