Pick a decade to be a teenager in Ireland

Chin Stroker

50s: ???

60s: apparently a boom time for the economy and the introduction of mind bending drugs (if thats your thing)

70s: Cool fashion and music

80s: Mmmm computer games

90s: Ireland's football glory days

00s: The Bebo Generation?

Id probably go with the 70s for the reasons listed. What decade would you choose to grow up in?

Celly Smunt

85-95.But employed.

Mariasofia

The swingin' 60's would have been great craic I'd say.

Augmerson

1990s. Football, Sega, Spice Girls, Father Ted.

kneemos

They were all miserable apart from the nineties and noughties.

Rothko

90's

andyman

I wish I was a teenager in the 90s.

Ihatecuddles-old

I'm 21 so I was a part of the bebo generation! I'd pick 90's, my brothers were teens then and I was so jealous of everything they did. Going to Faces and 92 seemed so cool.

saabsaab

Not the seventies - I was there. Awful fashion mostly crap music too.

Duckworth_Luas

Augmerson wrote: »

1990s. Football, Sega, Spice Girls, Father Ted.

I was there.

I was also a teenager so I thought all of that was $hit!

seven_eleven

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pa6SGYWADU

On a serious note: I'm in my early 20's, and my memories of the 90's are really 98-99 (97 at a stretch). From what I remember it was a glorious time to be a young child. I remember the songs on the radio, the sweets, the general atmosphere etc.

I cant really say I experienced the 90's all that much but from what I remember it was great. Probably a different story for adults and teens though.

Then when 2002/2003 came around, everything seemed to change. I dont know how to explain it, but everything became bloated and irritating.

flossy1

1960s I was 10-20 during 60s Music was great Beatles Rolling Stones etc.

Poor TV and not everyone had one. Sex was a mystery, and the short skirts drove us all mad

I often long for the 60s again

BraziliaNZ

The 90s was great. I was born in 1980 so I was unaware of the grimness of the 80s with the North and recession and what not. In the 90s I was never out of a job since I turned 13 and there was a great optimism about the place. Or maybe that was just me and all teenagers are optimistic. I wouldn't like to be part of this overly exposed internet generation either. I used to beat off to the tanning section of an Argos catalogue. I can't imagine what having all kinds of weird pornography available must be doing to young minds these days. And Social Networking ffs. Girls were better looking in the 90s too.

KeithM89

The 1920's so i can be in that Michael Collins movie.

anncoates

80s

EdenHazard

2006/2007 the glory years for southside teenagers.

Jimoslimos

Chin Stroker wrote: »

90s: Ireland's football glory days

Really? Let me see, there was Italia '90 and USA '94......then nothing. A couple of weeks of progressing out of the group stages from an entire decade - I'll pass.

However the music, the TV (last decade of decent television before the internet), the computer games were all better than the previous decade. Plus being the perfect age to take full advantage of the internet revolution.

Femme_Fatale

Jimoslimos wrote: »

Really? Let me see, there was Italia '90 and USA '94......then nothing. A couple of weeks of progressing out of the group stages from an entire decade

Still Ireland's football glory days though.

Loopy

Defo the 80's

MadYaker

Ihatecuddles wrote: »

I'm 21 so I was a part of the bebo generation! I'd pick 90's, my brothers were teens then and I was so jealous of everything they did. Going to Faces and 92 seemed so cool.

I'm 22 but id really rather our generation wasn't known as the Bebo generation. Anyway the 00s get my vote. I had a good time.

Jimoslimos

Femme_Fatale wrote: »

Still Ireland's football glory days though.

Well I wouldn't like to live through Ireland's football dark days then...

Wait...in what decade did Macedonia beat Ireland?:(

castletownman

I'd give my left nut to have been of a drinking age in 1996 amongst the throngs of people out on the streets of my hometown celebrating Wexford winning the All-Ireland. Would've been amazing.

So yeah the 1990's. Dodgy haircuts and lots of denim aside

seven_eleven

flossy1 wrote: »

1960s I was 10-20 during 60s Music was great Beatles Rolling Stones etc.

