Events during the year 2016 in Ireland.

Incumbents

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Michael D. Higgins Michael Daniel Higgins ( ga, Mícheál Dónal Ó hUigínn; born 18 April 1941) is an Irish politician, poet, sociologist, and broadcaster, who has served as the ninth president of Ireland since November 2011. Entering national politics throug ...

Taoiseach The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...

Enda Kenny Enda Kenny (born 24 April 1951) is an Irish former Fine Gael politician who served as Taoiseach from 2011 to 2017, Leader of Fine Gael from 2002 to 2017, Minister for Defence from May to July 2014 and 2016 to 2017, Leader of the Opposition from ...

( FG) *

Tánaiste The Tánaiste ( , ) is the deputy head of the government of Ireland and thus holder of its second-most senior office. The Tánaiste is appointed by the President of Ireland on the advice of the Taoiseach. The current office holder is former Taoi ...

: **

Joan Burton Joan Burton (born 1 February 1949) is a former Irish Labour Party politician who served as Tánaiste and Leader of the Labour Party from 2014 to 2016, Minister for Social Protection from 2011 to 2016, Deputy Leader of the Labour Party from 2 ...

( Lab) (until 6 May 2016) ** Frances Fitzgerald ( FG) (from 6 May 2016) *

Minister for Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...

: Michael Noonan ( FG) * Chief Justice:

Susan Denham Susan Jane Denham, SC (''née'' Gageby; born 22 August 1945) is a retired Irish judge who served as Chief Justice of Ireland from 2011 to 2017, she was the first woman to hold the position. She served as a Judge of the Supreme Court from 1992 to ...

* Dáil: ** 31st (until 3 February 2016) ** 32nd (from 10 March 2016) * Seanad: ** 24th (until 9 February 2016) ** 25th (from 8 June 2016)

Events

January

* Memorials and events marking the

Centenary of the Easter Rising The centenary of the Easter Rising occurred in 2016. Many events occurred to mark the occasion. Note that Easter Day fell on 27 March in 2016 and on 23 April in 1916. The Rising began on Easter Monday, 24 April 1916. Events On 20 January, Irel ...

took place nationwide throughout the year.

February

* 3 February –

dissolved the

31st Dáil 31 (thirty-one) is the natural number following 30 and preceding 32. It is a prime number. In mathematics 31 is the 11th prime number. It is a superprime and a self prime (after 3, 5, and 7), as no integer added up to its base 10 digits ...

and announced 26 February as the date of a general election. * 5 February – One man was killed and two were wounded during a shooting at the Regency Hotel in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. * 8 February – A man was shot dead in a gangland shooting in Dublin. * 26 February – The 2016 general election was held.

March

* 10 March – The

32nd Dáil 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

met for the first time. Talks on government formation began and continued until 6 May. * 20 March – Five family members from

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

died after their car slipped off the pier at

Buncrana Buncrana ( ; ) is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is beside Lough Swilly on the Inishowen peninsula, northwest of Derry and north of Letterkenny. In the 2016 census, the population was 6,785 making it the second most populous town in Cou ...

, County Donegal into

Lough Swilly Lough Swilly () in Ireland is a glacial fjord or sea inlet lying between the western side of the Inishowen, Inishowen Peninsula and the Fanad Peninsula, in County Donegal. Along with Carlingford Lough and Killary Harbour it is one of three glaci ...

. * 27 March (

Easter Sunday Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the ''Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...

) – The

Easter Rising centenary parade The Easter Rising centenary parade took place in Dublin city on Easter Sunday, 27 March 2016 to commemorate the centenary of the Easter Rising. It involved all branches of the Defence Forces, including the Army, Air Corps, Naval Service and Res ...

took place in Dublin.

May

* 6 May – The

elected a Taoiseach and a new Cabinet was announced. * 9 May – A gathering of naturists at

Curracloe Curracloe () is a village in County Wexford, a few miles northeast of the town of Wexford, Ireland. It lies on the R742 regional road at the junction with R743, and is linked to the long and sandy Curracloe Strand (beach) by the short R743 ro ...

Strand,

County Wexford County Wexford ( ga, Contae Loch Garman) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Southern Region. Named after the town of Wexford, it was based on the historic Gaelic territory of Hy Kinsella (''Uí Ceinns ...

was criticised by the Mayor of

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 N ...

