2012 in Ireland

For Northern Ireland, see 2012 in Northern Ireland.

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See also:	2012 in Northern Ireland Other events of 2012 List of years in Ireland

Events during the year 2012 in Ireland.

Events

January

• The occupation of the Vita Cortex plant in Cork, which closed in December, continued into the new year.
• 1 January — The Government stopped paying expenses to former taoisigh (prime ministers), while sweeping price increases for goods and services, and in value added tax (VAT), affected consumers when decisions announced in Budget 2012 came into effect. A controversial €100 household charge was applied, as were large increases in transport fares, motor taxation, and health insurance costs.
• 2 January — Ireland was battered by bad weather.
• 3 January — A new €2 coin was issued by the Central Bank of Ireland as it celebrated ten years of the euro.
• 3 January — Occupy Cork: The NAMA-listed Stapleton House on Oliver Plunkett Street was occupied in the city.
• 8 January — Fine Gael politician and RTÉ broadcaster Barry O'Neill was involved in controversy when photographs appeared on Facebook of his new wife giving Nazi salutes beside models of Adolf Hitler and other Nazis during their European honeymoon.
• 12 January — Ulster Bank announced plans to cut 950 jobs from its Irish operations by the end of the year, with around 600 to be cut in the Republic of Ireland.
• 13 January — The Criminal Law Defence and the Dwelling Act 2011, drafted after the 2004 death of John Ward, came into effect.
• 14 January — A couple from Clonmel escaped with their lives after the 114,500-tonne Costa Concordia, with more than 4,000 people on board, ran aground off the Italian coast; they soon returned home.
• 15 January — A fatal fishing disaster occurred off the south west coast. Three bodies were later found; two others remain missing.
• 16 January — Occupy Belfast: The Bank of Ireland was occupied in the city.
• 16 January — Seán Quinn, Ireland's richest person as recently as 2008, was declared bankrupt at the High Court.
• 16 January — Proinsias De Rossa resigned as MEP for the Dublin constituency, to be replaced by Emer Costello.
• 22–3 January — The strongest solar proton storm since 2003 created a rare display of the aurora borealis in Ireland that was observed by thousands of people in north County Donegal, and as far south as Charlestown, County Mayo.
• 24 January — Debt campaigners dressed as zombies converged on the Irish embassy in Britain to highlight the presence of zombie banks such as the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (formerly Anglo Irish Bank).
• 25 January — Ireland paid another €1.25 billion to Anglo Irish Bank bondholders against the wishes of the country's people.
• 25 January — Protesters travelled from Galway to Dublin to rally outside Leinster House against the septic tank charge being brought in by the Fine Gael/Labour coalition.
• 25 January — The websites of the Departments of Justice and Finance were disabled by a cyber attack.
• 25 January — The Office of the Data Protection Commission wrote to Dublin City Council about its giving the personal details of 140,000 customers to a private waste company called Greyhound.
• 26 January — An earthquake classified as minor (magnitude 2.2) struck County Donegal.
• 26 January — Dublin officially began its term as the European City of Science 2012.
• 26 January — Dáil Éireann passed the Water Services Amendment Bill, allowing the government to charge rural dwellers for their septic tanks, as well as to inspect them.
• 26 January — Taoiseach Enda Kenny, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, told the world that Irish people "went mad borrowing" from a banking system that spawned greed.
• 26 January — The High Court was told that 11 gardaí were investigating sinister goings-on at Anglo Irish Bank; Mr. Justice Peter Kelly called the revelation "extraordinary".

