The parents of IRA bomb victims Tim Parry and Johnathan Ball were today coming face to face with former IRA commander Mr Martin McGuinness.
Colin and Wendy Parry and Wilf and Marie Ball were meeting Mr McGuinness this evening in Warrington, the Cheshire town where a double bombing killed their sons and injured 56 others in 1993.
They were having a private meeting at the Tim Parry and Johnathan Ball Young People's Centre, which was opened last year.
After the meeting, Mr McGuinness, the four parents and other families affected by the bomb were due to attend an advent concert organised to promote peace and build bridges between Ireland and Britain.
Mr Parry, 55, predicted he would have mixed feelings at his first ever meeting with an IRA member-turned-politician.
He said: "I expect I will have mixed emotions. I totally disapprove of his past but the fact is he is now an elected politician and a prominent individual in the future of Northern Ireland so it is important to meet him.
"I will not go into specific details of what we will be talking about but we will be covering personal matters as well as political issues.
"I have met several active IRA members before - I met the Brighton bomber Patrick Magee last weekend - but this is the first time I have met one who has become a politician. I imagine this will be a one-off opportunity to speak to him so it is vital that we have the chance to meet."
Mr Parry confirmed that Mr and Mrs Ball were expected to attend the meeting with Mr McGuinness.
The advent concert, called A Bridge To Peace, was taking place at Parr Hall in Warrington with youth choirs from the town and also from Omagh.
It was organised by The Bridge, a Warrington-based group which works to forge closer ties to all parts of Ireland.
Tim Parry was 12 and Johnathan Ball was three when they were killed on the day before Mothering Sunday in 1993.
PA