, councillor Ger Carthy. The Irish Naturist Association stated that no-one asked the men and women to leave. * 20 May –

Brendan Howlin Brendan Howlin (born 9 May 1956) is an Irish Labour Party politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Wexford constituency since 1987. He previously served as Leader of the Labour Party from 2016 to 2020, Minister for Public Expenditu ...

was

elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a populatio ...

unopposed as leader of the Labour Party, succeeding

June

* 13 June – The

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

football team played their first match, against

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

, at the

Euro 2016 The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...

football competition. * 21 June – The US Vice President Joe Biden arrived in Ireland for a six-day visit with his brother and sister, daughter, and five grandchildren. His itinerary included visits to his ancestral counties of

Louth Louth may refer to: Australia *Hundred of Louth, a cadastral unit in South Australia * Louth, New South Wales, a town * Louth Bay, a bay in South Australia **Louth Bay, South Australia, a town and locality Canada * Louth, Ontario Ireland * Cou ...

and

Mayo Mayo often refers to: * Mayonnaise, often shortened to "mayo" * Mayo Clinic, a medical center in Rochester, Minnesota, United States Mayo may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Mayo Peak, Marie Byrd Land Australia * Division of Mayo, an Aust ...

, the neolithic monument at

Newgrange Newgrange ( ga, Sí an Bhrú) is a prehistoric monument in County Meath in Ireland, located on a rise overlooking the River Boyne, west of Drogheda. It is an exceptionally grand passage tomb built during the Neolithic Period, around 3200 BC, ...

County Meath County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the sou ...

, and engagements in

including meeting President

and Taoiseach

. Biden visited Ireland a number of times previously in a private capacity.

September

2 September – The body of Philip Finnegan, missing since 10 August, was found in Rahin Wood,

County Kildare County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...

Sports

Association football

;

UEFA Euro 2016 The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe o ...

Gaelic games

;

2016 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final The 2016 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final was the 129th event of its kind and the culmination of the 2016 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship. It was played at Croke Park in Dublin on 4 September 2016. This was the 18th All-Irela ...

* 4 September – Kilkenny 2–20 – 2-29 Tipperary ;

2016 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final The 2016 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, the 129th event of its kind and the culmination of the 2016 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, was a Gaelic football match played at Croke Park in Dublin on 18 September 2016 and ...

* 1 October – Dublin 1-15 – 1-14 Mayo (Replay)

Horse racing

* 18 March –

Don Cossack Don Cossacks (russian: Донские казаки, Donskie kazaki) or Donians (russian: донцы, dontsy) are Cossacks who settled along the middle and lower Don. Historically, they lived within the former Don Cossack Host (russian: До� ...

, trained by

Gordon Elliott Gordon Elliott may refer to: * Gordon Elliott (journalist) Gordon Elliott (born 30 September 1956) is a British Australian journalist and producer, radio and television personality, based now in the United States. He was the executive produc ...

, wins the

2016 Cheltenham Gold Cup The 2016 Cheltenham Gold Cup (known as the Timico Gold Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 88th annual running of the Cheltenham Gold Cup horse race and was held at Cheltenham Racecourse on Friday 18 March 2016. The race was won by the 9 to 4 ...

, Europe's most prestigious

steeplechase Steeplechase may refer to: * Steeplechase (horse racing), a type of horse race in which participants are required to jump over obstacles * Steeplechase (athletics), an event in athletics that derives its name from the steeplechase in horse racing ...

Rugby union

finish third, behind

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, in the

2016 Six Nations Championship The 2016 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2016 RBS 6 Nations due to the tournament's sponsorship by The Royal Bank of Scotland, was the 17th series of the Six Nations Championship, the annual northern hemisphere rugby union championship. I ...

. * 5 November – Ireland defeated the New Zealand All Blacks for the first time in 111 years on 5 November 2016 in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

on a scoreline of 40–29.