Poor TV and not everyone had one. Sex was a mystery, and the short skirts drove us all mad

I often long for the 60s again

Ah jaysis. Now I feel sad/too young.

markomuscle

i'd go for the 1590's myself or viking age ireland to be a young man.

R P McMurphy

1990s definitely - the asylum, ufo

razorgil

not sure what decades, but anytime when you could see the original line-ups of led zeppilin, thin lizzy, the who, the doors live

Belle E. Flops

I'd love to have been a teenager in the mid 60s - mid 70s, but not in Ireland. As far as I know Ireland wasn't as 'swingin' as Britain or the US.

ShazGV

I was a teenager the 00s & it was pretty good to me. The 60s would've been fantastic if only for the music.

Superbus

1950s, I'd love to fully experience being socially repressed by a hostile, all-powerful religious force and live in a cold, small cottage with no heating or electricity. What a time to be alive.

Geomy

1990s the music was quite good, grunge, indie, rave, techno, house, alternative, metal....

I love all kinda music, I remember the clubbing scene and disco bar's were hopping...

My friends and I spent most of our weekend's from 94 to 99 travelling the country from Clare to Sir Henry's Cork, the Castle Salthill, CP's Galway,Spirals Tralee, Langtons Kilkenny, Kellys Portrush,Queens Ennis, O Looneys Lahinch, Doc's Limerick, Fibbers Bunratty.
Hacienda Manchester,

The Micky Mack Dance Show was the sound track of Saturday nights during the 90s

The fishing was also way better during the 90s

Nadser

1990s. Before then you had to go to a chemist and ask at the counter in order to get contraceptives. Condom machines became legal in the 90s - sexual freedom way hey!

losthorizon

I would love to have been in my very early 20s between 1967-1973 in California.

As it was I was a teenager in Ireland in the 80s - that was cool enough and i just listened to all that great alt 80s music and 60s psychedelic and love generation stuff.

krudler

I was born in 81 so dont remember much of the 80's apart from the later years. But the 90's for the most part rocked.

Decent cartoons, too many to mention but off the top of my head Earthworm Jim, The Tick, Animaniacs, Pinky and The Brain, Taz-Mania, Duck Tales, X-Men, Batman The Animated Series....

TV shows? The X-Files, The classic Simpsons episodes, Father Ted, Buffy, Twin Peaks, Friends, Fresh Prince, Freaks and Geeks, Ally McBeal, ER, Homicide:Life On The Street, Law and Order.

Music? The Prodigy, Blur, Oasis, REM, Pulp, Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, Deftones, Green Day, Faith No More, Pearl Jam, Rage Against The Machine, Soundgarden, Alice In Chains, Massive Attack.

Movies? Jurassic Park, Goodfellas, Terminator 2, The Shawshank Redemption, Silence of The Lambs, The Lion King, Toy Story, Fight Club, The Matrix, Pulp Fiction, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, Se7en, JFK, Boogie Nights, American History X, Out of Sight, Groundhog Day, Scream, LA Confidential, Schindler's List, Reservoir Dogs.

Video Games? Street Fighter 2, Mortal Kombat, Goldeneye, Super Mario 64, Sonic The Hedgehog, Tekken 3, Doom Resident Evil, Super Metroid, Zelda III, Time Crisis, Daytona USA, Final Fantasy 7, Metal Gear Solid.

Not to mention the beginnings of the internet, a decent economy, better summers, a new millennium looming, and a generally positive outlook on life. Damn that was a good decade to be a teenager.

The current decade, apparently they're all riding like rabbits.

oppenheimer1

People are forgetting that Ireland was not America during earlier decades, and the likes of rock and roll, and the swinging sixties were alien to vast swaths of the country. Such liberalism would only have been seen in pockets in Dublin, perhaps around Trinity and UCD.

Ireland was and still is to a certain extent a very conservative country. In terms of prosperity the best decade to have been born in would have been the early to mid eighties. You would have seen free third level introduced, probably have parents who could find work and most likely would have been young enough to avoid getting caught up in the property mania. Maybe would havee been able to secure a good job after uni too without being forced to emigrate if you didn't want to.

losthorizon

oppenheimer1 wrote: »

People are forgetting that Ireland was not America during earlier decades, and the likes of rock and roll, and the swinging sixties were alien to vast swaths of the country. Such liberalism would only have been seen in pockets in Dublin, perhaps around Trinity and UCD.

