Have you seen Belfast's loyalist Shankill and its controversial political murals?

This video looks at some of the murals painted around the streets and housing estates of Belfast's loyalist lower Shankill. There's a mix of paramilitary and traditional loyalist images alongside some re-imaged gable walls that have more contemporary messages.

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There are murals commemorating WW1 and the Battle of Britain in WW2, as well as one in honour of Lt Colenel John Henry Paterson (1867 - 1947) charting his association with the 2nd Boer War, the Ulster Volunteer Force and his connection with the state of Israel.

On the paramilitary side we see murals representing 2nd Battalion UDA as well as several commemorations of UDA figureheads killed in the recent troubles. One such mural is the tribute to leading UDA member William 'Bucky' McCullough who was killed by the INLA (Irish National Liberation Army) in 1981. McCullough was close to another UDA member, James Craig, who was charged with fundraising for the UDA and who had links to several Republican figures. Craig met with members of the Official IRA at the Royal Bar in Belfast city centre during the mid 1970s at which agreements were reached where they would not target each other's members or interfere in each other's racketeering. The OIRA members present at the meeting switched allegiance to the INLA immediately after this meeting. Both men, Craig and McCullough were known as racketeers for the UDA. By all accounts McCullough's income from rackets were passed on the the UDA's military wing, The Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF), to buy weapons. Martin Dillon's book The Dirty War (p447) asserts that Craig held onto the proceeds received. He also is believed to have enriched himself with funds donated to loyalist prisoners, an activity that McCullough allegedly reported to the UFF Commander of the time, John McMichael. As a result of this Craig decided to have McCullough killed and used his friends in the INLA to carry our the assassination. He was shot 12 times on 16th Oct 1981 by the pillion passenger on a motorbike outside his home in Denmark Street in the lower Shankill. Craig was killed by the UFF in 1988.

More traditional Loyalist images are on view as well, such as the well known representation of King William of Orange (King Billy) on his white horse at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690.

Among the murals that exist as a result of a programme of re-imaging in the area are artworks supporting the voice of women and other murals that show that the local community is demanding input into it's own future: "Nothing about us, without us, is for us". The Young Shankill Angels mural shows young people of the Shankill posing in the style of a movie poster. The message is one of dynamism and positivity. There is also a re-imaged gable wall (Gold Rush) which recalls an incident in 1969 when children found a hoard of gold sovereigns when digging on waste ground. Other murals warn young people of the dangers of drugs.