Summer Olympics: Rio de Janeiro

;Qualification * 21 February –

Oliver Dingley Oliver Dingley (born 24 November 1992) is an international diver who represents Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, nor ...

qualifies for the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

, the first Irish diver to do so since 1948 (68 years). * 17 April –

Ellis O'Reilly Ellis Jacqueline O'Reilly (born 23 February 1998) is a retired English-born female artistic gymnast, who represented Republic of Ireland, Ireland at international competitions, most notably at the Gymnastics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Women' ...

becomes the first female gymnast to qualify for an Olympics representing Ireland. * 22 June – golfer

Rory McIlroy Rory Daniel McIlroy (born 4 May 1989) is a professional golfer from Northern Ireland who is a member of both the European and PGA Tours. He is the current world number one in the Official World Golf Ranking, and has spent over 100 weeks in tha ...

announces his withdrawal from the Olympics. * 23 June – golfer

Graeme McDowell Graeme McDowell (born 30 July 1979) is a professional golfer from Northern Ireland. He has a total of eleven tournament victories on the European Tour, and four on the PGA Tour, including one major championship, the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Be ...

announces his withdrawal from the Olympics, citing the expected birth of his second child. * 28 June – golfer

Shane Lowry Shane Lowry (born 2 April 1987) is an Irish professional golfer who plays on the European Tour and the PGA Tour. His notable achievements include winning the 2019 Open Championship, the Irish Open as an amateur in 2009, and the 2015 WGC-Brid ...

announces his withdrawal from the Olympics. ;Event * 4 August – the ''

Irish Examiner The ''Irish Examiner'', formerly ''The Cork Examiner'' and then ''The Examiner'', is an Irish national daily newspaper which primarily circulates in the Munster region surrounding its base in Cork, though it is available throughout the country. ...

'' reports that an Irish male boxer tested positive for a banned substance on the eve of the Olympics. He is later named as Michael O'Reilly. O'Reilly becomes the first athlete to test positive for drugs at the 2016 Olympics. * 5 August – on the day of the

2016 Summer Olympics opening ceremony The opening ceremony of the 2016 Summer Olympics took place on the evening of Friday 5 August 2016 in the Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro, starting at 20:00 BRT (23:00 UTC). As mandated by the Olympic Charter, the proceedings combined the ...

, police in Rio de Janeiro arrest two people for attempted illegal resale of hundreds of tickets allocated to the

Olympic Council of Ireland The Olympic Federation of Ireland or OFI ( ga, Cónaidhm Oilimpeach na hÉireann) (called the Irish Olympic Council until 1952 and the Olympic Council of Ireland until 2018) is the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of the island of Ireland. At ...

(OCI). * 7 August – Michael O'Reilly's legal team announces it is to officially appeal the boxer's proposed suspension following a failed drug test. * 8 August – boxing captain

Paddy Barnes Patrick Gerard Barnes (born 9 April 1987) is an Irish former boxer who competed as an amateur from 2005 to 2016 and as a professional from 2016 to 2019. As an amateur he competed in the light-flyweight division, representing Ireland at the 2008 ...

, who medalled at the previous two Olympics, loses his opening bout to a Spaniard in a shock result. * 9 August – boxer Michael O'Reilly is ruled out of the Olympics after announcing he is no longer contesting his proposed suspension and admitting to taking a supplement that may have contained a banned substance. * 14 August –

Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport The Minister for Transport ( ga, An tAire Iompair) is a senior minister in the Government of Ireland and leads the Department of Transport. The current Minister for Transport is Eamon Ryan, TD. He is also Minister for the Environment, Climate ...

Shane Ross Shane Peter Nathaniel Ross (born 11 July 1949) is a former Irish Independent politician who served as Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport from May 2016 to June 2020. He was a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin Rathdown constituency from 2 ...

flies to Rio de Janeiro to meet with OCI president Pat Hickey in a bid to have Hickey permit an independent member be included on the OCI's own inquiry into the ticketing fiasco. * 15 August – defending lightweight champion

Katie Taylor Katie Taylor (born 2 July 1986) is an Irish professional boxer and former footballer. She is a two-weight world champion and the current undisputed lightweight champion, having held the WBA title since 2017; the IBF title since 2018; and the ...

loses her Olympic crown to a Finn in her opening bout. * 16 August – boxer Michael Conlan, a favourite for the gold medal, loses his opening bout to a Russian in contentious circumstances. * 17 August – OCI president

Pat Hickey Patrick Hickey may refer to: * Patrick Hickey (artist) (1927–1998), Irish visual artist * Pat Hickey (ice hockey) (born 1953), Canadian ice hockey player * Pat Hickey (footballer) (1871–1946), Australian rules footballer * Pat Hickey (politicia ...

is arrested naked in a hotel room in Rio de Janeiro and charged with three crimes. * 18 August – the now former OCI president

is photographed being wheeled to prison from a hospital in his pyjamas. As well as resigning as OCI president, Hickey also resigns his membership of the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

, his role as president of the

European Olympic Committees The European Olympic Committees is an organisation based in Rome, Italy, consisting of 50 National Olympic Committees from the continent of Europe.EOC members include transcontinental countries Turkey and the Russian Federation, as well as Israel, ...

and his role as vice-president of the

Association of National Olympic Committees The Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) is an international organization that affiliates the current 206 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Each year it gathers all its membe ...