Ireland was and still is to a certain extent a very conservative country. In terms of prosperity the best decade to have been born in would have been the early to mid eighties. You would have seen free third level introduced, probably have parents who could find work and most likely would have been young enough to avoid getting caught up in the property mania. Maybe would havee been able to secure a good job after uni too without being forced to emigrate if you didn't want to.

You are taking the piss!

freshpopcorn

I'd have to say the Noughties!

oppenheimer1

losthorizon wrote: »

You are taking the piss!

No. The mid to late nineties was a great time to be a teenager in Ireland and the early noughties a great time to be a student

Ilyana 2.0

Probably the 90s, I would have just loved the grunge era.

I'm 21 and while being a noughties teenager was great, the prospect of graduating from college in two years' time with little chance of employment here is just depressing.

SilverScreen

I was a teenager during the early to mid 00's and I wouldn't change that. I enjoyed the music, I enjoyed the fashion and I enjoyed the films that came out. I always had a part-time job, plenty of money and life was optimistic.

While the 60's, 70's and 80's might seem rosy to a lot of people I'm sure racism, sexism and homophobia were rife during those decades. Must have been the days alright...

shrewdness

seven_eleven wrote: »

Then when 2002/2003 came around, everything seemed to change. I dont know how to explain it, but everything became bloated and irritating.

Did you have a similar experience to Stan? :pac:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRSYhLn4RCI

Urquell

Is there such a thing as a good time to be a teenager ?

languagenerd

I was born in 91, so teenager in the 00s, student until recently. I think I would have liked to have been born just a few years earlier in terms of culture - to catch the start of the punk revival/grunge era in music and to have grown up without so much emphasis on the Internet. It genuinely worries me how much my generation rely on social networks and phones, even more so when I look at my younger cousins who are just total zombies when they have their smartphones in their hands. I think (could be wrong) that people were a bit more social a few years ago.

But I wouldn't like to go back too far - as a girl, I think Ireland in the 00s was a pretty good time and place to be a teenager. Experienced very little sexism growing up, girls were never considered inferior to boys in terms of jobs/school and we were always told to aim high. A couple decades earlier, women still had to leave their jobs in civil service when they got married and any unmarried woman/young girl who got pregnant was shunned. Glad I missed all that!

ArtSmart

the 20's

(2020 that is)

Pingi

00-06 were my teenage years and I wouldn't trade them

Clothes were massive baggy jeans made by Hobo or Road, tight tops, comfy skate shoes, key chains and metal ball necklaces

Music was Nu Metal, RAP and Pop punk, Movies were alright and I lived in part of Ireland that had broadband from 01. Who remembers FACEPARTY and Oceanfree chat?!

I had a part time job from 15 onward that gave me more than enough spends,

All my friends and I all thought we'd grow up to be able to pick and choose careers and have loads of money from looking at the young adults of the time....

ArtSmart

Superbus wrote: »

1950s, I'd love to fully experience being socially repressed by a hostile, all-powerful religious force and live in a cold, small cottage with no heating or electricity.

just wait another few years....


it's a-coming.

Lando Griffin

The 1910s cos Ireland was united and drugs were not illegal and everyone would have at least 12 siblings to play with.

Dick Masterson

I'd do anything to relive the '90s again.

Dick Masterson

Lando Griffin wrote: »

The 1910s cos Ireland was united and drugs were not illegal and everyone would have at least 12 siblings to play with.

United under British rule. I don't envy them to be fair.

markomuscle

Lando Griffin wrote: »

The 1910s cos Ireland was united and drugs were not illegal and everyone would have at least 12 siblings to play with.

why 1910's? would be the same any decade before that

Agricola

90s definitely. If you were hitting 16/17 in the mid to late 90s you were growing up at a time when the country was seeing some real prosperity for the first time. A whole generation of people had the chance to go to 3rd level following the removal of fees in 96.

(The whole "Oasis/Fr Ted/better weather/Internet before it took over our lives" was pretty great too)