Editing 1981 in Ireland

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{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=August 2022}}
{{More citations needed|date=April 2012}}
{{YearInIrelandNav|1981}}
Events from the year '''1981 in Ireland'''.

==Incumbents==
* [[President of Ireland|President]]: [[Patrick Hillery]]
* [[Taoiseach]]:
** [[Charles Haughey]] ([[Fianna Fáil|FF]]) (until 30 June 1981)
** [[Garret FitzGerald]] ([[Fine Gael|FG]]) (from 30 June 1981)
* [[Tánaiste]]:
** [[George Colley]] ([[Fianna Fáil|FF]]) (until 30 June 1981)
** [[Michael O'Leary (politician)|Michael O'Leary]] ([[Labour Party (Ireland)|Lab]]) (from 30 June 1981)
* [[Minister for Finance (Ireland)|Minister for Finance]]:
** [[Gene Fitzgerald]] ([[Fianna Fáil|FF]]) (until 30 June 1981)
** [[John Bruton]] ([[Fine Gael|FG]]) (from 30 June 1981)
* [[Chief Justice of Ireland|Chief Justice]]: [[Tom O'Higgins]]
* [[Dáil Éireann|Dáil]]:
** [[21st Dáil|21st]] (until 21 May 1981)
** [[22nd Dáil|22nd]] (from 30 June 1981)
* [[Seanad Éireann|Seanad]]:
** [[14th Seanad|14th]] (until 16 July 1981)
** [[15th Seanad|15th]] (from 8 October 1981)

==Events==
* 6 February – [[Attacks on shipping in Lough Foyle (1981–82)]]: [[Liverpool]]-registered coal ship ''Nellie M'' was bombed and sunk by a [[Provisional Irish Republican Army]] unit using a hijacked pilot boat in [[Lough Foyle]].
* 14 February – [[Stardust fire]]: A fire at the Stardust nightclub in [[Artane, Dublin]], in the early hours killed 48 young people and injured 214.<ref>{{cite book|first1=Neil|last1=Fetherstonhaugh|first2=Tony|last2=McCullagh|title=They Never Came Home: The Stardust Story|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c3IiAQAAIAAJ|year=2001|publisher=Merlin|isbn=978-1-903582-09-1|page=8}}</ref> In 2024 these would be declared as [[unlawful killing]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn0rvgg7dlzo|title=Jury delivers unlawful killing verdict in Stardust inquest|last=Moore|first=Aoife|date=2024-04-18|work=[[BBC News]]|access-date=2024-04-18}}</ref>
* 1 March – [[Bobby Sands]] began a [[hunger strike]] in the [[Maze (HM Prison)|Maze Prison]] (Long Kesh) near [[Lisburn]] ([[Northern Ireland]]).
* 5 March – The petrol strike ended when 800 tanker drivers resumed work.
* 10 April – Hunger striker Bobby Sands was elected [[Member of Parliament]] (MP) for [[Fermanagh and South Tyrone (UK Parliament constituency)|Fermanagh and South Tyrone]] in the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom]].
* 2 May – [[Aer Lingus Flight 164]], a Boeing 737 en route from [[Dublin]] to London was hijacked and ordered to fly to [[Tehran]]. The flight was diverted to Paris and the hijacker, Laurence Downey, was arrested.
* 5 May – Bobby Sands died on the 66th day of his hunger strike in the Maze Prison.
* 12 May – [[Francis Hughes]], previously the most wanted man in [[Northern Ireland]], died on the 59th day of his hunger strike in the Maze Prison.
* 21 May – [[Raymond McCreesh]] and [[Patsy O'Hara]] both died on the 61st day of their hunger strike in the Maze Prison.
* 11 June – [[1981 Irish general election]]. [[Fianna Fáil]] lost seats and a [[Fine Gael]]–[[Labour Party (Ireland)|Labour Party]] [[coalition government]] was formed. [[Kieran Doherty (hunger striker)|Kieran Doherty]], on hunger strike in the Maze Prison, was elected [[Teachta Dála]] (TD) for [[Cavan–Monaghan (Dáil constituency)|Cavan–Monaghan]].
* 30 June – [[Fine Gael]] leader [[Garret FitzGerald]] was elected [[Taoiseach]] as the 22nd [[Dáil Éireann]] assembled.
* 8 July – Provisional Irish Republican Army member [[Joe McDonnell (hunger striker)|Joe McDonnell]] died on the 61st day of his hunger strike.
* 25 July – During a fire at [[Portlaoise Prison]], [[Irish Army]] Pte Thomas Metcalfe scaled a forty-foot (12 m) high drainpipe in darkness and rescued a comrade trapped on a blazing rooftop. He later received the [[Military Medal for Gallantry]].
* 1 August – [[Irish National Liberation Army]] member [[Kevin Lynch (hunger striker)|Kevin Lynch]] died on the 71st day of his hunger strike in the Maze Prison.
* 2 August – [[Kieran Doherty (hunger striker)|Kieran Doherty]], [[Teachta Dála|TD]], died on the 73rd day of his hunger strike in Long Kesh.
* 11 September – The [[Irish Sugar Company]] announced that it was to close its factory in [[Tuam]], [[County Galway]].
* 19 December – [[Penlee lifeboat disaster]]: The Arklow-bound, Dublin-registered ''Union Star'' was lost on its maiden voyage off [[Cornwall]]. Sixteen lives were lost, eight from the ''Union Star'' and eight from RNLB ''Solomon Browne'' (ON 954) who died while attempting rescue.
* 27 December – Supporters of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children marched in Dublin to demand a referendum for an [[Anti-abortion movements|anti-abortion]] amendment to the Constitution.
* Undated
** The Irish [[Green Party (Ireland)|Green Party]] was founded as the Ecology Party of Ireland by Dublin teacher [[Christopher Fettes]].

