The following is a list of events relating to

television in Ireland Television in the Republic of Ireland is available through a variety of platforms. The digital terrestrial television service is known as Saorview and is the primary source of broadcast television since analogue transmissions ended on 24 Octobe ...

from 1982.

Events

*February – The

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

issues a directive to

RTÉ (; ; RTÉThe É in RTÉ is pronounced as an English E () and not an Irish É ()) is an Irish public service broadcaster. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on television, radio and online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, ...

to prohibit the airing of

party political broadcast A party political broadcast (also known, in pre-election campaigning periods, as a party election broadcast) is a television or radio broadcast made by a political party. In the United Kingdom the Communications Act 2003 prohibits (and previou ...

s by

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( ; ; ) is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The History of Sinn Féin, original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffit ...

, the political wing of the

Provisional IRA The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...

. *18 February – Coverage of the 1982 general election is shown on radio and television. *9 March – John Wilson is appointed as

Minister for Posts and Telegraphs The Minister for Posts and Telegraphs () was the holder of a position in the Government of Ireland (and, earlier, in the Executive Council of the Irish Free State). From 1924 until 1984 – when it was abolished – the minister headed the Dep ...

. *31 October –

RTÉ Television RTÉ Television is a department of Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ), Ireland's public service broadcaster. Its first channel was Telefís Éireann, which began broadcasting on 31 December 1961. Since the 1960s, RTÉ Television has added chan ...

airs the drama '' The Ballroom of Romance'', a drama based on the novel by

William Trevor William Trevor Cox (24 May 1928 – 20 November 2016) was an Irish novelist, playwright, and short story writer. One of the elder statesmen of the Irish literary world, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest contemporary writers of sho ...

. The programme is a joint production with the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

). *2 November – Launch of

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

, the United Kingdom's first new terrestrial television channel for two decades. Because it is aired in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, the channel is also available in many parts of the

Republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

. *18 November – RTÉ Television airs the drama ''The Year of the French'', a series based on the novel by Thomas Flanagan. It is a co-production by RTÉ, the recently launched UK Channel 4 and FR3 from France. *12 December – The RTÉ Television documentary ''Is there one who understands me?, marking the centenary of the birth of author

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (born James Augusta Joyce; 2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influentia ...

, wins an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

. The programme was produced by Seán Ó Mordha. *14 December – Jim Mitchell is appointed

. *Undated – A poll produced by MRBI shows that of those who follow current affairs, 53% depend on television as their primary source of information, while 20% rely on radio and 17% on newspapers.

Debuts

RTÉ 1

*26 April – / '' Maya the Honey Bee'' (1975–1976, 1979–1980) *6 October – ''

Today Tonight ''Today Tonight'' was an Australian current affairs television program produced by the Seven Network. It aired from January 1995 to November 2019 in Adelaide and Perth. Editions in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne were previously produced be ...

'' (1982–1992) *6 October – / ''

The Smurfs ''The Smurfs'' (; ) is a Belgian comic franchise centered on a fictional colony of small, blue, humanoid creatures who live in mushroom-shaped houses in the forest. ''The Smurfs'' was created and introduced as a series of comic characters by ...

'' (1981–1989) *29 October – '' The Brendan Grace Show'' (1982) *31 October – '' The Ballroom of Romance'' (1982) *Undated – '' Mailbag'' (1982–1996)

RTÉ 2

*14 February – '' The Pink Panther in: Pink at First Sight'' (1981)

Ongoing television programmes

1960s

*'' RTÉ News: Nine O'Clock'' (1961–present) *'' RTÉ News: Six One'' (1962–present) *'' The Late Late Show'' (1962–present)

1970s

*''

Sports Stadium A stadium (: stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage completely or partially surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit ...

'' (1973–1997) *'' Trom agus Éadrom'' (1975–1985) *''

The Late Late Toy Show ''The Late Late Toy Show'' is an annual, special edition of the Irish chat show ''The Late Late Show (Irish talk show), The Late Late Show''. Airing annually on RTÉ One near the end of November or early December to coincide with the holiday sh ...

'' (1975–present) *'' RTÉ News on Two'' (1978–2014) *'' Bosco'' (1979–1996) *''

The Sunday Game ''The Sunday Game'' is RTÉ's main Gaelic games television programme. It is shown on RTÉ2 every Sunday during the Football Championship and Hurling Championship seasons. It is one of RTÉ2's longest-running shows, having been on air since 1 ...

'' (1979–present)

Ending this year

*1 January – ''

Bracken Bracken (''Pteridium'') is a genus of large, coarse ferns in the family (biology), family Dennstaedtiaceae. Ferns (Pteridophyta) are vascular plants that undergo alternation of generations, having both large plants that produce spores and small ...

'' (1980–1982) *2 April – '' The Live Mike'' (1979–1982) *10 December – '' The Brendan Grace Show'' (1982) *Undated – ''

Wanderly Wagon ''Wanderly Wagon'' is an Irish children's television series which aired on RTÉ from Saturday 30 September 1967Hourihane, Anne Marie''Sunday Tribune'' 11 August 2002. until 1982. Plot ''Wanderly Wagon'' followed human and puppet characters as t ...

'' (1967–1982) *Undated – '' The Ballroom of Romance'' (1982)

Births

*23 March – Emma O'Driscoll, pop star, children's television presenter and reality television personality

References

{{Years in TV by country, 1982

1980s in Irish television For articles on Irish television in the 1980s please see: *1980 in Irish television *1981 in Irish television *1982 in Irish television *1983 in Irish television *1984 in Irish television *1985 in Irish television *1986 in Irish television *1987 i ...