Ballroom Boom

U2's Adam Clayton sets off on a personal journey to discover both the rise and fall of Ireland’s first pop stars who paved the way for Irish musical talent.

Before U2 emerged as the No.1 rock band in the world, the Irish music scene was dominated by the unique phenomenon of the Irish showband when, during the 1960s and ‘70s, over 700 bands toured and performed popular hits most nights of the week. Even forty years before U2 performed at The Sphere, Irish born Bill Fuller promoted showbands in Las Vegas as well as opening up ballrooms across North America and Britain for Irish emigrants who produced an extraordinary generation of UK talent including Dusty Springfield, three Beatles, Oasis, Johnny Rotten and The Smiths.

But one shocking event tore the Irish music scene apart. On July 31st, 1975, three members of The Miami– then Ireland's most popular showband – were murdered across the Northern Irish border by rogue ‘British soldiers'. Survivor Steve Travers meets Adam to recall in detail the tragedy often called ‘the night the music died’.