==Arts and literature==
* 4 April – Ireland hosted the [[Eurovision Song Contest 1981|Eurovision Song Contest]], presented by [[Doireann Ní Bhriain]] and aired on [[RTÉ Television]].
* 1 August - The first [[Occasion at the Castle]] music festival was held in Castlebar, County Mayo. Headerliners included [[Ian Dury and the Blockheads]], [[The Pretenders]], [[Loudon Wainwright III]], [[The Undertones]], and the folk duo [[Kate and Anna McGarrigle]].<ref>{{cite web |last= |first= |date=27 April 2022 |title=Occasion, Occasion: Castlebar, 1981 |url=https://theblackpoolsentinel.com/2022/04/27/occasion-occasion-castlebar-1981/ |website= |location= |publisher= |access-date=}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Gillespie |first=Tom |date=11 February 2023 |title=Rock festival days in Mayo’s county town |url=https://www.con-telegraph.ie/2023/02/11/rock-festival-days-in-mayos-county-town/ |work=[[Connaught Telegraph]] |location= |publisher= |access-date=20 May 2025}}</ref> 
* 16 August – The first [[Slane Concert]] was held at [[Slane Castle]] featuring performers [[Thin Lizzy]], [[Hazel O'Connor]], [[The Bureau (band)|The Bureau]], Megahype, [[Rose Tattoo]], [[Sweet Savage]], and [[U2]].<ref>[http://www.u2gigs.com/show623.html U2 October Tour: October 1st leg: Europe: 1981-08-16: Slane Castle – Slane, Ireland] U2gigs.com. Retrieved: 19 July 2013.</ref>
* 14 September – Artist and writer [[Christy Brown]] was buried in [[Glasnevin Cemetery]], [[Dublin]].
* An association of artists, [[Aosdána]], was established.
* [[Molly Keane]]'s novel ''[[Good Behaviour (Keane novel)|Good Behaviour]]'' was published, her first for almost thirty years, and the first under her own name.
* [[Rita Kelly]]'s poetry ''Dialann sa Díseart'' was published.
*[[Neil Jordan]] was awarded the [[Rooney Prize for Irish Literature]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Neil Jordan Gets Rooney Prize|newspaper=[[The Irish Times]]|date=7 October 1981}}</ref>
* English-born painter [[Derek Hill (painter)|Derek Hill]] donated St. Columb's Rectory, near [[Churchill, County Donegal]] (his home since 1954), along with a considerable collection including work by [[Pablo Picasso]], [[Edgar Degas]], [[Georges Braque]], [[Graham Sutherland]] and [[Jack Butler Yeats]], to the [[Republic of Ireland|Irish State]].
* A proposed design for a new [[Áras an Uachtaráin]] (presidential mansion) was created by [[Rem Koolhaas]], but was never built.

==Sport==

===Association football===
*[[Republic of Ireland national football team|Ireland]] narrowly missed qualifying for the [[1982 FIFA World Cup|1982 World Cup]] finals in Spain on goal difference.

===Gaelic football===
*[[Kerry GAA|Kerry]] beat [[Offaly GAA|Offaly]] by 1–12 to 0–8 to win their fourth successive [[All-Ireland Senior Football Championship]].  It was only the third time that a four-in-a-row has been achieved.

===Golf===
*[[Irish Open (golf)|The Irish Open]] was won by [[Sam Torrance]] ([[Scotland]]).

===Hurling===
*[[Offaly GAA|Offaly]] won their first [[All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship]], beating [[Galway GAA|Galway]] by 2–12 to 0–15 in the final.