February

• 1/2 February — Jimmy Harte, a Labour Senator, was involved in controversy over contributions to a misleading story in the Irish Independent on a Polish woman's account of living in Ireland, and subsequent comments on Twitter, which he later withdrew.
• 3 February — Victoria Beckham crashed the website of the Irish Hospice Foundation.
• 6 February — Workers at Galway Airport staged a sit-in.
• 10 February — Eircom admitted that personal details of thousands of eMobile and Meteor customers and hundreds of Meteor staff were contained on three laptops stolen in December 2011.
• 11 February — One of the largest protest marches in Cork city in recent years took place in solidarity with the Vita Cortex sit-in.
• 11 February — France versus Ireland in the 2012 Six Nations Championship was cancelled minutes before kick-off, leaving thousands of disgruntled Irish fans stranded in Paris.
• 13 February — Sir Alex Ferguson telephoned workers involved in the Vita Cortex sit-in to express his support, telling them to "stick in there".
• 16 February — Barry Doyle was convicted of the November 2008 murder of Shane Geoghegan.
• 18 February — Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping began a three-day trip to Ireland.
• 20 February — In "scenes reminiscent of the land wars of the 18th century", a group of housing activists and Joan Collins TD successfully prevented an attempted eviction by the deputy sheriff of a man from his home on Mountrath, County Laois.
• 24 February — Transport Minister Leo Varadkar was heckled and booed by local residents who repeatedly shouted "shame on you" as he attempted to attend a buffet at a Letterkenny hotel.
• 25 February — Demonstrators protesting against the downgrading of schools in Bunbeg, County Donegal, marched on the office of their local TD, Fine Gael Junior Minister Dinny McGinley, while similar protests took place in County Mayo.
• 28 February — The Taoiseach announced a referendum to be held on the Fiscal Compact.
• 29 February — James McClean made his international debut.
• 29 February — Dozens of community groups from counties Donegal, Tipperary, Galway, Limerick and Kerry went to Leinster House to protest against austerity.
• 29 February — Éamon Ó Cuív was sacked as Deputy Leader of Fianna Fáil and Communications Spokesperson of the party after a row with leader Micheál Martin over the Fiscal Compact referendum.
• 29 February — Minister of State Seán Sherlock signed into law a statutory instrument to amend Ireland's copyright legislation in spite of 80,000 signatures being gathered to oppose the move.

March

• 1 March — Catholic priest Father Brian O'Fearraigh spoke out against the Household Charge at a public meeting in Gweedore, County Donegal. Jimmy Harte, a Labour Senator, criticised him, saying "I go to Mass to hear religious instruction".
• 7 March — The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland upheld a complaint against RTÉ made by Seán Gallagher relating to the tweet that derailed his presidential campaign.
• 8 March — The Garda Síochána destroyed the Occupy Dame Street camp in an overnight raid.
• 8 March — Fine Gael's planned photocall celebrating a year in power was cancelled by Taoiseach Enda Kenny at the last minute. Fine Gael TDs and Senators had been expected to "hold coloured stars detailing significant Fine Gael achievements in Government" at the event in Merrion Square.
• 8 March — Sinn Féin's Pearse Doherty was expelled from the Dáil after trying to question the appointment of a new Secretary General at the Department of Finance.
• 8 March — Allied Irish Banks (AIB) confirmed a plan to cut 2,500 jobs.
• 9 March — Waterford City Council dismantled the Occupy Waterford campsite.
• 13 March — County Donegal was struck by another earthquake with a magnitude of 1.1 .
• 14 March — The Government was defeated in a vote taken at a meeting of the Oireachtas finance committee after numerous Fine Gael TDs went missing. The motion, tabled by Peter Mathews who was then forced to vote against it following threats from his colleagues, proposed that Central Bank Governor Patrick Honohan be forced to appear before the Oireachtas finance committee by the end of the month.
• 15 March — A convicted Garda killer escaped from prison leading to a massive cross-border manhunt.
• 16 March — U.S. sportswear company Nike, Inc. was involved in controversy over the name of its new Saint Patrick's Day runner - "The Black and Tan".
• 18 March — There was a break-in at justice minister Alan Shatter's home in Dublin.
• 18 March — Environment minister Phil Hogan was involved in controversy over media reports on a crude sexual insult he admitted delivering to ex-Taoiseach John Bruton's former administrator at an Oireachtas golf outing in August 2011.
• 18 March — A passerby stumbled upon the body of a 62 year-old man at his home in central Wexford which lay undiscovered since Christmas. The body was in an advanced state of decomposition and the heating was still on.
• 22 March — The Mahon Tribunal published it findings after 15 years of investigations.
• 22 March — Ireland plunged back into recession.
• 23 March — A County Louth woman subjected to a symphysiotomy was awarded €450,000 by the High Court.
• 24 March — Thousands of people packed to capacity the National Stadium in Dublin for a national rally to protest the household charge payment introduced in the last Budget. Crowds of people unable to get in gathered outside.
• 24 March — Facing expulsion, Bertie Ahern resigned from Fianna Fáil before he could be ousted.
• 25 March — Mr. Kenny goes to China.
• 26 March — Facing expulsion, Pádraig Flynn resigned from Fianna Fáil before he could be ousted.
• 27 March — The state funeral of Jim Stynes took place in Melbourne, Victoria.
• 27 March — Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore announced the date of the referendum on the fiscal compact as Thursday 31 May.
• 27 March — 2,104 jobs were lost as video games retail company Game closed 277 stores. Staff began a sit-in.
• 29 March — The latest report results from the 2011 Census were released by the Central Statistics Office Ireland.
• 30 March — Justice minister Alan Shatter was involved in controversy after telling those who objected to the government's Household Charge to "get a life", remarks made on his way into the Fine Gael Ard Fheis at the Convention Centre Dublin.
• 31 March — Ireland was reported by international media to be facing a popular revolt after government figures indicated less than half of the country's households had paid the new property tax by that day's deadline as thousands of people from across the country marched on the governing Fine Gael party's annual conference at the Convention Centre Dublin.

