Winston Churchill Rea known as Winkie Rea, is the former leader of the Red Hand Commando loyalist paramilitary

Paramilitary

A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....

 organisation in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

.

Rea fell in love with Elizabeth Spence, and in April 1972, he travelled to Long Kesh Prison, where he obtained permission from her father, Gusty Spence

Gusty Spence

Augustus Andrew "Gusty" Spence was a leader of the Ulster Volunteer Force and a leading loyalist politician. One of the first UVF members to be convicted of murder, Spence was a senior figure in the organisation for over a decade but later renounced violence and joined the Progressive Unionist...

 to marry her. Immediately after the wedding, Spence absconded, and he remained on the run for four months.

In 1973, Rea was imprisoned for eight years after being found in possession of a Sterling

Sterling Armaments Company

Sterling Armaments Company was an arms manufacturer based in Dagenham, famous for manufacturing the L2A3 , AR18 and SAR-87 assault rifles and parts of Jaguar cars. The company went bankrupt in 1988....

 submachine gun

Sterling submachine gun

The Sterling submachine gun is a British submachine gun which was in service with the British Army from 1944 until 1994, when it was phased out with the introduction of the L85A1 assault rifle.-History:...

. Despite his association with the Red Hand Commando, he joined Spence in the Ulster Volunteer Force section of Long Kesh.

In 1981, Rea appeared on an edition of Counterpoint

Counterpoint

In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more voices that are independent in contour and rhythm and are harmonically interdependent . It has been most commonly identified in classical music, developing strongly during the Renaissance and in much of the common practice period,...

, arguing against Ian Paisley

Ian Paisley

Ian Richard Kyle Paisley, Baron Bannside, PC is a politician and church minister in Northern Ireland. As the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party , he and Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness were elected First Minister and deputy First Minister respectively on 8 May 2007.In addition to co-founding...

's evocation of a "Carson trail", and calling for young people not to follow his path.

Rea played a role in negotiating the Combined Loyalist Military Command

Combined Loyalist Military Command

The Combined Loyalist Military Command was an umbrella body for loyalist paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland set up in the early 1990s, recalling the earlier Ulster Army Council and Ulster Loyalist Central Co-ordinating Committee....

 ceasefire, in 1994. He became active in the Progressive Unionist Party

Progressive Unionist Party

The Progressive Unionist Party is a small unionist political party in Northern Ireland. It was formed from the Independent Unionist Group operating in the Shankill area of Belfast, becoming the PUP in 1979...

 (PUP), linked to the Ulster Volunteer Force, and was the last candidate on party's "top-up" list for the Northern Ireland Forum

Northern Ireland Forum

The Northern Ireland Forum was a body set up in 1996 as part of a process of negotiations that eventually led to the Belfast Agreement in 1998....

 election of 1996, but was not elected. However, he formed part of the PUP's Good Friday Agreement negotiating team.

In 1998, Rea was arrested and questioned about the murder of Frankie Curry

Frankie Curry

Frankie Curry nicknamed "Pigface", was an Ulster loyalist who was involved with a number of paramilitary groups during his long career...

, a former Red Hand Commando member. He was subsequently released, without charge. During a loyalist feud, in 2000, Rea's house was broken into by members of the C Company of the rival Ulster Freedom Fighters, led by Johnny Adair

Johnny Adair

Jonathan Adair, better known as Johnny "Mad Dog" Adair is the former leader of the "C Company", 2nd Battalion Shankill Road, West Belfast Brigade of the "Ulster Freedom Fighters" . This was a cover name used by the Ulster Defence Association , an Ulster loyalist paramilitary organisation...

. They destroyed many of his possessions.

Rea later founded the 1st Shankill Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland national football team

The Northern Ireland national football team represents Northern Ireland in international association football. Before 1921 all of Ireland was represented by a single side, the Ireland national football team, organised by the Irish Football Association...

Supporters' Club, and acted as its treasurer.