TV: Documentary explores witch trial that shook the nation

In 1711, at a time when witches were feared throughout Europe and America, a witch hunt was underway on Islandmagee, a peninsula 20 miles north of Belfast.

The inhabitants were mostly Scots Presbyterians who had arrived in the north in the 17th century. This close-knit community was shaken to its core by rumours an 18-year-old woman named Mary Dunbar was demonically possessed.

The story took an even darker turn when Mary accused eight local women of practising the witchcraft she said was causing her torment.

The extraordinary story is told in Dr Marie Cassidy Investigates Ireland’s Last Witch Trial on RTÉ1 on Thursday at 10.15pm, as the former State Pathologist brings a scientific perspective to Ireland’s last witch trial.

The women in 1711 were arrested and the trial that followed would be widely publicised and hugely controversial.

The women were found guilty and sentenced to one year in prison and four stints in the pillory on market day, a brutal punishment which entailed being pelted with stones or whatever came to hand. It likely resulted in serious injury. Whether the women survived the sentence is unknown.

Dr Cassidy has long had a special interest in trials concerning women and the justice system.

In the documentary, she uses her investigative skills and a 21st century-scientific perspective to explore the circumstances of the historic trial more than 300 years ago, and travels to Dublin, Edinburgh, Belfast and Islandmagee to meet a variety of experts.

In Dublin, Marie chats to Dr Gillian Kenny, who highlights the differences in beliefs surrounding witchcraft in Gaelic Ireland in comparison to the Scots Presbyterian community where the witch hunt took place.

In Carrickfergus Castle, near the site of the trial, Marie meets Dr Andrew Sneddon, an expert on the 1711 case who helps Marie delve into the details of the arguments for and against convicting the women.

In the Ulster Folk Museum, Dr Leanne Calvert shows Marie around an 18th century rectory and shares some insights into what life was like for Ulster-Scots Presbyterian women at that time.