April

• 3 April — It emerged that six people had died at a private nursing home in County Donegal over the previous ten days.
• 3 April — Snow was reported in County Donegal.
• 3 April — RTÉ's defamation of Father Kevin Reynolds: RTÉ head of current affairs Ed Mulhall retired, Ken O'Shea resigned from Prime Time and the programme was terminated.
• 5 April — The majority of shareholders in support services company Siteserv voted to accept a takeover proposal from the Denis O'Brien-controlled Millington, worth €45 million. The controversial deal came after French company Altrad claimed it had tried to buy Siteserv for a higher price.
• 11 April — Environment minister Phil Hogan sought sanctuary in a Carlow cathedral after running away from protesters against his property tax in his own constituency.
• 14 April — As the Labour Party held its centenary conference in the Bailey Allen Hall at NUI Galway, Gardaí used pepper spray to hold back anti-austerity demonstrators protesting against government cuts on the grounds, with reports of a 13 year-old child being threatened with the incapacitant as the building was locked down amid chants of "Revolution, revolution!" and a coffin draped in the Irish tricolour.
• 17 April — Environment minister Phil Hogan announced the establishment of Irish Water, as a subsidiary of Bord Gáis.
• 19 April — Gavin O'Reilly, chief executive of Independent News & Media, resigned after a long-running dispute with Denis O'Brien, the company's biggest shareholder.
• 19 April — Dylan Moran became the first professional English-speaking comedian to perform in Russia, with his routine mentioning Russia's new law banning "homosexual propaganda" and jailed oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky.
• 19 April — A report commissioned by the Department of Health found significant increase in narcolepsy among individuals given the GlaxoSmithKline developed swine flu vaccine Pandemrix compared to those who did not receive the vaccine.
• 24 April — The Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission ruled that there were no grounds for any criminal case against any of five officers involved in the 31 March 2011 incident known as the “rape tape” controversy, resulting from the inadvertent video recording of a sergeant in a patrol car joking about the rape of two women.
• 24 April — The aurora borealis returned to County Donegal, having already made a rare Irish appearance in January.

May

• 2 May — Cardinal Seán Brady was embroiled in controversy over a BBC television programme which contained allegations that he failed to act after one sex abuse survivor gave him a list in 1975 of other children being abused by Father Brendan Smyth.
• 3 May — Denis O'Brien bought another 5% stake in Independent News & Media, bringing his stake in the company to 27%.
• 4 May — RTÉ's defamation of Father Kevin Reynolds: RTÉ was fined €2,000,000 by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI). Reporter Aoife Kavanagh resigned from RTÉ over her role in the scandal.
• 9 May
  • The Abbey Theatre announced its closure.
  • Archaeologists announced discovery on The Burren of evidence of settlement from 6000 BCE.
• 14 May — While canvassing for votes in Athlone, Taoiseach Enda Kenny controversially told an unemployed bus driver to "get a job". The man later requested an apology and retraction, calling Kenny "a smug, arrogant git". In the same town, Kenny had an angry exchange with a man who said his son had been forced to emigrate.
• 16 May — The Garda Síochána destroyed the Occupy Galway camp in an overnight raid.
• 16 May — Finance minister Michael Noonan caused controversy with his Greek "holidays" and "feta cheese" comment at a breakfast briefing with Bloomberg news agency.
• 17 May — Taoiseach Enda Kenny was heckled and booed by anti-austerity treaty protesters in Galway as he attended a breakfast briefing.
• 17 May — Jobs minister Richard Bruton let slip on radio the possibility of there being a second referendum if Ireland voted to reject the European Fiscal Compact at the end of the month, though later retracted this statement.
• 28 May — Financial irregularities were revealed at Bloxham Stockbrokers.
• 28 May — Following the UN Committee Against Torture's condemnation of the Irish government's failure to acknowledge and assist former detainees of the 10 Catholic-run Magdalene laundries, the Justice for Magdalenes campaign group announced its discovery that women were transferred from State-funded mother and baby homes to Magdalene laundries, where they were held against their will and without their children.
• 31 May — Constitutional referendum on the European Fiscal Compact.

