The 70's and 80's in Ireland

Grandeeod

Blazer wrote: »

All my cool denim jackets with all the back patches.
Looking at some of the stories I had it pretty good but didn't realise it..old fella worked in same place all his life from 16 to retirement and we never lacked for anything.
I'm a complete tech head and nerd but growing up in the 70s/80s and 90s I wouldn't trade it for growing up today.
They really were awesome times.

I knew I had it better than others in the 80s anyway. While I spent most of that decade living in a council house, my Dad worked (drank like a fookin fish too) but I got enough to feel normal. My Mam argued constantly with my Dad about the drinking, but it was merely the fine line about having a Spanish Costa del whatever holiday or Courtown.:D It was always Courtown.:D Never went hungry, but it took several parental rows to get me a pair of Adidas Rom 90s instead of the Penny's version.

Rubberlegs

Sycamore Tree wrote: »

I was just reminded how we would use the centre page of a newspaper to get the fire lighting by sticking it up against the fireguard and leaving a gap at the bottom to let the air under the fire. So many times that piece of newspaper nearly caught fire.

I remember my Dad holding sheets of newspaper directly over the opening of the fire to get it going and sometimes they would get sucked up the chimney.

Another memory from the 80s would be little altars in every bedroom of my grandparent's house, pictures of the Pope and JFK and various dead relatives on the walls. The seat of the kitchen chairs were a kind of hard material that was imitation leather. If there was a tear in it it would cut the legs off of you.

Rubberlegs

Blazer wrote: »

All my cool denim jackets with all the back patches.
Looking at some of the stories I had it pretty good but didn't realise it..old fella worked in same place all his life from 16 to retirement and we never lacked for anything.
I'm a complete tech head and nerd but growing up in the 70s/80s and 90s I wouldn't trade it for growing up today.
They really were awesome times.

I remember sleeveless denim jackets full of badges and patches that were worn over a leather jacket usually. We called them scruff jackets.

Mam of 4

Anyone else ever buy the studs/metal things , for the heels of your shoes ? Beat them into the heel , hear yourself clicking walking down the road , also added bonus of not wearing the heels on the shoes down as quickly

Grandeeod

Mam of 4 wrote: »

Anyone else ever buy the studs/metal things , for the heels of your shoes ? Beat them into the heel , hear yourself clicking walking down the road , also added bonus of not wearing the heels on the shoes down as quickly

Hell yeah! I wore George Webbs in school:D Expensive stuff back in the day. When they were bought for me my Dad had a cobbler (remember them?) friend and he used to put them on to extend their life and it worked.:eek: A few years later when I had a part time job I loved Simon Harts (most likely a Dublin thing). Spent many a Saturday afternoon in the Ilac Centre branch looking at footwear. Bought many a pixie boot and then cowboy boot there, but always got my Dads friend to add the metal stud to the heel. I loved the "click" sound it gave off. Felt like a feckin rock star.:D

mikemac2

I could be well wrong but I think one day in primary school we were given a marshmallow

It was for polio. A quick glance at Wikipedia states a polio vaccine can be taken orally. So probably marshmallows to distract us and make sure we did it

Sardonicat

mikemac2 wrote: »

I could be well wrong but I think one day in primary school we were given a marshmallow

It was for polio. A quick glance at Wikipedia states a polio vaccine can be taken orally. So probably marshmallows to distract us and make sure we did it

A sugar lump was the usual conduit for the polio vaccination. Maybe vaccine infused marshmallows were used too. Did you get a dose of the runs after? That would suggest you got your polio vaccine.

Mam of 4

Grandeeod wrote: »

Hell yeah! I wore George Webbs in school:D Expensive stuff back in the day. When they were bought for me my Dad had a cobbler (remember them?) friend and he used to put them on to extend their life and it worked.:eek: A few years later when I had a part time job I loved Simon Harts (most likely a Dublin thing). Spent many a Saturday afternoon in the Ilac Centre branch looking at footwear. Bought many a pixie boot and then cowboy boot there, but always got my Dads friend to add the metal stud to the heel. I loved the "click" sound it gave off. Felt like a feckin rock star.:D

We had a great cobbler in town here for years , a pure gentleman ! We used to buy the studs from him and put them on ourselves , hard times
The Ilac centre and Simon Harts were the height of sophistication in my eyes years ago , up from the sticks on the train lol !

Oh , when we were wayy younger and would go to Dublin for the day , we always went to the same hotel for lunch/dinner . We'd walk to the top of O Connell St, then up the hill a little bit , and the hotel was on the right , or maybe on a street to the right . The name is eluding me now , but we always felt privileged to be in a hotel . Great food though , and that's where I had my first taste of coffee !

Happy memories

Grandeeod

Mam of 4 wrote: »

We had a great cobbler in town here for years , a pure gentleman ! We used to buy the studs from him and put them on ourselves , hard times
The Ilac centre and Simon Harts were the height of sophistication in my eyes years ago , up from the sticks on the train lol !

