PEOPLE in Birmingham fell silent as they marked the 50th anniversary of the Birmingham pub bombings.
On 21 November 1974, two bombs went off at The Mulberry Bush and the Tavern in the Town, killing seven women, 14 men and injuring 220 others.
50 years on, there was a one-minute silence throughout the city at 2pm as well as two memorial services, one outside of the tree sculpture memorial at New Street Station for guests at 1.45pm and another at Birmingham Cathedral at 5pm.
Today, on the significant anniversary of the tragedy, Birmingham fell silent as people remembered and mourned the victims.
The 21 people who died were:
- Michael Beasley
- John Rowlands
- Stanley Bodman
- John Clifford Jones
- James Caddick
- Neil Marsh
- Paul Davies
- Maxine Hambleton
- Jane Davis
- Stephen Whalley
- Lynn Bennett
- Desmond Reilly
- Eugene Reilly
- Marilyn Nash
- Anne Hayes
- Charles Gray
- Thomas Chaytor
- Pamela Palmer
- Maureen Roberts
- Trevor Thrupp
- James Craig
The Birmingham pub bombings are regarded as the “biggest unsolved mass murder” in Britain with no one having been brought to justice.
Six men all from Northern Ireland, known as the Birmingham Six, were wrongfully convicted of the attacks.
After spending 16 years in jail for a crime they did not commit, Hugh Callaghan, Paddy Hill, Gerry Hunter, John Walker, Richard McIlkenny and Billy Power had their convictions overturned in 1991.
The IRA is believed to have carried out the bombings, although no one has ever admitted responsibility.
Relatives of people killed in the bombings have renewed calls for a public inquiry “as a matter of urgency”, as they mark the 50th anniversary.
Julie and Brian Hambleton’s 18-year-old sister, Maxine Hambleton, died in the twin blasts.
They believe an inquiry could disclose new evidence capable of leading to a new investigation into the bombings.
The group’s calls for a public inquiry have intensified since the decision not to bring criminal charges following a reinvestigation.
Speaking to the PA News Agency near the memorial outside New Street Station, Ms Hambleton said of the anniversary: “It’s something that never goes away and something that you never forget.
“And that’s why our campaign exists, to be the voice of those who are not here to fight for justice and truth themselves.”
Mr Hambleton added: “It wasn’t just 21 people that died on that evening. A lot of family members died afterwards because they turned to alcohol and prescription drugs and they just died heartbroken.
“We have met a lot of the families and their relatives, and you can’t escape the emotion of the time. I relive that night 50 years ago like no-one can imagine.
“And when people say to us ‘we know how you feel’, we know they are being polite, but they don’t. And we would never want them to know.
“All we want is justice. As far as I am concerned, I will be fighting for the truth to the day I die.”
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