June

• 5 June — Hundreds of Bord na Móna workers went on strike in a dispute over pay.
• 6 June — County Mayo was struck by an earthquake with a magnitude of 4.0.
• 7 June — Former members of the Defence Forces demonstrated in Dublin over malaria medication they were given on overseas peacekeeping duties which they say has caused them chronic health problems.
• 10–17 June — The 50th International Eucharistic Congress took place at the RDS and Croke Park in Dublin. Protesters picketed.
• 12 June — County Donegal was hit by a 700-metre-high tornado, one of the largest recorded.
• 11 June — The author of the Leaving Certificate maths book condemned the 2012 higher level paper as a "disgrace".
• 13 June — Justice minister Alan Shatter spoke of "Londonderry" in a Dáil debate. Amid the ensuing controversy, there were calls for him to resign his office.
• 16 June — Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams was reportedly injured in a cycling accident, requiring hospitalisation and the cancellation of official functions.
• 17 June — Pope Benedict XVI addressed his flock on the sex abuse scandal with a pre-recorded message delivered on the final day of the 50th Eucharistic Congress.
• 20 June — An independent review into the deaths of children who were in the care of, or who were known to the Health Service Executive (HSE), was published. The following day, Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore stated in the Dáil that a referendum on the rights of the child would be held in the Autumn.
• 21 June — Turf cutters staged an overnight protest on the bog in County Galway.
• Crisis at Ulster Bank:
  • 21 June — More than 100,000 people, including social welfare recipients, were left impoverished after being affected by an Ulster Bank delay in processing money.
  • 24 June — Ulster Bank opened branches on a Sunday for the first time as the payments crisis affecting the institution continued unabated.
  • 25 June — Ulster Bank announced its money problems would not now be solved this week, with monthly salaries now in danger of being infected.

July

• 7 July — A Swedish House Mafia concert in Phoenix Park descended into chaos, with a "significant number" of random unprovoked attacks at the show.
• 10 July — Health Minister James Reilly was named on a debt defaulters' list to the tune of €1.9 million. This was described as "unprecedented" for a government minister.
• 13 July — It was revealed that Fidelma Healy Eames, a Fine Gael Senator, boarded the Galway to Dublin train without a ticket. A fellow passenger alleged that Healy Eames said “she is a Senator and that she makes the law” when an inspector asked her to produce her ticket.
• 18 July — Former TV3 News Western Correspondent Jenny McCudden was named as the new editor of The Sligo Champion, becoming the first female to fill the position in the newspaper's 176-year history.
• 26 July — Galway Circuit Civil Court ordered the husband of Fidelma Healy Eames, a Fine Gael Senator, to pay more than €12,000 in unpaid fees to a tradesman employed to carry out renovations at the Healy Eames residence in County Galway. The tradesman launched a lawsuit in 2010 against the Healy Eameses for thousands of euros in unpaid fees.
• 27 July — During a case at Claremorris District Court Judge Mary Devins, wife of former Fianna Fáil TD Jimmy Devins, described social welfare as a Polish charity, sparking national outrage and a formal complaint to the police over "the possibility that she is in breach of the prohibition in the Incitement to Hatred Act from 1989".

