1966 in Northern Ireland

Events during the year 1966 in Northern Ireland.

Incumbents

• Governor - The Lord Erskine of Rerrick
• Prime Minister - Terence O'Neill

Events

• 1 January - Start of The Troubles as retrospectively defined by the UK Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023 for the purposes of the act.
• 17 April - In Belfast, the Easter Rising is commemorated by large republican parades.
• 26 June - Ulster Volunteer Force engages in three sectarian murders.
• 23 November - By-election for the Parliament of Northern Ireland in the Queen's University of Belfast constituency, the last election prior to the seat's abolition in 1969. Robert Porter (Ulster Unionist Party) wins.
• Divis Tower in Belfast is built.

Arts and literature

• Seamus Heaney's first poetry collection, Death of a Naturalist.
• Ulster Orchestra founded in Belfast by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, with Maurice Miles as its first principal conductor and János Fürst as leader.

Sport

Football

• Irish League

:Winners: Linfield

• Irish Cup

:Winners: Glentoran 2 - 0 Linfield

Births

• 3 January - Martin Galway, composer for games.
• 24 January - Jimeoin, comedian and actor.
• 8 March - Enda Gormley, Gaelic footballer.
• 25 March - Anton Rogan, footballer.
• 16 August - Barry McElduff, Sinn Féin MLA.
• 30 August - Peter Cunnah, singer and songwriter.
• 12 October - Brian Kennedy, singer, Eurovision song contestant and writer.
• 28 October - Jules Maxwell, songwriter and composer.
• 16 November - Paul Millar, footballer and football manager.
• 12 December - Ian Paisley, Jr., Democratic Unionist Party MLA.
• 20 December - Dekker Curry, cricketer.
• 27 December - Henry Downey, Derry GAA hurler and Gaelic footballer.
• John McCrea, comic artist.
• Cathy Wilkes, multimedia artist.

Deaths

• 28 March - Patrick McCartan, Sinn Féin MP and TD, member of 1st Dáil, a founder member of Clann na Poblachta (born 1878).
• 1 April - Brian O'Nolan, novelist, satirist and humorist (born 1911).
• 15 July - Sydney Sparkes Orr, Professor of Philosophy at the University of Tasmania (born 1914).

See also

• 1966 in Scotland
• 1966 in Wales

References