==Births==
*1 January – [[Jonas Armstrong]], actor.
*26 January – [[Glen Fitzpatrick]], soccer player.
*26 January – [[Colin O'Donoghue]], Actor 
*31 January – [[Dan Connor (footballer)|Dan Connor]], soccer player.
*12 February – [[Lisa Hannigan]], singer and musician.
*13 February – [[Liam Miller]], soccer player (died [[2018 in Ireland|2018]]).
*24 February – [[Brian O'Callaghan]], soccer player.
*26 February – [[Ronan Curran]], [[Cork GAA|Cork]] hurler.
*3 March – [[Ger Spillane]], [[Cork GAA|Cork]] Gaelic footballer.
*22 March – [[Brendan McGill]], soccer player.
*23 March – [[Colin Cryan]], soccer player.
*10 April – [[Des Byrne]], soccer player.
*18 April – [[John O'Hara (footballer, born 1981)|John O'Hara]], soccer player.
*24 April – [[Maeve Higgins]], comedian.
*25 April – [[Thomas Butler (footballer)|Thomas Butler]], soccer player.
*10 May – [[Barry Cahill (Gaelic footballer)|Barry Cahill]], [[Dublin GAA|Dublin]] Gaelic footballer.
*14 June – [[Dominick Joyce]], cricketer.
*1 July – [[Tadhg Kennelly]], [[Gaelic football]]er, [[Australian rules football]] player.
*16 July – [[Tom Kenny (hurler)|Tom Kenny]], [[Cork GAA|Cork]] hurler.
*25 July – [[Fergal Devitt]], professional wrestler.
*1 August – [[Stephen Hunt (Irish footballer)|Stephen Hunt]], soccer player.
*14 August – [[Brian Hogan (Kilkenny hurler)|Brian Hogan]], [[Kilkenny GAA|Kilkenny]] hurler.
*1 September – [[Niall McCarthy]], [[Cork GAA|Cork]] hurler.
*12 September – [[Philip Hughes (Irish footballer)|Philip Hughes]], soccer player.
*14 September – [[Glenn Cronin]], soccer player.
*24 September – [[Richie Byrne]], soccer player.
*30 September – [[Cecelia Ahern]], author, daughter of [[Bertie Ahern]].
*4 October – [[Alan Bennett (Irish footballer)|Alan Bennett]], soccer player.
*6 October – [[Graham Barrett]], soccer player.
*10 October – [[Una Healy]], singer-songwriter.
*12 October – [[John Thompson (Irish footballer)|John Thompson]], soccer player.
*17 October – [[Steven Gray (footballer)|Steven Gray]], soccer player.
*24 October – [[David McGill (footballer)|David McGill]], soccer player.
*8 November – [[Niall O'Brien (cricketer)|Niall O'Brien]], cricketer.
*15 November – [[Kevin Grogan]], soccer player.
*15 November – [[Brian Shelley]], soccer player.
*17 November – [[Sean Godley]], poet.
*22 November – [[Jonathan Douglas]], soccer player.
*8 December – [[Aidan Price]], soccer player.
*29 December – [[Paul Heffernan]], soccer player.

===Full date unknown===
*[[Derek Hardiman]], [[Galway GAA|Galway]] hurler.
*[[Natasha Nic Gairbheith]], 2004 Miss Ireland.
*[[Seán O'Connor (hurler)|Seán O'Connor]], [[Limerick GAA|Limerick]] hurler.
*[[Kevin Tobin]], [[Limerick GAA|Limerick]] hurler.
*[[Orla Tobin (Rose of Tralee)|Orla Tobin]], 2003 [[Rose of Tralee (festival)|Rose of Tralee]] winner.

==Deaths==
*1 January – [[Sir Anthony Esmonde, 15th Baronet]], [[Fine Gael]] [[Teachta Dála|TD]] and [[Member of the European Parliament|MEP]] (born 1899).
*21 January – [[Norman Stronge]], [[Ulster Unionist Party]] politician and [[Speaker (politics)|Speaker]] of the [[Northern Ireland House of Commons]] for 23 years (born 1894).
*8 April – [[Gretta Bowen]], artist (born 1880).
*2 May – [[Tommy Moroney]], soccer and rugby player (born 1923).
*17 June – [[Nora Connolly O'Brien]], political activist, daughter of [[James Connolly]] (born 1892).
*2 July – [[Billy Gillespie]], soccer player (born 1891).
*7 July – [[Donal Foley]], ''[[Irish Times]]'' journalist.
*21 August – [[Eddie Byrne]], actor (born 1911).
*24 August – [[Jackie Vernon (footballer)|Jackie Vernon]], soccer player (born 1918).
*7 September – [[Christy Brown]], author, painter and poet (born 1932).
*13 October – [[Oisín Kelly]], sculptor (born 1915).
*15 October – [[James Auchmuty]], historian (born 1909).
*17 November – [[Nano Reid]], painter (born 1905).
*December – [[Fred Kiernan]], soccer player (born 1919).

===Full date unknown===
*[[Muriel Brandt]], painter (born 1909).

==See also==
*[[1981 in Irish television]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Years in Ireland}}
{{Year in Europe|1981}}

[[Category:1981 in Ireland| ]]