. Meanwhile, Shane Ross returns to Dublin. * 21 August – the 2016 Summer Olympics concludes, as more IOC officials are sought by Brazilian police and the organisation's former president remains locked up in a Rio de Janeiro jail.

Arts and literature

* May – Mike McCormack's novel ''Solar Bones'' is published by

Tramp Press Tramp Press is a publishing company founded in Dublin in 2014 by Lisa Coen and Sarah Davis-Goff. It is an independent publisher that specialises in Irish fiction. The company is named after John Millington Synge's tramp, a reference to the bold ...

of Dublin; it wins this year's

Goldsmiths Prize The Goldsmiths Prize is a British literary award, founded in 2013 by Goldsmiths, University of London, in association with the ''New Statesman.'' It is awarded annually to a piece of fiction that "breaks the mould or extends the possibilities of ...

. * 20 October –

Sebastian Barry Sebastian Barry (born 5 July 1955) is an Irish novelist, playwright and poet. He was named Laureate for Irish Fiction, 2019–2021. He is noted for his lyrical literary writing style and is considered one of Ireland's finest writers. Barry's l ...

's novel ''Days Without End'' is published; it wins this year's

Costa Book Awards The Costa Book Awards were a set of annual literary awards recognising English-language books by writers based in UK and Ireland. Originally named the Whitbread Book Awards from 1971 to 2005 after its first sponsor, the Whitbread company, then ...

in the novel and overall categories. * 3 November –

Cecelia Ahern Cecelia Ahern (born 30 September 1981) is an Irish novelist, known for her works like '' PS, I Love You''; ''Where Rainbows End''; and '' If You Could See Me Now''. Born in Dublin, Ahern is now published in nearly fifty countries, and has sold o ...

's novel ''Lyrebird'' is published. *

John Boyne John Boyne (born 30 April 1971) is an Irish novelist. He is the author of eleven novels for adults and six novels for younger readers. His novels are published in over 50 languages. His 2006 novel ''The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas'' was adapte ...

's novel ''The Heart's Invisible Furies'' is published.

Deaths

January to July

* 3 January – Amby Fogarty, 82,

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

er (

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

Hartlepool United Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They were founded in 1908 as Hartle ...

Cork Celtic Cork Celtic F.C., originally Evergreen United F.C., was an Irish football club based in Cork. They played in the League of Ireland between 1951 and 1979 and played their home games at Turners Cross. In 1974, they were League of Ireland champion ...

and

Cork Hibernians Cork Hibernians F.C. were an Irish football club based in Cork. They played in the League of Ireland between 1957 and 1976 and, from 1962, played their home games at Flower Lodge. In 1971, they were League of Ireland champions. History The ...

). * 5 January – Gerry O'Malley, 87,

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

er and hurler (

Roscommon Roscommon (; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60, N61 and N63 roads. The name Roscommon is derived from Coman mac Faelchon who built ...

). * 6 January –

Christy O'Connor Jnr Christy O'Connor Jnr (born Christopher O'Connor; 19 August 1948 – 6 January 2016) was an Irish professional golfer. He is best known for defeating American Fred Couples at the 1989 Ryder Cup, helping Europe secure the trophy. Early life O'C ...

, 67,

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

er. * 7 January –

Patrick Connolly Patrick James Connolly (25 May 1927 – 7 January 2016) was an Gaels, Irish barrister who served as Attorney General of Ireland from March 1982 to August 1982. Early life and career Connolly was born on 25 May 1927, the elder of the two sons ...

, 88,

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

. * 8 January –

Paddy Reid Patrick Joseph Reid (17 March 1923 – 8 January 2016) was an Irish dual-code rugby centre. Reid played club rugby under the rugby union code for Garryowen, and played international rugby for Ireland, and was part of the Grand Slam winning team ...

