Reeling in the Years
1981
Episode Synopsis
In 1981, Ronald Reagan is sworn in as U.S. President, sparking celebrations in his ancestral Ballyporeen, Ireland. A fire at Dublin’s Stardust Club kills 44. Protests fail to stop the IRFU’s controversial rugby tour of South Africa. Ireland hosts Eurovision, with Sheeba representing and Buck’s Fizz winning. Republican prisoners, led by Bobby Sands, go on hunger strike for political status. Sands is elected MP but dies, triggering mass protests. An Aer Lingus jet is hijacked over the Third Secret of Fatima. A turbulent general election sees Garret Fitzgerald form a short-lived coalition. Prince Charles weds Lady Diana. Riots erupt over the hunger strikes, and Kieran Doherty, a newly elected TD, dies. The strike ends after ten deaths, with prisoners’ demands later met. 1981 also sees assassination attempts on Reagan and the Pope, while Egyptian President Anwar Sadat is killed.