Oh , when we were wayy younger and would go to Dublin for the day , we always went to the same hotel for lunch/dinner . We'd walk to the top of O Connell St, then up the hill a little bit , and the hotel was on the right , or maybe on a street to the right . The name is eluding me now , but we always felt privileged to be in a hotel . Great food though , and that's where I had my first taste of coffee !

Happy memories

Ah yeah, Simon Harts was defo a Dublin thing in the 80s. I saved like feck to buy the latest fashion. When I had little money I bought the cheaper versions from the stalls at the back of the Ilac on Parnell street. Smart Bros. for the clothes aswell in Talbot street. A lads place. Once a year only. While we are not that old, we are starting to sound like old farts.:D But despite having not a pot to piss in overall, it was great. I look at my daughter now and all I see is her always getting what she wants on demand. So I always offer gentle reality to keep her in check.

Now that Hotel you speak of, has to be Barry's Hotel from your description.

Mam of 4

Grandeeod wrote: »

Ah yeah, Simon Harts was defo a Dublin thing in the 80s. I saved like feck to buy the latest fashion. When I had little money I bought the cheaper versions from the stalls at the back of the Ilac on Parnell street. Smart Bros. for the clothes aswell in Talbot street. A lads place. Once a year only. While we are not that old, we are starting to sound like old farts.:D But despite having not a pot to piss in overall, it was great. I look at my daughter now and all I see is her always getting what she wants on demand. So I always offer gentle reality to keep her in check.

Now that Hotel you speak of, has to be Barry's Hotel from your description.

I genuinely can't remember , I may ask one of my brothers tomorrow if they can recall it . We were treated like royalty , the staff wore the old black and white uniforms
Aye , we were the same G , maybe not rich moneywise , but that didn't matter to us at all . We'd wait and appreciate what we were given really , so I get what you're saying about the young ones now .

And nah , we're not fogies at all

AndrewJRenko

Grandeeod wrote: »

Now that Hotel you speak of, has to be Barry's Hotel from your description.

Or the Belvedere? Or Cassidy's?

Grandeeod

Mam of 4 wrote: »

I genuinely can't remember , I may ask one of my brothers tomorrow if they can recall it . We were treated like royalty , the staff wore the old black and white uniforms
Aye , we were the same G , maybe not rich moneywise , but that didn't matter to us at all . We'd wait and appreciate what we were given really , so I get what you're saying about the young ones now .

And nah , we're not fogies at all

I was brought to the Kingfisher restaurant on Parnell street. A chipper! I think its still there. Earlier than that, I remember the Woolworths restaurant in Henry street and then the help yourself one in BHS on O'Connell street. All a treat day out on a Saturday but not every Saturday. Jaysus, I am really feeling old.:(

Mam of 4

Grandeeod wrote: »

I was brought to the Kingfisher restaurant on Parnell street. A chipper! I think its still there. Earlier than that, I remember the Woolworths restaurant in Henry street and then the help yourself one in BHS on O'Connell street. All a treat day out on a Saturday but not every Saturday. Jaysus, I am really feeling old.:(

Ah yeah , but ye could go to Woolworths/BHS every week !
We went once a year
Oh and Hector Greys

Grandeeod

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

Or the Belvedere? Or Cassidy's?

Who knows!:D

Mam of 4

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

Or the Belvedere? Or Cassidy's?

I'll try find out tomorrow

Mam of 4

Grandeeod wrote: »

Who knows!:D

Not me anyway

Grandeeod

I'm going with Barry's in what was once a great street,:D

Mam of 4

Grandeeod wrote: »

I'm going with Barry's in what was once a great street,:D

It probably is it , or else I described the wrong end of O Connell St..

Hotblack Desiato

JupiterKid wrote: »

Daley Thompson. What a man. Wahat an athlete! I fancied him as a young lad! :pac:

Did anyone spot the obvious mistake. Traffic lights don't go from red to amber to green

Hotblack Desiato

snotboogie wrote: »

People always talk about the power of the church in the 70’s and 80’s but the state was the second pillar, almost every industry of note was state owned and the vast majority of well paid jobs were working for the state. I saw a documentary about the county hall in Cork last month and the workers were reminiscing about sunbathing on the roof of the 17th floor, meanwhile Ford had shut its doors and the city was in the depths of a crippling recession. Two different worlds...

Dunlop closed too, that and Ford were crippling blows to the city of Cork. Would almost make you feel sorry for them :P

Hotblack Desiato

Sycamore Tree wrote: »

I was just reminded how we would use the centre page of a newspaper to get the fire lighting by sticking it up against the fireguard and leaving a gap at the bottom to let the air under the fire. So many times that piece of newspaper nearly caught fire.

I remember in 83 or 84 my dad doing exactly that to get a fire going when we were in a holiday home in Co Waterford, we didn't have an open fire at home we had a gas fire (my grandad worked in the gas company so there might have been some sort of discount there)

I had a B/W portable telly for my Sinclair Spectrum, I suggested we bring the portable with us but was told "of course the holiday home will have a telly", it didn't but it did have a massive valve radio!

cameramonkey

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

Did anyone spot the obvious mistake. Traffic lights don't go from red to amber to green

They do in the UK.

Alf Veedersane

Floppybits wrote: »

Were ya asked to cough?

