1988 in Northern Ireland
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Events during the year 1988 in Northern Ireland.
Incumbents
Events
- 11 January - SDLP leader, John Hume and Gerry Adams of Sinn Féin, have a surprise meeting in Belfast.BBC News Road to Peace Timeline.
- 6 March - Operation Flavius: A Special Air Service team of the British Army shoots dead a Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) Active Service Unit (Danny McCann, Seán Savage and Mairéad Farrell, unarmed at the time) in Gibraltar.
- 16 March - Milltown Cemetery attack: Three men are killed and 70 are wounded in a gun and grenade attack by loyalist paramilitary Michael Stone on mourners at Milltown Cemetery in Belfast during the funerals of the three IRA members killed in Gibraltar.
- 19 March - Corporals killings in Belfast: British Army corporals Woods and Howes are abducted, beaten and shot dead by Irish republicans after driving into the funeral cortege of IRA members killed in the Milltown Cemetery attack.
- 15 June - The IRA kills six British soldiers in a bomb attack in Lisburn.
- 20 August - Ballygawley bus bombing: Eight British soldiers are killed by an IRA bomb attack on their bus in Ballygawley, County Tyrone.{{cite web|url=http://www.larkspirit.com/history/chronology.html|title=Larkspirit Irish History|access-date=2007-02-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070704030438/http://larkspirit.com/history/chronology.html|archive-date=2007-07-04|url-status=dead}}.
- 12 October - As Pope John Paul II addresses the European Parliament, Ian Paisley heckles and denounces him as the Antichrist.
- 19 October - Broadcasting ban against Sinn Féin and other paramilitary linked groups begins.
- 11 November - Belfast Castle is reopened to the public following major renovation by Belfast City Council.
Arts and literature
- 3 October - Marie Jones' play Under Napoleon's Nose is premiered on a schools tour.
- Glenn Patterson's first novel, Burning Your Own, is published.
Sport
=Football=
=Golf=
- October 16 - In golf, Ireland (Eamonn Darcy, Ronan Rafferty, Des Smyth) wins the Dunhill Cup at St Andrew's.
=Motorcycling=
- Robert Dunlop wins the 125cc race at the Cookstown 100.
Births
- 3 January – Jonny Evans, footballer
- 12 January – Chris Casement, footballer
- 4 July – Conor MacNeill, actor
- 23 September – Mark Gallagher, footballer
- 2 November – Lisa Bowman, netball player{{cite web |title=Netball {{!}} Athlete Profile: Lisa BOWMAN - Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games |url=https://results.gc2018.com/en/netball/athlete-profile-n6024506-lisa-bowman.htm |website=results.gc2018.com |accessdate=4 April 2020}}
Deaths
- 2 February - Frederick Blaney, cricketer (born 1918).
- 6 March - Mairéad Farrell, volunteer of the Provisional Irish Republican Army, killed by SAS soldiers during Operation Flavius (born 1957).
- 6 March - Daniel McCann, volunteer of the Provisional Irish Republican Army, killed by SAS soldiers during Operation Flavius (born 1957).
- 6 March - Seán Savage, volunteer of the Provisional Irish Republican Army, killed by SAS soldiers during Operation Flavius (born 1965).
- 2 November - Stewart Parker, poet and playwright (born 1941).
- 22 December - Jack Bowden, cricketer and hockey player (born 1916).
- 24 December – Noel Willman, actor and theatre director (born 1941){{cite book|author=John A. Willis|title=Theatre World|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bfEZAQAAIAAJ|year=1966|publisher=Crown Publishers|isbn=978-0-517-57715-8|page=232}}