Some dates are indelible: 15th August 1969, the date that the Troubles began dominates the screen at the beginning of the film Belfast. Everyone I know who was sentient on that balmy summer’s day in 1969 remembers what they were doing in Belfast that day, just as others recall where they heard about President Kennedy’s assassination on 22 November 1963. Here’s another date for your diary: March 27 and the Oscar awards ceremony in Hollywood where Kenneth Branagh’s exquisitely realised film “Belfast” is a contender. The narrative is based on the auteur’s boyhood memories and he has already secured a Golden…

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