, 91, rugby union player. * 15 January – P. J. Mara, 73, public affairs consultant and senator, long illness. * 16 January – Molly Madden, 109, Ireland's oldest person. * 17 January – Billy Quinn, 80, hurler (

Tipperary Tipperary is the name of: Places *County Tipperary, a county in Ireland **North Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Nenagh **South Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Clonmel *Tipperary (town), County Tipperary's na ...

). * 19 January – John Corcoran, 56, Gaelic games administrator, heart attack. * 23 January – Micheál McGeary, 68, Gaelic games journalist. * 25 January – The O'Donovan, 84, hereditary chief of the O'Donovan family. * 30 January – Peter Quinn, 90,

er (

). * 31 January –

Terry Wogan Sir Michael Terence Wogan (; 3 August 1938 – 31 January 2016) was an Irish radio and television broadcaster who worked for the BBC in the UK for most of his career. Between 1993 and his semi-retirement in December 2009, his BBC Radio 2 weekd ...

, 77, broadcaster, cancer. * 2 February **Fergus O'Farrell, 48, singer. **John V. Halloran, 85, ''

RTÉ News RTÉ News and Current Affairs ( ga, Nuacht agus Cúrsaí Reatha RTÉ), also known as RTÉ News (''Nuacht RTÉ''), is the national news service provided by Irish public broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann. Its services include local, nationa ...

'' editor. * 3 February –

Mark Farren Mark Farren (1 May 1982 – 3 February 2016) was an Irish footballer who played as a forward for Derry City in his prime.Derry City F.C. Derry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Derry, Northern Ireland. It plays in the League of Ireland Premier Division, the top tier of league football in the Republic of Ireland, and is the League of Ireland ...

), cancer. * 7 February – Peter Turley, 33, Gaelic footballer ( Down). * 15 February –

Paul Bannon Paul Anthony Bannon (15 November 1956 – 15 February 2016) was an Irish professional association football, footballer who played most of his career as a Forward (association football), centre forward, moving to centre half for his last few yea ...

, 59, footballer (

Cork City F.C. Cork City Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Chathair Chorcaí) is an Irish association football club based in Cork. The club was founded and elected to the League of Ireland in 1984. It was one of the first clubs in Ireland (and the first in ...

). * 17 February –

George Redmond George Redmond (c. 1924 – 17 February 2016) was an Irish Assistant City and County Manager until his retirement on 23 June 1989 at the age of 65. He spent his entire career working for the Dublin local authorities commencing as a clerk in Dublin ...

, 92, Dublin county planning manager, short illness. * 18 February – Jimmy Donnelly, 87, footballer ( Belfast Celtic F.C.). * 19 February –

Din Joe Crowley Denis Joseph Crowley (1945 – 19 February 2016) was an Irish Gaelic footballer who played as a midfielder for the Kerry senior team. Born in Rathmore, County Kerry, Crowley was introduced to Gaelic football in his youth. At club level he lin ...

, 70, Gaelic footballer (

Kerry Kerry or Kerri may refer to: * Kerry (name), a given name and surname of Gaelic origin (including a list of people with the name) Places * Kerry, Queensland, Australia * County Kerry, Ireland ** Kerry Airport, an international airport in County ...

). * 23 February – Johnny Murphy, 72, actor, respiratory failure. * 26 February – Henry Comerford, 79, actor and solicitor. * 28 February **

Frank Kelly Francis Kelly (28 December 1938 – 28 February 2016) was an Irish actor, singer and writer, whose career covered television, radio, theatre, music, screenwriting and film. He is best remembered for playing Father Jack Hackett in the Channel ...

, 77, actor, heart attack. **Peter Keogh, 86, Gaelic games journalist. * 7 March –

Adrian Hardiman Adrian Hardiman (21 May 1951 – 7 March 2016) was an Irish judge who served as a Judge of the Supreme Court from 2000 to 2016. Early life and education Adrian Hardiman was born on 21 May 1951, in Coolock, Dublin. His father was a teacher and Pr ...

, 64, Supreme Court judge. * 10 March **

Jim McNamara James Patrick McNamara (born June 10, 1965) is a former professional baseball player. He played parts of two seasons in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the San Francisco Giants in 1992-93. Career Prior to being drafted by the Giants in t ...

