1987 in Ireland explained

Events from the year 1987 in Ireland.

Incumbents

• President: Patrick Hillery
• Taoiseach:
  • Garret FitzGerald (FG) (until 10 March 1987)
  • Charles Haughey (FF) (from 10 March 1987)
• Tánaiste:
  • Dick Spring (Lab) (until 20 January 1987)
  • Peter Barry (FG) (from 20 January 1987 until 10 March 1987)
  • Brian Lenihan (FF) (from 10 March 1987)
• Minister for Finance:
  • John Bruton (FG) (until 10 March 1987)
  • Ray MacSharry (FF) (from 10 March 1987)
• Chief Justice: Thomas Finlay
• Dáil:
  • 24th (until 20 January 1987)
  • 25th (from 10 March 1987)
• Seanad:
  • 17th (until 3 April 1987)
  • 18th (from 25 April 1987)

Events

January

• 1 January – The halfpenny coin was withdrawn from circulation.
• 20 January – Labour Party ministers resigned from the government because of disagreement over budget proposals.

February

• 19 February – A general election returned a Fianna Fáil minority government after the Fine Gael–Labour Party coalition collapsed. Charles Haughey became taoiseach by one Dáil vote. The new Progressive Democrats party won 14 seats.

March

• 11 March – Former taoiseach Garret FitzGerald resigned as leader of the Fine Gael party and was succeeded by Alan Dukes.
• 22 March – The Irish National Lottery was launched.

May

• 8 May – Loughgall ambush: The British Special Air Service killed eight Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) members and a civilian in Loughgall, County Tyrone.
• 9 May – Johnny Logan won the Eurovision Song Contest for Ireland with his own composition Hold Me Now, making him the only person to win the competition twice as a performer.
• 26 May – A referendum was held on the Single European Act. Nearly 70% voted in favour of the tenth amendment to the Constitution.

July

• 26 July – Stephen Roche won the Tour de France, the first Irish cyclist to do so.

November

• 8 November – Remembrance Day bombing: Eleven people were killed and 63 were injured by an IRA bomb during a Remembrance Day service in Enniskillen.
• 10 November – The funeral took place of broadcaster Eamonn Andrews.
• 29 November – Beaumont Hospital opened in Dublin.

December

• 5 December – Downpatrick and Ardglass Railway began public operation, the first Irish gauge heritage railway in Ireland.^[1]
• Undated – Cooley Distillery began producing Irish whiskey.

Arts and literature

See also: 1987 in Irish television.

• U2 released The Joshua Tree album^[2] to international acclaim.
• Maeve Binchy's novel Firefly Summer was published.
• Roddy Doyle published his first novel, The Commitments, the first volume of The Barrytown Trilogy, about a group of unemployed young people on the north side of Dublin who start a soul band.
• Kíla, the folk/world music group, was formed in the Irish language secondary school, Coláiste Eoin in County Dublin.

Sport

Association football

• 11 November – Ireland qualified for their first major international tournament when Scotland pulled off a shock 1–0 win in Sofia against Bulgaria. Gary Mackay scored the only goal with just three minutes left to put Ireland into the Euro 88 tournament in West Germany.

Cycling

• 6 September – Cyclist Stephen Roche completed a remarkable treble by winning the Giro d'Italia, the Tour de France, and the World Championship.

Gaelic football

• Meath defeated Cork by 1–14 to 0–11 to win the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship.

Golf

• The Carroll's Irish Open golf tournament was won by Bernhard Langer (West Germany).

Hurling

• Galway defeated Kilkenny by 1–12 to 0–9 to win the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship.

Births

• 2 January – Cathal Naughton, Cork hurler.
• 9 January – Nicola Coughlan, actress
• 22 January – Shane Long, association footballer.
• 24 January – Ruth Bradley, television actress.
• 30 January – Becky Lynch, professional wrestler.
• 4 February – Darren O'Dea, association footballer.
• 5 February – Denis McLaughlin, association footballer.
• 14 February – James Chambers, association footballer.
• 16 March – Diarmuid O'Carroll, association footballer.
• 2 April – Shane Lowry, golfer
• 13 April – Conor Sammon, association footballer.
• 23 April – Kelly Gough, actress.
• 12 May – Darren Randolph, association footballer.
• 20 May – Pa Cronin, Cork hurler.
• 21 May – Chris McCann, association footballer.
• 7 July – Diarmuid Connolly, Dublin Gaelic football and hurling player.
• 9 July – Jonny Hayes, association footballer.
• 28 September – Gary Deegan, association footballer.
• 2 June – Graeme Mulcahy, hurler (Kilmallock, Limerick).
• 2 October – Séamus Hickey, hurler (Murroe-Boher, Limerick).
• 11 October – Richie McCarthy, hurler (Blackrock, Limerick).
• 16 October – Eric McGill, association footballer.
• 9 November – Tom Condon, hurler (Limerick).
• 14 November – Brian Gleeson, actor
• 16 November – T. J. Reid, Kilkenny hurler.
• 13 December – Billy Clarke, association footballer.

Deaths

• 2 January – Roger McHugh, professor, author and playwright (born 1908).
• 4 January – Eudie Coughlan, Cork hurler (born 1900).
• 14 January – Ewart Milne, poet (born 1903).
• January – Billy King, cricketer (born 1902).
• 8 April – Kevin McNamara, Archbishop of Dublin (born 1926).
• 19 April – Con Cremin, diplomat (born 1908).
• 22 April – Bill Hayes, association footballer (born 1915).
• 23 April – Oliver J. Flanagan, Fine Gael teachta dála (TD) and cabinet minister (born 1920).
• 27 April – Maurice Gibson, Northern Irish judge (born 1913).
• 8 May – Jim Lynagh, Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) member killed in an ambush by the British Special Air Service during an IRA attack on Loughgall Royal Ulster Constabulary station (born 1956).
• 22 June – John Hewitt, poet (born 1907).
• 30 June – Tommy O'Connor, association footballer.
• 20 July – Denis J. O'Sullivan, Fine Gael TD (born 1918).
• 18 October – Michael Lipper, Labour Party TD (born 1932).
• 25 October – Ivan Beshoff, last survivor of the Russian Potemkin mutiny (born 1882/4 in the Russian Empire).
• 29 October – Monk Gibbon, poet and author (born 1896).
• 5 November – Eamonn Andrews, broadcaster (born 1922).
• 25 November – James McDyer, Roman Catholic priest and community leader (born 1910).
• 8 December – Peadar Livingstone, priest and historian (born 1930).
• 9 December – Seán Brosnahan, Treasurer Irish National Teachers Organisation, member of the Seanad (Senate) from 1961 to 1977 (born 1911).

Full date unknown

• Jimmy Warnock, boxer (born 1912).

Notes and References

1. Book: Cochrane, Gerry. Back in Steam: the Downpatrick and County Down Railway from 1982. Newtownards. Colourpoint. 2009. 978-1-906578-29-9. 95.
2. Book: Buckley, Peter. The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. 2003. 1125. 9781843531050.