August

• 2 August — It was confirmed that a car belonging to Fidelma Healy Eames, a Fine Gael Senator, was seized in July for not having a current tax disc.
• 9 August — Jesus appeared on a tree stump in Belfast City Cemetery.
• 15 August — Geraldine Kennedy and Justine McCarthy were appointed Adjunct Professors of Journalism at the University of Limerick.
• 17 August — Staff at Letterkenny General Hospital were informed of the closure of County Donegal's only Gynae Ward. Nursing unions, patients and staff reacted with shock to the news.
• 20 August — Three investigations into a nursing home in Oughterard, County Galway, found most residents had not washed for at least a month, were being starved and lived in squalid conditions.
• 20 August — Fidelma Healy Eames, a Fine Gael Senator, was involved in controversy over her decision to charge a state agency the cost of a plane ticket for her husband to accompany her on a hotel break to Kenya. When news of this was reported in the Irish media, Healy Eames said she would pay back the money used to fly her husband to Africa within "a couple of weeks".
• 22 August — On the 90th anniversary of the death of Michael Collins, the Taoiseach Enda Kenny gave the commemoration speech at Béal na Bláth, the first serving head of government to do so. He also erroneously credited Collins with bringing Vladimir Lenin to Ireland.
• 24 August — Journalist Charlie Bird informed RTÉ management of his retirement. "It wasn't an easy decision", said Bird.
• 26 August — 24-year-old Andrew Duffy drowns in the Royal Canal after watching the Donegal senior football team overcome Cork at Croke Park to reach their first All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final in 20 years.
• 27 August — The board of Independent News & Media elected Cork businessman Leslie Buckley, a close associate of Denis O'Brien, as its new chairman, replacing James Osborne who was ousted in April.
• 28 August — David Grennan discovered his second supernova from Ireland, two years after he discovered his first one. This was only the second time this had ever happened.
• 28 August — Hundreds of jobs were lost when College Freight, operating as Target Express, the country's largest privately-owned transport company, announced it had ceased trading. Workers began sit-ins in Carlow, Cork and Limerick.

September

• 3 September — Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin tabled a motion of no confidence in the Minister for Health James Reilly after further cuts in the health service.
• 3 September — Dublin City Council voted overwhelmingly in favour of full marriage rights for same-sex couples. Bill Tormey, a Fine Gael councillor, caused uprorar after claiming it was impossible to equate homosexual unions with heterosexual ones, as well as claiming that only heterosexual couples were capable of producing children.
• 4 September — The Health Service Executive (HSE) confirmed it was cutting 16,000 requests per month for the gluten-free products that are required by sufferers of coeliac disease.
• 7 September — Stephen Rae was appointed as editor of the Irish Independent.
• 8 September — A volley of shots was fired as hundreds of people attended the funeral in Dublin of Real IRA dissident Alan Ryan.
• 9 September — An Irishman drowned at the Dimensions music festival in Croatia.
• 10 September — A bin truck smashed into a Luas tram in Dublin.
• 11 September — District Court judge Séamus Hughes was criticised and asked to resign over comments on the ethnic backgrounds of those before him in court, having described some as "neanderthals".
• 11 September — Michael Hegarty, a Fine Gael councillor, resigned as chairman of County Cork's Joint Policing Committee and as leader of Fine Gael on Cork County Council due to a drink-driving charge related to a road traffic incident.
• 15 September — The Irish Daily Star published topless photographs of Kate Middleton. Irish Daily Star editor Michael O'Kane defended the publication, saying to the BBC: "I did this as a service to our readers, I'm a little taken aback by the reaction in the UK. It only seems to be an issue in the UK because she is your future queen. But from our point of view in Ireland, Kate Middleton is just another of the fantastic line of celebrities". Media boss Richard Desmond immediately closed down the tabloid. O'Kane was later suspended.
• 17 September — Clerys, one of the country's most recognisable department stores, was put into receivership.
• 22 September — Taoiseach Enda Kenny met Pope Benedict XVI for the first time since criticising him in the Dáil. The meeting occurred at the former Cardinal Ratzinger's residence, Castel Gandolfo.
• 26 September — Róisín Shortall resigned as Minister of State for Primary Care due to a dispute with Minister for Health James Reilly, the deputy leader of Fine Gael. She also resigned from the Labour Party.

October

• 9 October 2012 — Thousands of farmers marched through Dublin city in protest at government cuts.
• 9 October 2012 — A walkout occurred during a Public Accounts Committee meeting with the Health Service Executive when health officials were told they were not fit for office.
• 12 October 2012 — Pressure increased on Giovanni Trapattoni after Ireland lost 6–1 to Germany in 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group C, their joint worst ever competitive defeat and their worst home defeat since 1931.
• 16 October 2012 — A report on St. Patrick's Institution found a culture of human rights abuse.
• 23 October – Derry was named fourth in a top ten of cities to visit in 2013 by the travel guidebook Lonely Planet.