, 76, athlete. **Larry Wren, 93, Commissioner of the

Garda Síochána (; meaning "the Guardian(s) of the Peace"), more commonly referred to as the Gardaí (; "Guardians") or "the Guards", is the national police service of Ireland. The service is headed by the Garda Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Gover ...

. * 14 March –

Davy Walsh David Joseph Walsh (28 April 1923 – 14 March 2016), commonly referred to as Davy Walsh or Dave Walsh, was an Irish footballer who played as a centre forward for, among others, Linfield, West Bromwich Albion and Aston Villa. Walsh was a dual ...

, 92,

Irish international The Irish Future Series or ''Irish International'' is an international badminton tournament held in Ireland. This tournament has been a BWF Future Series, Future Series level, another tournament for higher tournament level is Irish Open (badminton) ...

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

. * 15 March ** Robert Carrickford, 88, actor. ** Dick Burke, 83, politician, TD (1969-1977 & 1981–1982), Minister for Education (1973-1976) and

European Commissioner A European Commissioner is a member of the 27-member European Commission. Each member within the Commission holds a specific portfolio. The commission is led by the President of the European Commission. In simple terms they are the equivalent ...

(1977-1980 & 1982–1984). * 16 March –

Brian Smyth Brian Smyth (born 1967) is an Irish figurative painter. Born in Cork, Smyth studied art at the Crawford College of Art and Design in Cork, where he specialised in painting and graduated with an honours degree in art and design in 1995. Subsid ...

, 91, Gaelic footballer ( Meath). * 19 March – Paddy Philpott, 79, hurler (

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

). * 22 March – Eugene Treanor, Gaelic footballer ( Down). * 24 March – Brendan Sloan, 67, Gaelic footballer ( Down). * 26 March – Paddy O'Brien, 91, Gaelic footballer ( Meath). * 31 March – Ben Garrett, 21, soldier. * 3 April – Seán O'Shea, 88, public relations guru. * 10 April – Michael John Shinnick, 62, Chief Scout of

Scouting Ireland Scouting Ireland ( ga, Gasóga na hÉireann) is one of the largest youth movements on the island of Ireland, a voluntary educational movement for young people with over 45,000 members, including over 11,000 adult volunteers . Of the 750,000 peo ...

. * 18 April –

Sir John Leslie, 4th Baronet Captain Sir John Norman Ide Leslie, 4th Baronet (6 December 1916 – 18 April 2016), known locally as Jack Leslie, was the eldest son of Sir John Randolph Leslie, 3rd Baronet (known as Shane Leslie), and Marjorie Ide. He became the fourth ba ...

, 99, British Army officer, aristocrat and media personality. * 20 April – James Downey, 82, ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

'' and ''

Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'' journalist. * 2 May – Basil Blackshaw, 84, artist. * 10 May –

Jack Boothman John Henry "Jack" Boothman (12 October 1935 – 10 May 2016) was the 31st president of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) between 1994 and 1997. He was an active member of his local Blessington GAA club in County Wicklow. He was chairman of t ...

, 80, President of the GAA. * 14 May –

Christy O'Connor Snr Patrick Christopher "Christy" O'Connor (21 December 1924 – 14 May 2016) was an Irish professional golfer. He was one of the leading golfers on the British and Irish circuit from the mid-1950s. O'Connor won over 20 important British and Irish t ...

, 91, professional

er. * 16 May – Joey Maher, 82, world handball champion. * 17 May –

Seán Ardagh Seán Ardagh (25 November 1947 – 17 May 2016) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin South-Central constituency from 1997 to 2011. A chartered accountant by profession, Ardagh obtained his qua ...

, 68, politician, TD (1997-2011), cancer. * 20 May –

Joe McDonagh Joseph McDonagh (November 1953 – 20 May 2016) was an Irish hurler and, later, Gaelic games administrator, who served as the president of the Gaelic Athletic Association from 1997 until 2000. He played hurling with his club Ballinderree ...

, 62,

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...

hurler and President of the GAA, short illness. * 4 June – Michael Keane, 69, journalist and newspaper editor, heart condition. * 10 June **

John Horgan John Joseph Horgan (born August 7, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 36th premier of British Columbia from 2017 to 2022, and also as the leader of the British Columbia New Democratic Party from 2014 to 2022. Horgan has been the ...

, 66, hurler (

), long illness. ** Ambrose Hickey, 71, Gaelic footballer (

Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...

