BBC documentary examines life in Protestant enclave, the Fountain Estate in Londonderry

​A BBC documentary airing next week unpacks what it was like to grow up a tiny Protestant enclave in Londonderry, before, during and after the Troubles.

The Fountain estate was once home to over 1,000 people, but residents say violence and intimidation during the Troubles led to a massive exodus from the west to the east of the city, with only 250 residents left in the estate today.

The estate is surrounded on three sides by a security peace wall, which was erected to protect the residents during the Troubles.

One resident told how peaceful it was to live in the area before the Troubles, where doors weren't locked and people from across the community mixed well.

Donna is one of the Fountain Estate residents who features in the new BBC documentary.

But community worker Derek tells the dark story of how the first Protestant in the city was killed in 1969. William King had gone to collect his son from tech when he was set upon by “a republican mob” and killed. The estate’s William King flute band is named in his memory.

Derek told how during the Troubles crowds of nationalists would gather, resulting in “a running battle here every weekend for years”.

Protestants in the city talk of ‘The Exodus’ to describe how Protestants fled from the west side of the city during the Troubles.

The BBC cameras accompany Derek to the world famous ‘Free Derry Corner’ where some clearly shocked youths approach him and ask: “Are you a hun?”

The BBC captures Derek in the Fountain Estate preparing for Apprentice Boys celebrations.

Derek affirms that he is, whereupon the incredulous youth offers that the Fountain is “a good estate” except when it comes to the Twelfth.

At that point on the calendar, he says, youths from the area attack the estate by launching missiles over the peace walls and onto the unsuspecting residents inside.

Derek says of the Free Derry corner: “It acknowledges and speaks up for every minority in the world, except for the minority in their own city. Wouldn't it be fantastic in this new era if the Free Derry wall said on 12 August - ‘Free Derry welcomes the Apprentice Boys?’ When will we get to that magnanimous situation?”

One young woman training to be a social worker, Tabbie, tells the camera that when she was a teenager she did not feel safe to walk outside the estate. Now, however, she says her daughter feels safe to walk into the city. Cross-community tea dances are now a feature in the estate.

Another woman tells the camera how her three sons have all been subjected to sectarian attacks in the city.

The camera captures the diaspora of the Fountain coming back for cultural events.

Also joining the celebrations are children from a range of racial backgrounds and an LBGT couple from a Protestant and Catholic background who live peacefully in the estate.

A focal point for the hopes and cultural expression of the estate is the impressive new arts centre. The documentary captures the elders discussing hopes for the younger generation to bring new hope and outward-looking vision for the future.

• ‘True North: Summer In The Fountain’ airs on BBC One NI on Monday at 10:50pm, and also on BBC iPlayer.