A new documentary telling the story of two generations of the Dunlops will be released on DVD later this month. ‘Road’, narrated by Liam Neeson, combines astonishing race footage with a gripping narrative about a family that has dominated international road racing for over 30 years.
Northern Ireland’s Dunlop family are widely considered road-racing royalty. Joey, the star of the film, won a record 26 races at the Isle of Man TT and five world championships in the 1980s. His fame in Northern Ireland was comparable to that of another sporting legend, George Best. Together with his brother Robert, who notched up five TT wins of his own, they ruled the road.
Tragically, both lost their lives to the sport they loved. Today, Robert’s sons Michael and William are two of the world’s leading road racers. In the film, they talk about what road racing means to riders and defend the sport against those who say the risks are too high.
‘Road’ takes the viewer on an adrenaline-fuelled and emotional journey. A review by Total Film says that the documentary, which was written and produced by Dermot Lavery and Michael Hewitt, does for motorcycle road racing what ‘Senna’ did for Formula One, capturing the sport’s thrills through the drama of one family united by success and by tragedy.
The documentary was shown in cinemas in June and had special screening on the Isle of Man during this year’s TT. It will be released on DVD on 13 October and is available for pre-order now, priced at £9.00.
