Maeve Higgins: American lens on The Troubles remains all too relevant today

A new podcast series about Noraid shines a light on nationalism, power, and identity during the Troubles. Maeve Higgins speaks to its creators

British troops make an arrest during a civil rights demonstration in Belfast. Noraid was a tiny shoestring operation who were able to shape the narrative for many thousands of Irish-Americans and sympathisers against a highly sophisticated and funded operation like the British Information Service. Photo: Keystone/Getty Images

FOREIGN AGENT is a new podcast series about the Irish Northern Aid Committee, or Noraid, the small but impactful American organisation devoted to the cause of Irish republicanism during The Troubles.

The six-episode series, produced by Novara Media, makes for compelling listening. It covers gun-running, hunger strikes, and spying, but not in a sensational way. It’s an important record of the American lens on that time and the stories within serve to illuminate bigger themes of nationalism, power, and identity.