Easter Rising: Voice of a Rebel

Vrtov / bbc / crossover labs 2016

Step into one man’s memories and into a moment that changed Irish history forever – the 1916 Easter Rising.

Easter Rising: Voice of a Rebel lets users step into the memories of Willie McNeive and journey back in time to a moment that changed Irish history forever: the Easter Rising of 1916. Voiced by Game of Thrones’ Liam Cunningham, Willie guides users on a journey back to Dublin when he was 19 years old. Willie was a member of the Irish Republican Brotherhood and felt deeply that Ireland should be separate from Britain, free to be its own independent democratic republic. His feelings were so strong that he took chose to take part in the Easter Rising – a violent, armed insurgence where thousands of Republican men and women occupied key sites in Dublin, proclaiming the Irish Republic. This uprising became increasingly chaotic and bloody, culminating after six days with the rebel leaders surrendering. Hundreds of British soldiers, civilians and rebels died.

The VR experience makes use of McNieve’s eye witness account – a recording of which lay undiscovered for over 30 years.

Through a remarkable, and very personal insight into this a key moment in European history, Easter Rising: Voice of a Rebel presents an artistic journey into the memory of an ordinary man who was swept up into an extraordinary event.

This Lovie Award winning project was a collaboration between the BBC, VRTOV and Crossover Labs. It is available for Gear VR and Oculus Rift.