top of page

1986

1986 (1501) Pte Victor Foster 6 UDR.JPG
1986 (0302) Pte John Early 4 UDR.JPG
1986 Thomas Irwin.png
1986 (0804) Pte William Pollock 6 UDR.JP
1986 Herbert McConville.png
1986 (2805) Cpl David Brown 3 UDR and Ol
1986 (0107) Pte Robert Hill 3 UDR.gif
1986 (0408) Sgt Dennis Taggart 710 UDR.j
1986 (0610) Pte John Blaney 8 UDR.jpg
1986 Desmond Caldwell.png

Pte Victor Foster, 6 UDR, 15th January 1986.

The 153rd UDR Soldier killed. He was killed when an IRA bomb exploded in his car 100 yards from his home in Gamble Park, Castlederg. His fiancee who was with him was seriously injured and lost the sight of an eye. They were due to marry in August. She left Northern Ireland later that year, no longer able to bear being taunted about Victor's death by gangs of youths. He was 18 years old, off duty and single at the time of his death.

​

Pte John Earley, 4 UDR, 3rd February 1986.

The 154th UDR Soldier killed. He was killed by an IRA landmine explosion detonated by radio remote control as he led an eight man foot patrol in Bellcoo, County Fermanagh. He died instantly. He was 22 years old, on duty and single at the time of his death.

​

Pte Thomas Irwin, 6 UDR, 26th March 1986.

The 155th UDR Soldier killed. Shot dead by the IRA as he worked at a sewage plant, Mountfield, near Omagh. The unmasked gunman shot at close range before being driven off by an accomplice. Thomas's brother Corporal Frederick Irwin was shot dead by the IRA at his work in 1979. He was 52 years old, off duty and married at the time of his death.

​

Pte William Pollock, 8 UDR, 8th April 1986.

The 156th UDR Soldier killed. He was killed by an IRA booby trap bomb which exploded as he attached a trailer to his car outside his home, Ganvaghan Road, near Castlederg. His parents sitting in a car nearby were injured. William was married just six months earlier. He was 27 years old, off duty and married at the time of his death.

​

WO2 Herbert McConville, 3 UDR, 15th May 1986.

Herbert had left the Regiment in 1981. He was the 44th UDR Veteran to be killed. He was shot by the IRA as he made a weekly delivery to a café in Kilmorey Street, Newry. The gunman opened fire from a motorcycle. Herbie was hit fifteen times. He had served in World War II. He was 61 years old and married at the time of his death.

​

Cpl Brian Brown, 3 UDR, 28th May 1986.

The 157the UDR Soldier killed. He was killed by an IRA bomb as he and his search dog Oliver, made a second search of a petrol station, Newry Road, Kilkeel, after a bomb warning. A colleague was badly injured, his dog was killed. A dog handler for ten years, Corporal Brown had declined promotion because he wanted to continue working with dogs. He had received a GOC's Commendation in 1983 which read, 'his professionalism made an excellent impression on regular units who have come to rely on his advice with complete assurance'. He was awarded a Posthumous Queen's Gallantry Medal which the Queen presented to his widow in Jul 1987. He was 37 years old, on duty and Married at the time of his death.

​

Pte Robert Hill, 3 UDR, 1st July 1986.

The 158th UDR Soldier killed. He was killed by an IRA booby trap bomb under his car outside his home in Drumaness, near Ballynahinch. Wreckage from the car was found over a 100 metre radius and his personal protection weapon was found in a nearby garden. A senior police officer described the device as one of the worst he had ever seen. He was 22 years old, off duty and single at the time of his death.

​

Sgt Denis Taggart, 7/10 UDR, 4th August 1986.

The 159th UDR Soldier killed. Shot dead by the IRA as he got out of his car outside his home in Battenburg Street, Belfast. His son who was delivering newspapers nearby found his father lying beside his car. The gunmen continued to fire as Sergeant Taggart lay on the ground. He was 33 years old, off duty and married at the time of his death.

​

Pte Martin Blaney, 8 UDR, 6th October 1986.

The 160th UDR Soldier to bekilled. Ambushed and shot dead by the IRA as he drove home to Eglish, near Dungannon. The gunmen hijacked a car holding its owner's family hostage for six hours and then forced their way into the home of Martin's neighbours, a woman and her widowed mother. He was 27 years old, off duty and single at the time of his death.

​

Pte Desmond Caldwell, 6 UDR, 12th December 1986.

Desmond had left the Regiment in 1970. He was the 45th UDR Veteran to be killed. He was killed when an IRA bomb exploded in the cab of his milk lorry at a creamery in Killen, near Castlederg, a few hundred yards from his home. He was mistaken for an off duty RUC Reservist. He was 44 years old and married at the time of his death.

​

​

bottom of page