November

• 5 November — Students marched against austerity in Cork.
• 8 November
  • Two days ahead of the children's referendum, the Supreme Court—ruling against the government's distribution of information on the referendum—found the government had breached the 1995 McKenna judgement requiring that referendums be explained to the public in an unbiased manner. The referendum's website was immediately taken down.
  • Barry Andrews, the former Fianna Fáil Minister of State for Children, was appointed chief executive of aid charity GOAL, replacing John O'Shea.
• 10 November
  • Irish children's rights referendum was passed by a majority of 58%, with a turnout of 33.5%.
  • Thousands of people marched against austerity in Waterford, the largest such event in the city for decades.
• 14 November
  • The death of Savita Halappanavar (28 October) at a Galway hospital became public.
  • Students in Galway marched against college fee increases and carried a coffin to the constituency office of Labour TD Derek Nolan.
  • USI President John Logue was arrested and charged with breach of the peace for standing with his back to deputies in Dáil Éireann.
• 24 November
  • Ten thousand people marched against austerity in Dublin, amid calls for a general strike to shut down the country.
  • Irish Daily Star editor Michael O'Kane resigned over his role in the publication of topless photographs of Kate Middleton.
• 28 November — Students marched through Letterkenny, and distributed a thousand letters of protest to the office of their local government (Fine Gael) TD, Joe McHugh.
• 28 November — An X Case Bill, which proposed legislating for abortion in the event of risk to a woman's life, was defeated by 101-27 in the Dáil.
• 29 November — Students at University College Dublin threw eggs at Taoiseach Enda Kenny, but missed him.

December

• December — Mattie McGrath took part in a sit-in at the offices of Friends First in support of a farmer being pursued by the financial institution. TDs Michael McCarthy (Labour), Tom Hayes and Patrick O'Donovan (both of Fine Gael) and Michael Moynihan and Dara Calleary (both of Fianna Fáil), while seated in the Dáil bar, made a hoax call to McGrath pretending they were Pizza Hut, offering free pizza to those partaking in the sit-in.
• 5 December — The Budget was announced for 2013.
• 13 December — Labour Party chairman Colm Keaveney voted against the Social Welfare Bill and was expelled from the parliamentary party.

The Arts

Film

• 26 January — A video on demand service called Volta was launched by Arts Minister Jimmy Deenihan.
• February — The Guard won The Guardian's annual First Film award.
• 11 February — 9th Irish Film and Television Awards

Literature

• 1 January — Copyright restrictions on James Joyce's major works were lifted.
• February — James Joyce's children's story The Cats of Copenhagen was published for the first time by Ithys Press in Dublin.
• February — A new book of poetry by President Michael D. Higgins was strongly criticised by Professor Kevin Kiely, who said the President of Ireland "can be accused of crimes against literature".
• March — An Hobad, a translation of The Hobbit into Irish, went on sale.
• 17 April — Anne Enright's The Forgotten Waltz was shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction.
• 16 June — Bloomsday, the first since copyright on James Joyce's novel Ulysses expired.
• 21 September — On Culture Night a rare collection of James Joyce's poetry was displayed at the National University of Ireland, Galway.
• 8 November — Maeve Binchy's last novel, A Week in Winter, was published posthumously.

Music

Further information: 2012 in Irish music

Television

Further information: 2012 in Irish television

Theatre

• May — A new Smock Alley Theatre opened in Dublin.

Sports

Association football

Euro 2012

• 10 June — Ireland 1–3 Croatia.
• 14 June — Spain 3–0 Ireland.
• 18 June — Italy 2–0 Ireland.

Friendly international matches

• 29 February — Ireland 1–1 Czech Republic.
• 26 May — Ireland 1–0 Boznia and Herzegovina.
• 4 June — Hungary 0–0 Ireland.
• 15 August — Serbia 0–0 Ireland.
• 11 September — Ireland 4–1 Oman.
• 14 November — Ireland 0–1 Greece.

League of Ireland

• 2 March — League begins.
• 6 August — Gardaí investigated the alleged throwing of bananas at Gaël Clichy in Limerick.
• 28 October — League ends.
• 4 November — FAI Cup Final.

World Cup 2014 qualifiers

• 7 September — Kazakhstan 1–2 Ireland.
• 12 October — Ireland 1–6 Germany.
• 16 October — Faroe Islands 1–4 Ireland.

Gaelic games

Football

• All-Ireland football final – Donegal 2–11, Mayo 0–13 on 23 September.

Hurling

• All-Ireland hurling final – Galway 2–13, Kilkenny 0–19 on 9 September.
• All-Ireland hurling final replay – Galway 3–11, Kilkenny 3–22 on 30 September.

Rugby union

Heineken Cup

• 20 January — Connacht defeated Harlequins at the Galway Sportsgrounds to claim their first ever victory in the Heineken Cup, though they came bottom of the table in Group 6.