), short illness. * 13 June – Tony Byrne, 70,

. * 25 June – Séamus Power, 86, hurler (

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

). * 28 June –

Freddie Gilroy Frederick Gilroy (7 March 1936 – 28 June 2016) was a Northern Irish boxer. Gilroy won a bronze medal for Ireland at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne at Bantamweight. As a professional, he took the Commonwealth (British Empire) and ...

, 80,

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

bronze medal winner.

July to December

* 4 July – Séamus Mac Géidigh, 54, Raidió na Gaeltachta manager and journalist. * 5 July ** Mick Finucane, 93, Gaelic footballer (

), short illness. **

Phonsie O'Brien Alphonsus Septimus 'Phonsie' O'Brien (15 Sep 1929 – 5 July 2016) was an Irish jockey and racehorse trainer. He was the youngest of a combined seven sons born in Churchtown, County Cork to the two marriages of Dan O'Brien, and full-brother of r ...

, 86, jockey and racehorse trainer. * 8 July – Mícheál Ó Nualláin, 88, artist, illustrator and designer. * 20 July – Mary Canavan, 108, Ireland's oldest person, natural causes. * 24 July – Finbarr Flood, 77, chairman of the Labour Court. * 26 July ** John Thomas McNamara, 41, jockey, complications following a broken neck. ** Jerry Molyneaux, 60, hurling coach and Gaelic games administrator. * 30 July – Paddy Lalor, 90, TD (1961-1981),

Minister for Posts and Telegraphs The Minister for Posts and Telegraphs ( ga, Aire Poist agus Telegrafa) was the holder of a position in the Government of Ireland (and, earlier, in the Executive Council of the Irish Free State). From 1924 until 1984 – when it was abolished � ...

(1969-1970), Minister for Industry and Commerce (1970-1973), Government Chief Whip (1977-1979), MEP (1979-1994). * 4 August – Michael Walsh, 50,

handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the g ...

player regarded as the greatest of all time, short illness. * 8 August – Edward Daly, 82,

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

priest and author. * 9 August – Pádraig Duggan, 67, musician, recurring illness. * 10 August – John Bennett, 82, hurler (

). * 13 August – Liam Tuohy, 83, footballer (

Shamrock Rovers Shamrock Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí na Seamróige) is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most su ...

) and manager. * 20 August – Louis Stewart, 72, jazz guitarist. * 22 August – Milo Corcoran, 65, president of the Football Association of Ireland, short illness. * 24 August – Larry Higgins, 87, Gaelic footballer (

). * 26 August – Peter Barry, 88,

Fine Gael Fine Gael (, ; English: "Family (or Tribe) of the Irish") is a liberal-conservative and Christian-democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil � ...

politician, short illness. * 29 August – Anne O'Brien, 60, former footballer and coach, short illness. * 3 September – Adrienne Rock Boucher, 51, model and former Miss Ireland. * 9 September – Ailish Sheehan, 23, rower, accident. * 15 September –

Greg Maher Greg Maher (14 May 1967 – 15 September 2016) was an Irish Gaelic footballer who played as a right wing-forward at senior level for the Mayo county team. References 1967 births 2016 deaths Claremorris Gaelic footballers Gaelic foot ...

, 49, former Gaelic footballer (

), long illness. * 25 September – Bertie O'Hanlon, 91, former rugby union player. * 28 September –

Seamus Dunne Seamus Dunne (13 April 1930 – 28 September 2016) was an Irish professional footballer from Wicklow, best known as a player for English side Luton Town. Playing career Dunne joined Luton Town from Shelbourne in July 1950 and made his debu ...

, 86, former

. * 2 October –

Bobby Molloy Robert Molloy (9 July 1936 – 2 October 2016) was an Irish politician who served as Minister of State for Housing and Urban Renewal and Minister of State to the Government from 1997 to 2002, Minister for Energy from 1989 to 1992, Minister for D ...

, 80, former

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christian- ...

and

Progressive Democrats The Progressive Democrats ( ga, An Páirtí Daonlathach, literally "The Democratic Party" ), commonly referred to as the PDs, was a conservative-liberal political party in the Republic of Ireland. Launched on 21 December 1985 by Desmond O'Mal ...

