00:00 The story of the last witch trial in Ireland is being brought to life this autumn thanks to a new exhibition at Carrickfergus Museum.
00:07 The museum is working with a multidisciplinary team from Ulster University on the new initiative,
00:13 which relies the story of the 1711 trial of the Islay McGee witches in Carrickfergus.
00:19 Sharon Murphy from Carrickfergus Museum described how the women came to be accused of the crime.
00:27 The Islay McGee witches were eight women and the later one man who were accused of bewitching a young gentlewoman called Mary Dunbar.
00:37 She had arrived to the No Head House, the home of the Holters family, her family.
00:44 She came from Castle Ray and very quickly after she arrived she started experiencing fits and convulsions
00:54 and went on to accuse eight women and then one man of bewitching her.
01:02 The authorities took it seriously, the women were rounded up and they were put in chains and held in jail.
01:11 Then they were tried at the court in Carrickfergus and they were convicted.
01:20 They were found guilty and they were sentenced to one year imprisonment and to stand four times in the pillory.
01:28 Reimagining the Islay McGee witches, an interactive exhibition officially opened on 9 September at the museum.
01:37 On display are a range of experiences developed by the team, from animation, a graphic novel and a choice driven video game to a virtual reality experience.
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