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Child Item

The 70's and 80's in Ireland

Kermit.de.frog

What was it like in the 1980's in Ireland?

I have seen pictures, video and my god it looked like a depressing place. :eek:

Grey, delapidated, hopeless.

What was it like? How did you get by without internets, wheelie bins, toilets...?

Would you go back if you could??

*Might as well throw in the 70's too for people of that vintage.

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Seanachai

Walter Bishop wrote: »

Home of some of the greatest acting ever:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4sco7g51Zo

The fight scene with Jim Bartlett is worth it alone, some kind of fusion of kung-fu meets drunk Irish fella outside a chipper fight

branie2

Dermot Morgan played a host in the film who introduced a stripper act.

Seanachai

branie2 wrote: »

Dermot Morgan played a host in the film who introduced a stripper act.

I'm going to see if I can download it this weekend and watch it with the brother, should be a bit of craic.

farmchoice

i was a kid of the 80's too young to really notice all the misery although i was aware of relations emigrating and the pain that caused to my aunts, looking back now my cousins who had to go were very young 18,19 only kids no wonder their mothers was upset.

but we lived in new housing estate, it was all young families so loads of kids to play with. we seemed to have complete freedom to do as we pleased. they were still building new houses at the back of the estate so it was just a giant very dangerous playground, the very best type.

there was a brilliant community spirit, the residents association arranged sports days every year and 5 a side tournaments and a big bonfire on bonfire night (23 June around here) with a barbecue and a live band. we would collect tires and pallets and what have you. i remember we once got a load of pallets from a local factory and the older kids (12-14) floated them down the river to the estate. in hindsight this was so mindbogglingly dangerous that it it happened now people would go to jail for allowing it to happen.

Hamsterchops

Drab, dreary, backwards, isolated, mono cultural, Priest ridden, blinkered, intolerant, poor, inward looking and depressing....

It was like another world back then in the70s & early 80s, then something happened, and the green shoots of "catch-up" were sown, and Ireland gradually began to pull itself out of the grave depression that it seemed to wallow in for so long post Independence.
Very hard (impossible) for young people to know how black & white the place was back then.
London was a great escape for many of us at the time.

Just remembered the 1st British shop (BHS) to arrive in Dublin on O'Connell Street early 80s, only to be picketed by Sinn Fein " No British shops here" their placards proclaimed

SirGerryAdams

RustyNut wrote: »

Life before Mobile phones, feckin bliss.

Smart phones really drive me crazy.

I'm just so sick of going anywhere and seeing people stuck looking into their phones. Go to a restaurant, standing at a bus stop, even at home with my housemate watching tv.

ohnonotgmail

Hamsterchops wrote: »

Drab, dreary, backwards, isolated, mono cultural, Priest ridden, blinkered, intolerant, poor, inward looking and depressing....

It was like another world back then in the70s & early 80s, then something happened, and the green shoots of "catch-up" were sown, and Ireland gradually began to pull itself out of the grave depression that it seemed to wallow in for so long post Independence.
Very hard (impossible) for young people to know how black & white the place was back then.
London was a great escape for many of us at the time.

Just remembered the 1st British shop (BHS) to arrive in Dublin on O'Connell Street early 80s, only to be picketed by Sinn Fein " No British shops here" their placards proclaimed

I'm pretty BHS opened in the late 70's. I remember getting a pair of runners from there at the same time my oldest sister got married.

_blaaz

SirGerryAdams wrote: »

Smart phones really drive me crazy.

I'm just so sick of going anywhere and seeing people stuck looking into their phones. Go to a restaurant, standing at a bus stop, even at home with my housemate watching tv.

Id sooner people stuck in their phones than blowing head off me with small talk though

Ya...its annoying to look at...but alternative is multiple times worse

Grayson

Seanachai wrote: »

I'm going to see if I can download it this weekend and watch it with the brother, should be a bit of craic.

I don't have sound on my laptop on when I'm in work but a quick google turned up this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nfN0khSQAM

is_that_so

ohnonotgmail wrote: »

I'm pretty BHS opened in the late 70's. I remember getting a pair of runners from there at the same time my oldest sister got married.

Built in 1977 by G & T Crampton.

cgcsb

topper75 wrote: »

I
An Irish CB ran the rate for the punt. It was a currency/rate for OUR economy, not for a depressed German banking sector or a roaring Parisian property market. It was ours. By us, for us.
And our politicians gave that away without ever asking us.

Was it not pegged to the value of sterling until the 90s?

is_that_so

cgcsb wrote: »

Was it not pegged to the value of sterling until the 90s?

Think it was in 1979 with the inception of the ERM, which Britain did not join.

Seanachai

Hamsterchops wrote: »

Drab, dreary, backwards, isolated, mono cultural, Priest ridden, blinkered, intolerant, poor, inward looking and depressing....

It was like another world back then in the70s & early 80s, then something happened, and the green shoots of "catch-up" were sown, and Ireland gradually began to pull itself out of the grave depression that it seemed to wallow in for so long post Independence.
Very hard (impossible) for young people to know how black & white the place was back then.
London was a great escape for many of us at the time.

