On This Week: Irish moments from history (June 15th – 21st)
Welcome to On This Week, where we delve into the standout stories from the years gone by, featuring standout news stories, major sporting events, and pop culture highlights that helped shape Irish life. Here’s your dose of Irish history from June 15th – 21st.
This week in Irish life and news
1967: The Kennedys take a family holiday in Ireland
Jacqueline Kennedy arrived at Shannon Airport on the 15 June 1967 with daughter Caroline and son John, less than four years after her husband John F Kennedy was assassinated. The Kennedys were joined by their friends the McDonnells and the party stayed at Woodstown House, Co. Waterford, for a month. On June 16, RTÉ reported on the visit.
Jacqueline Kennedy goes horse riding with her children John and Caroline in Ireland in 1967
A Regency building, the house was situated on its own grounds overlooking Woodstown Beach. The Irish and international media came to see Kennedy party go horse riding.
Jacqueline Kennedy did not spend all her time in County Waterford. She paid a visit to President Éamon de Valera in Áras an Uachtaráin on 30 June 1967 and later attended a dinner in Dublin Castle held in her honour. On 1 July she attended the Irish Sweeps Derby at the Curragh, Co Kildare.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 16 June 1967.
1988: The RUC brings in DNA testing
On this week in 1988, there was criticism of the British decision to empower the RUC police in Northern Ireland to take swabs from the mouths of terrorist suspects without their permission. DNA testing was a new development at the time, as the report explained:
Previously, examination of saliva, blood, semen or human tissue could only indicate the probability of their having come from a particular person. Now, however, certain marks can be detected in the genetic structure of human cells, marks which say scientists are as unique to each individual as fingerprints.
The use of DNA testing was a new development in the late 1980s
Dr Peter Humphreys of Trinity College Dublin says that the new scientific development can detect the individual genetic makeup of every individual.
Now using DNA technology, using DNA probes, we can actually distinguish the genetic material of each individual.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 17 June 1988. The reporter is Tom McCaughren.
On this week in arts and entertainment
1962: Exploring Joyce’s Dublin
54 years ago, RTÉ marked Bloomsday with a journey through Joyce’s Dublin. Accompanied by excerpts from Ulysses, an episode of the programme Broadsheet broadcast on 15 June 1962 paid a visit to some of the locations in Dublin mentioned by James Joyce’s famed novel.
Dublin in 1962, as seen in Broadshee’s Bloomsday tribute
Sandymount Strand, Eccles Street and St George’s Church on Hardwicke Place featured, as well as Westland Row Railway Station (now Pearse Street Station), Glasnevin Cemetery, Merchant’s Arch, the Ha’penny Bridge and the River Liffey, the National Library of Ireland, Trinity College and the Bank of Ireland on College Green, and the Dublin Corporation Fruit and Vegetable Market on Mary’s Lane, of which Joyce wrote:
And red green yellow brown russet sweet big bitter ripe pomellated apples and chips of strawberries and sieves of gooseberries, pulpy and pelurious, and strawberries fit for princes…
Broadsheet’ was a magazine style, nightly review of people and events introduced by John O’Donoghue and presented by the Broadsheet Unit.
1976: Horslips rock out
On 21st June 1976, RTÉ broadcast a film of Celtic rock band ‘Horslips’ performing at the National Stadium in Dublin.
The concert actually took place on 13 December 1975. Part one of the performance was broadcast on RTÉ Television on 30 December 1975 as On Stage at the Stadium and part two six months later on 21 June 1976.
Horslips on stage at the Stadium
The excerpt presented here is from the second part of the show with Horslips playing ‘You Can’t Fool the Beast’, from their album ‘The Táin’.
Horslips members include Jim Lockhart on flute, Barry Devlin on bass guitar, Charles O’Connor on guitar, Eamon Carr on drums and Johnny Fean also on guitar.
This episode of ‘On Stage at the Stadium’ was broadcast on 21 June 1976.
1995: Remembering Rory Gallagher, Ireland’s first rock star.
Rory Gallagher died in London on 14 June 1995. Three days later Dave Fanning presented a tribute to the Irish blues and rock musician. Fanning first came across Rory Gallagher as the frontman of the band ‘Taste’ in 1968, when they were supporting Cream in London. In 1970, Gallagher broke up the band and embarked on a solo career. Fanning said,
Rory became a great friend of 2FM or Radio 2 as it was when it started in 1979.
Dave Fanning presented the tribute to his old friend
Dave Fanning recalls Rory Gallagher as,
Always charming, always modest, always shy. In a nutshell, he was one of the nicest guys I ever met.
Between 1970 and 1975, Gallagher was at his most prolific musically, writing many songs, releasing albums and performing live. The tribute included a clip from an appearance on the Late Late Show, originally broadcast on 12 February 1988, in which Gallagher gave an acoustic solo performance of ‘Out on the Western Plain’.
This week in sports
1974: Honouring the athletes of the Tailteann Games
On 17 June 1974, participants from the first Tailteann Games in 1924 games were honoured in Croke Park. The Tailteann Games (Aonach Tailteann) was a festival held at Tara, County Meath from 632 BC until approximately 1168 AD. The games were a combination of sporting and cultural competitions.
In 1924, the Tailteann Games were re-established in modern form. The 11th annual Willwood sponsored Tailteann Festival launched at Croke Park coincided with the 50th anniversary of this event.
The Tailteann flame burning at Croke Park in 1974
To mark the occasion top athletes of half a century ago were honoured and presented with commemorative certificates by Chairman of the Dublin City Commissioners Fred Mullen. Also in attendance was former Olympic champion and Tailteann Games winner Dr Harold Osborn. He was meeting runner up Larry Stanley for the first time since the competition.
Larry Stanley lit the Tailteann flame which would burn for the duration of the Games. He also unveils a plaque on the Hogan Stand to commemorate the 50th anniversary.
This occasion is followed by a Leinster Senior Football Championship match between Offaly and Dublin.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 17 June 1974. The reporter is Dermot Mullane.
1994: Ireland beats Italy in the World Cup
There was joy on the streets of Dublin on this week in 1994 after the Republic of Ireland beat Italy in their opening game at the World Cup. O’Connell Street in Dublin was initially deserted while fans watched the Republic of Ireland soccer team play their first match of the tournament. After Ireland beat Italy 1-0 at the Giants Stadium in New York, people poured onto the street to celebrate, causing it to be closed to traffic for over two hours.
Fans celebrating Ireland’s victory
Fans gave their reaction to RTÉ News. A number of nationalities shared the joy in Ray Houghton’s winning goal including a Mexican, whose home team would be next to face Ireland.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 19 June 1994. The reporter is David McCullagh.
What was number one in Ireland this week?
1985: ”I’m On Fire/Born in the USA’ by Bruce Springsteen
The Boss was number one for two weeks in June 1985 with this double A-side
Bruce Springsteen
1996: ‘Killing Me Softly’ by the Fugees
Previously a massive hit for Roberta Flack in 1973, the Fugees’ version of this song was a huge hit thirty years ago, staying at the top of the charts for seven weeks.
The Fugees
2007: ‘Umbrella’ by Rhianna and Jay-Z
Rhianna spent a whopping eight weeks at number one with this classic song.
Rhianna in the ’00s
Famous Irish names celebrating birthdays this week
Iarla Ó Lionáird
The musician and producer turns 62 on June 18th.
Gary Lightbody
The Snow Patrol frontman celebrates his fiftieth birthday on June 15th.
Aidan Turner
The star of Rivals and Poldark turns 43 on June 19th.