1981 in Ireland

Incumbents

• President: Patrick Hillery
• Taoiseach:
• * Charles Haughey
• * Garret FitzGerald
• Tánaiste:
• * George Colley
• * Michael O'Leary
• Minister for Finance:
• * Gene Fitzgerald
• * John Bruton
• Chief Justice: Tom O'Higgins
• Dáil:
• * 21st
• * 22nd
• Seanad:
• * 14th
• * 15th

  Events

February

• 6 February – Attacks on shipping in Lough Foyle : 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. In 2024 these would be declared as unlawful killings.

  March

• 1 March – Bobby Sands began a hunger strike in the Maze Prison near Lisburn.
• 5 March – A petrol strike ended when 800 tanker drivers resumed work.

  April

• 10 April – Hunger striker Bobby Sands was elected Member of Parliament for Fermanagh and South Tyrone in the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

  May

• 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 died on the 61st day of their hunger strike in the Maze Prison.

  June

• 11 June – 1981 Irish general election. Fianna Fáil lost seats and a Fine Gael–Labour Party coalition government was formed. Kieran Doherty, on hunger strike in the Maze Prison, was elected Teachta Dála for Cavan–Monaghan.
• 30 June – Fine Gael leader Garret FitzGerald was elected taoiseach as the 22nd Dáil Éireann assembled.

  July

• 8 July – Provisional Irish Republican Army member Joe McDonnell died on the 61st day of his hunger strike.
• 25 July – During a fire at Portlaoise Prison, Irish Army Private Thomas Metcalfe scaled a forty-foot high drainpipe in darkness and rescued a comrade trapped on a blazing rooftop. He later received the Military Medal for Gallantry.

  August

• 1 August – Irish National Liberation Army member Kevin Lynch died on the 71st day of his hunger strike in the Maze Prison.
• 2 August – Kieran Doherty, TD, died on the 73rd day of his hunger strike in Long Kesh.

  September

• 11 September – The Irish Sugar Company announced that it was to close its factory in Tuam, County Galway.

  December

• 5 December – Harry Flynn of the terrorist Irish National Liberation Army survived a murder attempt in Dublin, ordered by the INLA leader Gerard Steenson. Flynn was in The Flowing Tide pub at the corner of Abbey Street and Marlborough Street in the city centre when a gunman entered and shot at Flynn, but his gun jammed and he fled. Flynn survived his wounds.
• 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 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 amendment to the Constitution.

  Undated

• The 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, 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.
• 16 August – The first Slane Concert was held at Slane Castle featuring performers Thin Lizzy, Hazel O'Connor, The Bureau, Megahype, Rose Tattoo, Sweet Savage, and U2.
• 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 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.
• English-born painter Derek Hill donated St. Columb's Rectory, near Churchill, County Donegal, along with a considerable collection including work by Pablo Picasso, Edgar Degas, Georges Braque, Graham Sutherland, and Jack Butler Yeats, to the Irish State.
• A proposed design for a new Áras an Uachtaráin was created by Rem Koolhaas, but was never built.

  Sport

Association football

• Ireland narrowly missed qualifying for the 1982 World Cup finals in Spain on goal difference.

  Gaelic football

• Kerry beat 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

• The Irish Open was won by Sam Torrance.

  Hurling

• Offaly won their first All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, beating Galway by 2–12 to 0–15 in the final.

  Births

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

  Full date unknown

• Derek Hardiman, Galway hurler.
• Natasha Nic Gairbheith, 2004 Miss Ireland.
• Seán O'Connor, Limerick hurler.
• Kevin Tobin, Limerick hurler.
• Orla Tobin, 2003 Rose of Tralee winner.

  Deaths

• 1 January – Sir Anthony Esmonde, 15th Baronet, Fine Gael Teachta Dála and Member of the European Parliament.
• 21 January – Norman Stronge, Ulster Unionist Party politician and Speaker of the Northern Ireland House of Commons for 23 years.
• 8 April – Gretta Bowen, artist.
• 2 May – Tommy Moroney, association footballer and rugby player.
• 17 June – Nora Connolly O'Brien, political activist, daughter of James Connolly.
• 2 July – Billy Gillespie, association footballer.
• 7 July – Donal Foley, Irish Times journalist.
• 21 August – Eddie Byrne, actor.
• 24 August – Jackie Vernon, association footballer.
• 7 September – Christy Brown, author, painter and poet.
• 13 October – Oisín Kelly, sculptor.
• 15 October – James Auchmuty, historian.
• 17 November – Nano Reid, painter.
• December – Fred Kiernan, association footballer.

  Full date unknown

• Muriel Brandt, painter.