Just remembered the 1st British shop (BHS) to arrive in Dublin on O'Connell Street early 80s, only to be picketed by Sinn Fein " No British shops here" their placards proclaimed

I was only a kid for most of it, I wasn't really exposed to a lot of the misery. I have a memory of people being less busy and burdened, I really liked the 90's. I don't like a lot of the legacy from the boom.

Hotblack Desiato

Very few people had a teletext TV in the 80s. Aertel didn't even launch until 1987.

Ush1

White dog sh*te and chewing gum flattened all over the paths.

ohnonotgmail

Ush1 wrote: »

White dog sh*te and chewing gum flattened all over the paths.

You dont really see either of those any more.

Walter Bishop

Seanachai wrote: »

I'm going to see if I can download it this weekend and watch it with the brother, should be a bit of craic.

The whole thing is on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nfN0khSQAM

cgcsb

Ush1 wrote: »

White dog sh*te and chewing gum flattened all over the paths.

white dog ****e?

ohnonotgmail

cgcsb wrote: »

white dog ****e?

It certainly was. I believe it was caused by the content of dogfood back then. it has a lot more bone in it that cause the ****e to turn white.

cgcsb

ohnonotgmail wrote: »

It certainly was. I believe it was caused by the content of dogfood back then. it has a lot more bone in it that cause the ****e to turn white.

SharpshooterTom

Seanachai wrote: »

I was only a kid for most of it, I wasn't really exposed to a lot of the misery. I have a memory of people being less busy and burdened, I really liked the 90's. I don't like a lot of the legacy from the boom.

I don't think a lot of people in Ireland personally have found memories of the 90s. It was considered a miserable decade for the vast majority.

branie2

I was a teenager in the 90s, from 1992, until the day before my 20th birthday in 1999

Seanachai

ohnonotgmail wrote: »

You dont really see either of those any more.

You don't live on the North-side do you? My neighbourhood and the ones adjacent to it are literally covered in a mottled blanket of dogs**t. I've seen tourists recoil at the sight of it, it's gotten that bad.

Seanachai

ThomasFlynn wrote: »

I don't think a lot of people in Ireland personally have found memories of the 90s. It was considered a miserable decade for the vast majority.

I was a young teenager, listening to rock music and the prodigy, working part-time and enjoying the hot summers. I had no major responsibilities, so I kind of have a rose-tinted view of the 90's.

farmchoice

ThomasFlynn wrote: »

I don't think a lot of people in Ireland personally have found memories of the 90s. It was considered a miserable decade for the vast majority.

na the 90's was a great decade it kicked off with italia 90 which is hard to describe if you didn't live through it or were too young but it was like a national rebirth or something.

then from about 1994 everything was on the up and it was there for all to see, and the country was changing in every way, church control collapsed, peace in the north, even silly thing like winning the eurovision repeatedly.
the bad side of the boom didn't really materialize until the mid 2000's.
the mid to late 90's was a really brilliant time in Ireland to be young.

JupiterKid

ThomasFlynn wrote: »

I don't think a lot of people in Ireland personally have found memories of the 90s. It was considered a miserable decade for the vast majority.

I would beg to differ, as I think many other would also. The 1990s was the decade our economy turned a corner, the power of the church collapsed, Ireland became a much more inclusive and tolerant society and prosperity came to many who really struggled in the bleak 1980s. Great music as a soundtrack to a decade of rapid changes for the better.

Great time to be in college too!!:D

SharpshooterTom

farmchoice wrote: »

na the 90's was a great decade it kicked off with italia 90 which is hard to describe if you didn't live through it or were too young but it was like a national rebirth or something.

How was Euro 88 viewed? Fewer teams obviously back then but it was Irelands first ever tournament, I think they had some near misses in the early 80s from qualifying for others.

valoren

ohnonotgmail wrote: »

It certainly was. I believe it was caused by the content of dogfood back then. it has a lot more bone in it that cause the ****e to turn white.

September 1983

What need you, being come to sense,
But fumble in a greasy till
And add the halfpence to the pence
And prayer to shivering prayer, until
You have to feed the hound from the bone
For men were born to pray and save
And walk the street avoiding the sh1te
With all that dog poo turned to white.

ohnonotgmail

Seanachai wrote: »

You don't live on the North-side do you? My neighbourhood and the ones adjacent to it are literally covered in a mottled blanket of dogs**t. I've seen tourists recoil at the sight of it, it's gotten that bad.

yes, but is it white?

farmchoice

ThomasFlynn wrote: »

How was Euro 88 viewed? Fewer teams obviously back then but it was Irelands first ever tournament, I think they had some near misses in the early 80s from qualifying for others.

it was brilliant and joyous and it primed the pump for 1990. the day we beat England!! the 12th of June 1988 ill never forget it it was the day idid my confirmation and i refused to go out to a restaurant for something to eat, i had to go home to watch it.

then afterwards everyone was mad for Jackie Charlton and the team every qualifying game was followed so it just built and built for italy.
the qualifying home games were always on a wedensday afternoon because there were no floodlights in lansdowne road at the time. so everyone would be trying to get off school. the principle took to making up spurious reason to have half days!! i think we were only school for one of them!!