TD. * 13 October – Martin Naughton, 62, disability rights campaigner. * 16 October **

Anthony Foley Anthony Gerard Foley (30 October 1973 – 16 October 2016) was an Irish rugby union player and head coach of Munster. He was attached to the same squad during his professional playing career. He was a member of the Munster team that won the 200 ...

, 42, head coach of

Munster Rugby Munster Rugby ( ga, Rugbaí Mumhan) is one of the four professional provincial rugby teams from the island of Ireland. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup. The team represents the IRFU's Munster B ...

. **

Mickey Byrne Michael Byrne (10 September 1923 – 16 October 2016), better known as "the Rattler" Byrne, was an Irish hurler whose league and championship career with the Tipperary senior team spanned fifteen years from 1945 to 1960. Born in Dublin, Byr ...

, 93, former hurler (

). * 18 October ** Paddy Beisty, 90, former Gaelic footballer (

). **

Francis Flood Francis Flood (c.1930 – 18 October 2016) was an Irish horse racing trainer who specialized in National Hunt racing. Flood, who trained at stables at Grangecon in County Wicklow, recorded his most notable victory as a trainer when Glencaraig La ...

, 86, horse trainer. * 20 October **

Fergus O'Brien Fergus O'Brien (30 March 1930 – 19 October 2016) was an Irish Fine Gael politician who served as Government Chief Whip and Minister of State at the Department of Defence from 1981 to 1982 and 1986 to 1987 and Lord Mayor of Dublin from 1980 to ...

, 86, former

politician. **Pat Flynn, former hurler (

), heart attack. * 21 October –

Moscow Flyer Moscow Flyer (10 May 1994 – 21 October 2016) was an Irish-bred and -trained National Hunt horse who ran over distances between 2 miles and 2½ miles (3.2–4 km). A top-class horse, he won the Queen Mother Champion Chase in 2003 and ...

, 22,

National Hunt In horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Republic of Ireland, National Hunt racing requires horses to jump fences and ditches. National Hunt racing in the UK is informally known as "jumps" and is divided into two major distinct branches: ...

horse, colic. * 29 October – Gerry O'Reilly, former Gaelic footballer (

Wicklow Wicklow ( ; ga, Cill Mhantáin , meaning 'church of the toothless one'; non, Víkingaló) is the county town of County Wicklow in Ireland. It is located south of Dublin on the east coast of the island. According to the 2016 census, it has ...

). * 4 November –

Khalid Kelly Khalid Kelly, born Terence Edward Kelly (1967 – 4 November 2016), also known as Abu Osama Al-Irlandi and Taliban Terry was an Irish Muslim convert and at one time the leader of Al-Muhajiroun in Ireland. Kelly was once a nurse. He was jailed ...

, 48/49, Irish

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

convert and at one time the leader of

Al-Muhajiroun Al-Muhajiroun ( ar, المهاجرون, "The Emigrants") is a Proscription, proscribed militant network based in Saudi Arabia. The founder of the group was Omar Bakri Muhammad, a Syrian who previously belonged to ''Hizb ut-Tahrir''; he was not p ...

in Ireland. * 12 November – Joe McCarthy, 43, former Gaelic footballer (

Cavan Cavan ( ; ) is the county town of County Cavan in Ireland. The town lies in Ulster, near the border with County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. The town is bypassed by the main N3 road that links Dublin (to the south) with Enniskillen, Bally ...

). * 15 November **Owen Gribbin, 90, former Gaelic footballer (

). **Ray Brady, 79, former

. * 20 November – William Trevor, 88, author. * 23 November – Joe Lennon, 81, former Gaelic footballer ( Down). * 24 November – Jim Connors, former hurler (

). * 3 December – Willie Casey (Gaelic footballer), Willie Casey, 84, former Gaelic footballer (

), short illness. * 7 December – Mick Roche, 73, former hurler (

). * 10 December – John Montague (poet), John Montague, 87, poet, complications following surgery. * 14 December – Gillian Bowler, 64, businesswoman, illness. * 28 December ** Anthony Cronin, 88, poet and arts activist. ** Michel Déon, 97, French novelist who lived and died in Galway * 29 December – Aodán Mac Póilin, 68, Irish language activist, short illness.Aodan Mac Poilin: Trailblazer promoted Irish language without politics
belfasttelegraph.co.uk

References

{{Year in Europe, 2016 2016 in Ireland, 2010s in Ireland Years of the 21st century in Ireland