Brian Keenan (Irish Republican) - Early Life

Early Life

The son of a member of the Royal Air Force, Keenan was brought up in Swatragh, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland before his family moved to Belfast. As a teenager, Keenan moved to England to find work, for a time working as a television repairman in partnership with his brother in Corby, Northamptonshire. During this time he came to the attention of the police when he damaged a cigarette machine, which led to police having his fingerprints on file. Keenan returned to Northern Ireland when the Troubles began, and started working at the Grundig factory in the Finaghy area of Belfast where he acquired a reputation as a radical due to his involvement in trade union activities.

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