Tommy English

Thomas English (1960 – 31 October 2000), usually known as Tommy English, was an Ulster loyalist paramilitary and politician. He served as a commander in the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) and was killed by members of the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) as part of a violent loyalist feud between the two organisations. English had also been noted as a leading figure in the Ulster Democratic Party (UDP) during the early years of the Northern Ireland peace process.

Ulster Defence Association From an early age, English was involved in the North Belfast Brigade of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA), a loyalist paramilitary group. After his death, the Belfast Telegraph described him as a "UDA commander", while the BBC described him as a "paramilitary chief".

English also became involved in the political wing of the movement, the Ulster Democratic Party (UDP), becoming its chairman. He stood for the UDP in North Belfast in the 1996 Northern Ireland Forum election, and was also placed eighth on the party's top-up list, but he was not elected. He was active on behalf of the party in the discussions which led to the Good Friday Agreement. A noted critic of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) during his political career, English gained notoriety for an appearance at a UDA rally in the Ulster Hall in Belfast when he took to the stage wearing an Ian Paisley mask and a clerical dog collar and proceeded to lampoon the DUP leader. He was a regular visitor to conferences and events at the Glencree Centre for Peace and Reconciliation and was close to Republic of Ireland peace activists Paul Burton and Chris Hudson, visiting the site of the Battle of the Somme with them in 1999.

English left the UDP in 1998 after making a public statement against the Orange Order at a time when the party was widely supporting them in their attempts to march in Catholic areas.

The murder was blamed on the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF), who at the time were involved in a violent dispute with the UDA. At his funeral, his coffin was covered in UDA flags, and it was accompanied by men in paramilitary uniforms. Among the mourners was a member of the UVF who was closely related to English. David "Candy" Greer, a UDA member killed in the feud three days before English, had been a close friend from English's days in Tiger's Bay.

Ten men were put on trial for the murder of English, including UVF North Belfast commander Mark Haddock. However, nine were acquitted of all charges, while the tenth was convicted only of "possessing items intended for terrorism". Following the acquittals, his widow announced that she would be suing police for failing to take action against an informant who was involved in a number of UVF murders in north Belfast.