← 1987 1986 1985 1988 in Northern Ireland → 1989 1990 1991
Centuries:	20th 21st
Decades:	1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s
See also:	1988 in the United Kingdom 1988 in Ireland Other events of 1988 List of years in Northern Ireland

Events during the year 1988 in Northern Ireland.

Incumbents

• Secretary of State - Tom King

Events

• 11 January - SDLP leader, John Hume and Gerry Adams of Sinn Féin, have a surprise meeting in Belfast.^[1]
• 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.^[2]
• 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.^[1]
• 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

• Irish League

Winners: Glentoran

• Irish Cup

Winners: Glentoran 1 - 0 Glenavon

• FAI Cup

Winners: Dundalk 1 - 0 Derry City

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^[3]

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)^[4]