If it was every Friday, making any sound was probably the one thing they were asked not to do.

Hotblack Desiato

cameramonkey wrote: »

They do in the UK.

Nah they go from red to red+amber to green. Apparently all the traffic lights here have the capability to do that too, it's just turned off. I think it'd be useful to get traffic flowing a bit quicker but there's so many red light jumpers in Dublin anyway we'd have to bring in cameras and get people obeying red lights first.

Grandeeod wrote: »

Hell yeah! I wore George Webbs in school:D Expensive stuff back in the day.

I can remember some lads in school wearing them and they thought they were so cool and up their own hole it was amazing.

My mother always insisted I wore boring Clarks shoes bought in Connollys in South Great George's St, long gone now, that was after I grew out of needing those funny shoes with wedges under the insole to stop you becoming knock-kneed Start-Rite Inneraze they were called. The shop had a funny machine that you put your foot into and metal bars moved in to measure your foot :eek:

At least I was young enough to miss out on this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoe-fitting_fluoroscope :eek: sure why bothering having your feet measured by an actual person when you can get a machine to do it that gives you cancer.

Years later I bought Docs at the back of the Ilac centre, didn't everyone? They were great shoes and boots, comfy as f**k once you broke them in and they lasted for years.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZy7vEWeTFY

Hotblack Desiato

Blazer wrote: »

All my cool denim jackets with all the back patches.

Something I always wanted to ask the metallers but never did -

Did they learn to sew, or get their mammies to sew them on?

Paddy Cow

Heroditas wrote: »

Corned beef was fancy back then for sandwiches.
Billy roll, garlic salami or Hazlett were the fillings of choice. The cheap plastic garlic salami though. Christ they all stank!

I've seen it a lot on this thread and feel like I missed out but what schools got free sandwiches? Was this a city thing? We never had free sandwiches (80's, rural Mayo). There was the little cartons of milk/yoghurt type drink but your parents paid for it at the beginning of term (mine never did *sob sob*). We never got buns on a Wednesday or the chance to turn up our noses at corned beef sandwiches. It was jam sandwiches every fcuking day for years on end. No wonder we weren't obese. My friend used to have ham sandwiches with ketchup and I used to be so jealous :pac:

Billy86 wrote: »

Remember that in the early 90s too, our whole class basically got told to just strip down to underpants out of the blue.

Yup we had to do that too. I think they were checking for problems with hips or something. I don't even think they sent home consent forms or anything. Wouldn't get away with it nowadays.

worded

Mam of 4 wrote: »

We had a great cobbler in town here for years , a pure gentleman ! We used to buy the studs from him and put them on ourselves , hard times
The Ilac centre and Simon Harts were the height of sophistication in my eyes years ago , up from the sticks on the train lol !

Oh , when we were wayy younger and would go to Dublin for the day , we always went to the same hotel for lunch/dinner . We'd walk to the top of O Connell St, then up the hill a little bit , and the hotel was on the right , or maybe on a street to the right . The name is eluding me now , but we always felt privileged to be in a hotel . Great food though , and that's where I had my first taste of coffee !

Happy memories

Whyns Hotel ?

Esel

Mam of 4 wrote: »

We had a great cobbler in town here for years , a pure gentleman ! We used to buy the studs from him and put them on ourselves , hard times

Blakeys, IIRC.

ohnonotgmail

worded wrote: »

Whyns Hotel ?

Wynns is down the other end of O'Connell street. The place they are talking about was nearly opposite the garden of remembrance. I think it is Barrys Hotel they are talking about.

mr chips

There were never free sandwiches in either of the primary schools I went to (the first one was a school run by nuns, but boys only attended until the end of first class before having to move to a bigger school in the town), but in the first one there was a free currant bun at breaktime - can't remember now was it every day or once a week, but think it was every day. They were feckin gorgeous looking things that were big and soft and shiny brown on top, full of raisins/sultanas, and there was one each for everyone - except me. Seems my folks were the only ones in employment, or at least earned enough that I wasn't entitled. Felt a bit crap as a six or seven year old that I never got one when everyone else did, but I just sort of accepted it.

One day though, the big tray of buns was brought in and as usual everyone lined up to get theirs, then some went straight out to play while I sat where I was. This time though, a couple of older kids had been left in charge of us at breaktime, and one of them shouted over to me that I needed to come up and get my bun. I answered that I wasn't supposed to get one, and was told "well there's one left over, you may as well have it". So up I went, lifted a currant bun for the first time ever and bit into it. Holy jeebus, it was lovely - I can still remember it decades later. So I sat down to really savour this once-in-a-lifetime experience, and had just taken the second bite when another kid came running in and said "I didn't get my bun ..." I was in total shock!! Felt like I'd been caught stealing and was filled with remorse at having taken this little girl's currant bun - never crossed my mind for a second about the injustice of always having been denied one up to then, of course. #catholicguilt Thankfully one of the older kids said "oh we thought there was an extra one so we gave it to him", or there could have been a few belts of the ruler waiting for me after break.

I've lived in a few places outside Ireland and eaten & drank all sorts of fantastic things, but to this day a soft barmbrack or similar is still a major treat for me!