Six Nations

• 4 February — Ireland 21-23 Wales
• 25 February — Ireland 42-10 Italy
• 4 March — France 17-17 Ireland.
• 10 March — Ireland 32-14 Scotland
• 17 March — England 30-9 Ireland

London Olympics

Further information: Ireland at the 2012 Summer Olympics

• 11 January — Kieran Behan became the second gymnast representing Ireland to qualify for an Olympic Games, despite expectation that he would never walk again.
• 6 June — The Olympic torch toured Dublin.
• 27 July — Katie Taylor bore the flag for Ireland at the 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony.
• 31 July — Glandular fever forced Gráinne Murphy out of the Olympics.
• 5 August — Team Ireland won its first Olympic medal of the 2012 Summer Olympics as John Joe Nevin defeated Mexico's Óscar Valdez in his bantamweight division quarter-final bout, to guarantee himself at least a bronze medal.
• 6 August — Katie Taylor won her quarter-final bout against Team GB's Natasha Jonas, and guaranteed herself at least a bronze medal. Fans produced record noise levels.
• 6 August — Annalise Murphy missed out on a medal after finishing in fourth place in her sailing event at Weymouth, Dorset.
• 7 August — Michael Conlan won his quarter-final bout against France's Nordine Oubaali, and guaranteed himself at least a bronze medal.
• 8 August — Katie Taylor won her semi-final bout against Tajikistan's Mavzuna Chorieva, and guaranteed herself at least a silver medal.
• 8 August — Cian O'Connor won a bronze medal with his horse Blue Loyd 12 at individual jumping.
• 8 August — Paddy Barnes won his quarter-final bout against India's Devendro Singh, and guaranteed himself at least a bronze medal. In doing so, he became the first Irish boxer to win medals at two Olympic Games.
• 9 August — Katie Taylor won her final bout against Russia's Sofya Ochigava, securing Olympic Gold.
• 10 August — Paddy Barnes lost his semi-final bout against China's Zou Shiming.
• 10 August — John Joe Nevin won his semi-final bout against Cuba's Lázaro Álvarez, and guaranteed himself at least a silver medal.
• 10 August — Michael Conlan lost his semi-final bout against Cuba's Robeisy Ramírez.
• 11 August — Robert Heffernan missed out on a medal after finishing the men's 50 kilometres walk in fourth place. Brendan Boyce finished in 29th place. Colin Griffin was disqualified.
• 11 August — John Joe Nevin lost his final bout against Team GB's Luke Campbell, and was deprived of a gold medal.
• 13 August — Team Ireland arrived home.

Marathons

• 6 February — In Sydney, Richard Donovan from Galway completed seven marathons in 4 days, 22 hrs, 3 mins.

Female boxing

• 19 May — Katie Taylor won a fourth successive World Amateur Championship, beating Russian Sofya Ochigava.

Deaths

David Kelly died in February.

David Kelly died in February.

Jim Stynes died in March.

Barney McKenna died in April.

Maeve Binchy died in July.

January

• 9 January — Bridie Gallagher, 87: ballad singer, from natural causes.
• 10 January —
  • John McCarthy, 61: mental health campaigner, as a result of motor neuron disease.
  • Mary Raftery, 54: journalist, after an illness.
• 11 January — Colm Tucker, 59: former rugby union player, after a short illness.
• 15 January — Pearse Hutchinson, 84: writer and broadcaster.
• 17 January — Aengus Fanning, 69: journalist and editor of the Sunday Independent, cancer.
• 22 January — Paddy Martin, 88: international boxer and father of Micheál Martin, long illness.

February

• 6 February — Noel Kelehan, 76: renowned conductor, jazz pianist, arranger and composer, long illness.
• 7 February — Phil Shanahan, 84: former Tipperary and Dublin hurler, heart condition.
• 8 February — John Cunningham, 66: journalist and editor of the Connacht Tribune (1984–2007), illness.
• 9 February —
  • Emer Í Chuív, 93: last surviving daughter of Éamon de Valera and mother of Éamon Ó Cuív.
  • Gerry Hickey, 67: former programme adviser to Bertie Ahern, cancer.
• 12 February —
  • David Kelly, 82: stage, film and television actor, short illness.
  • Gerry O'Sullivan, 65: consultant surgeon and founder of the Cork Cancer Research Centre, short illness.
• 13 February — Eamon Deacy, 53: former Aston Villa footballer, heart attack.
• 14 February — Kieran Finlay: former Monaghan Gaelic footballer, long illness.
• 18 February —
  • Bertie Messitt, 81: former Olympic athlete, long illness.
  • Quentin Doran-O'Reilly: equestrian journalist, illness.
• 19 February — Ann Comerford-Phelan: former Cork camogie player and All-Ireland-winning captain, short illness.
• 21 February — Máirín Egan, 87: lobbyist and founding member of the Society of Autistic Children.
• 22 February — Frank Carson, 85: comedian and actor, stomach cancer.
• 23 February — Florence Noonan, 68: wife of Minister for Finance Michael Noonan, pneumonia.
• 26 February — Jack Bourke, 80: former Mayor of Limerick, long illness.
• 28 February — Hal Roache, 84: comedian.

