Greenisland Rock

From the collection of

Launched in 2000, Northern Ireland Screen’s Digital Film Archive spans from 1897 to the present day and currently contains an ever-expanding catalogue of 13,000 items. It comprises material from a variety of depositors including feature films, sport, documentaries, animation, amateur footage, light entertainment, and a significant proportion of broadcast material from the UTV Archive.

Greenisland Rock

Northern Ireland Screen's Digital Film Archive
Greenisland
1982-01-01
Sound
22m

What has the youth of Greenisland turning Ted? Meet the people reliving the 1950s in the outskirts of 1980s Belfast.

This Spence Brothers documentary gives an enjoyable glimpse into a family reviving the Teddy boy culture in 1980's Northern Ireland. Follow John 'the Ted' as he shows you where to get the records, clothes and learn the essential moves, all in the outskirts of Belfast. Then meet the other committed members of Greenisland's Junior Rock 'n' Roll society dedicated to this bygone era.

The Kids Are Alright: Youth Culture on Screen

Teds, mods, rockers, punks, goths, ravers, hoodies, emos... The 20th Century phenomenon of ‘youth culture’ is a dynamic expression of identity, with its hands on music, fashion, language and generational change.

Since the ‘rowdy generation’ of the 1950s, teenagers and youth culture have been defined from the outside and from within. Young people proclaim their social identity through style, music and the spaces they occupy – which also makes them a visible target, and they become a bellwether (or scapegoat) for the state of the nation.

To the establishment, they are a source of anthropological curiosity and hand-wringing moral panic – as well as a key commercial audience, whether for consumer products, political movements or radio and television programming. An obsession with youth against mistrust and misunderstanding; attitudes towards the young are full of contradictions.

Today, youth culture is online, in a vast expanse of communities and identities. The internet has enabled a ‘pick n mix’ approach to music and fashion, while allowing local scenes to set trends globally, and giving young voices the platform to speak – loudly – for themselves.