1988 in Ireland

← 1987 1986 1985 1984 1983 1988 in Ireland → 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993
Centuries:	18th 19th 20th 21st
Decades:	1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s
See also:	1988 in Northern Ireland Other events of 1988 List of years in Ireland

Events from the year 1988 in Ireland.

Incumbents

• President: Patrick Hillery (Fianna Fáil)
• Taoiseach: Charles Haughey (Fianna Fáil)

Events

• 11 January - SDLP leader, John Hume and Gerry Adams of Sinn Féin, have a surprise meeting in Belfast.
• 27 January - The country code top-level domain .ie for the Republic of Ireland is registered.
• 6 March - Operation Flavius: A Special Air Service team of the British Army shoots dead a Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) Active Service Unit (Danny McCann, Seán Savage and Mairéad Farrell, unarmed at the time) in Gibraltar.
• 16 March - Milltown Cemetery attack: Three men are killed and 70 are wounded in a gun and grenade attack by loyalist paramilitary Michael Stone on mourners at Milltown Cemetery in Belfast during the funerals of the three IRA members killed in Gibraltar.
• 19 March
  • Corporals killings in Belfast: Two British Army corporals are abducted, beaten and shot dead by Irish republicans after driving into the funeral cortège of IRA members killed in the Milltown Cemetery attack.
  • 5,000 people turn out for an anti-apartheid rally at the GPO in Dublin.
• 22 March - Tributes are paid to Aran Islands-born poet Máirtín Ó Direáin at his funeral in Dublin.
• 16 April - The Irish National Lottery launches its national live draw.
• 15 June - The IRA kills six British soldiers in a bomb attack in Lisburn.
• 19 June - The Royal Canal officially reopens for leisure purpose between Leixlip and Maynooth.
• 10 July - Dublin celebrates its official 1,000th birthday.
• 18 July - Nelson Mandela, the jailed anti-apartheid leader, is awarded the freedom of the City of Dublin.
• 11 August - The Department of Health launches an information booklet as the number of AIDS cases increases dramatically.
• 28 August - Leopardstown Racecourse celebrates its 100th birthday.
• 12 September - Archbishop Thomas Morris resigns as Archbishop of Cashel and is replaced by Dermot Clifford.
• 8 October - A tax amnesty brings in over £500 million.
• 17 October - The Independent Radio and Television Commission is established to regulate radio and television services outside the RTÉ umbrella.
• 26 October - The case of Norris v. Ireland is decided by the European Court of Human Rights, ruling the existence of laws in the Republic of Ireland criminalising consensual gay sex to be illegal.
• 16 November - Minister for Finance Ray MacSharry is appointed Ireland's new EC Commissioner.
• National Archives of Ireland formed under terms of the National Archives Act 1986 taking over the functions of the State Paper Office and the Public Record Office of Ireland.
• Paddy Power established by the merger of the 40 shops of three Irish bookmakers: Stewart Kenny, David Power and John Corcoran.
• Gay and Lesbian Equality Network established in Dublin.

Arts and literature

• 30 April - Ireland hosts the Eurovision Song Contest.
• 13 June - A statue of Molly Malone by Jeanne Rynhart is unveiled in Grafton Street, Dublin, to mark the city's millennium. The installations Anna Livia in O'Connell Street by Éamonn O'Doherty (agreed 7 March) and People's Island by Rachel Joynt are produced for the same commemoration.
• September - Television channel RTÉ 2 is relaunched as Network 2.
• 11 October - Comedy series Nighthawks is first broadcast on RTÉ's Network 2.
• Toasted Heretic release their debut album Songs for Swinging Celibates.

Sport

Cycling

• 13 March - Sean Kelly wins the Paris–Nice cycle race for the seventh year in a row.
• 15 May - Sean Kelly wins the Vuelta a España cycle race.

Gaelic football

• Meath GAA beat Cork GAA 0–13 to 0–9 in Croke Park to win a second consecutive All-Ireland Senior Football Championship title.

Hurling

• Galway GAA beat Tipperary GAA 1–15 to 0–14 in Croke Park to win a second consecutive All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship title.

Soccer

• The Republic of Ireland plays in the European Championship finals for the first time.
• 12 June - The Republic of Ireland celebrates a win over England 1–0 at Euro 88.

Golf

• Carroll's Irish Open is won by Ian Woosnam (Wales).
• 16 October - Ireland (Eamonn Darcy, Ronan Rafferty, Des Smyth) wins the Dunhill Cup at St Andrew's.

Births

File:Robert Sheehan 2011.jpg

Robert Sheehan was born in January.

• 7 January - Robert Sheehan, actor.
• 15 January - Padraig Amond, soccer player.
• 23 January - Alan Power, soccer player.
• 29 January - Owen Garvan, soccer player.
• 21 February - Darren Forsyth, soccer player.
• 22 February - Robert Bayly, soccer player.
• 4 March - Timmy Purcell, soccer player.
• 2 May - Stephen Henderson, soccer player.
• 21 May - Adam Rooney, soccer player
• 14 July - Conor McGregor, MMA fighter
• 25 July - Anthony Stokes, soccer player.
• 14 September - Shane Tracy, soccer player.
• 22 September - Keith Quinn, soccer player.

Full date unknown

• Séamus Hickey, Limerick hurler.

Deaths

January to June

• 1 January - Sister Philippa Brazill, nurse in Australia (born 1896).
• 1 January - Dan Spring, Gaelic footballer, trade unionist and Labour Party TD (born 1910).
• 15 January - Seán MacBride, former Clann na Poblachta TD, Cabinet Minister and Nobel Peace Prize Winner (born 1904).
• 2 February - Frederick Blaney, cricketer (born 1918).
• 6 February - Paschal (P. V.) Doyle, hotelier and builder, founder Doyle Hotel Group.
• 11 February - Tommy Coleman, Irish volunteer (born 1899).
• 24 February - Tommy O'Brien, journalist and broadcaster.
• 19 March - Máirtín Ó Direáin, poet (born 1910).
• 2 April - E. Chambré Hardman, photographer (born 1898).
• 10 May - Ciaran Bourke, musician, one of the original members of The Dubliners (born 1936).
• 5 June - Robert Dudley Edwards, historian (born 1909).

July to December

• 17 July - Frank Carter, Fianna Fáil TD, Seanad member.
• 10 October - Sonny Hool, cricketer (born 1924).
• 27 October - Frank Devlin, badminton player (born 1900).
• 12 December - Seán Dowling, revolutionary and playwright.
• 7 December - Peter Langan, restaurateur.
• 8 December - John Joe McGirl, chief of staff of the Irish Republican Army (born 1921).
• 21 December - Eithne Dunne, actress.
• 22 December - Jack Bowden, cricketer and hockey player (born 1916).

Full date unknown

• Tommy Breen, international soccer player (born 1912).
• Terry Leahy, Kilkenny hurler (born 1918).
• Nick O'Donnell, Kilkenny and Wexford hurler (born 1925).
• Tommy Potts, fiddle player (born 1912).
• Ed Reavy, fiddle player and songwriter (born 1897).