March

• 2 March — Louis O'Carroll, 62: psychiatrist and balladeer, car accident.
• 20 March — Jim Stynes, 45: Dublin minor footballer and Aussie rules star, cancer.
• 26 March — Michael Begley, 79: former Fine Gael TD for Kerry South, long illness.
• 28 March — John Arden, 81: English playwright who lived and died in Galway.
• 29 March — Cyril Fitzgerald, 72: rugby union administrator, illness.
• 31 March — Michael Diskin, 49: theatre administrator, long illness.

April

• 1 April — Louis Kilcoyne: former president of the Football Association of Ireland.
• 5 April — Barney McKenna, 72: folk musician and founding member of the Dubliners.
• 6 April — Dermot Hanafin, 84: former Kerry Gaelic footballer.
• 7 April — John Egan, 59: former Kerry Gaelic footballer, heart condition.
• 25 April — Louis le Brocquy, 95: artist, following a long illness.
• 25 April — Jim Downing, 66: former Cork Gaelic footballer, unexpectedly.

May

• 6 May — Neilli Mulcahy, 87: fashion designer, short illness.
• 20 May — Geoffrey Evans, 69: serial killer, illness.

June

• 1 June — Pádraig Faulkner, 94: former primary school teacher, Fianna Fáil government minister and Ceann Comhairle.
• 30 June — Richard Booth, 57: former chairman of both the IFA National Livestock Committee and the EU Beef Advisory Committee.

July

• 28 July - Peter Evans-Freke, 11th Baron Carbery, 92, Anglo-Irish peer
• 30 July — Maeve Binchy, 72: novelist, columnist and speaker, short illness.

August

• 2 August — Olive Corcoran, 54: champion rower.
• 4 August — Con Houlihan, 86: sports journalist.
• 8 August — John O'Mahony, 75: former Cork Gaelic footballer, long illness.
• 24 August — Maureen Toal, 81: actress best known for her role as Teasy McDaid in Glenroe.

September

• 1 September — David Charlton, 48: Garda and husband of former Tánaiste Mary Coughlan, cancer.
• 13 September — Brian Óg Maguire, 24: Fermanagh and Lisnaskea Gaelic footballer, industrial accident.
• 15 September – Nevin Spence, 22: rugby union player, farm accident.
• 20 September - Paul O'Connor, 49: former Cork hurler and midfielder on the Fitzgibbon Cup Team of the Century, unexpectedley.
• 21 September — Bill King, 102: sailor.
• 28 September — Larry Cunningham, 74: showband singer, short illness.
• 30 September — P. J. Morley, 81: former Fianna Fáil politician.

October

• 28 October — Savita Halappanavar, 31: Pregnant dentist whose controversial death at University Hospital Galway led to an international outcry.
• 30 October — Trevor West, 74: academic and politician.

November

• 13 November — John Kelly, 83: Olympic walker.
• 14 November —
  • Bobby Burns: former Longford Gaelic footballer.
  • Martin Fay, 76: fiddler and founder-member of The Chieftains.
  • Paddy Meegan, 90: former Meath Gaelic footballer.

December

• 4 December — Tony Sweeney, 81: racing journalist and historian of Irish racing, following an illness.
• 10 December — Ciarán Maher, 50: former Dublin Gaelic footballer, suddenly.
• 15 December — Páidí Ó Sé, 57: former Kerry Gaelic footballer and manager, suspected heart attack.
• 16 December — Donal Nevin, 88: former chairman of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, long illness.
• 19 December — Pecker Dunne, 79: musician, long illness.
• 21 December — Shane McEntee, 56: Fine Gael politician and Minister of State, suicide.
• 22 December — Arthur Quinlan, 92: journalist.