Born in 1960

Seán Lemass was Taoiseach and Ireland was opening up to the world. Grants were being offered to foreign companies to set up in Ireland, creating jobs and beginning to stem emigration. The first supermarkets were appearing in Dublin.

Young people were listening to rock and roll on Radio Luxembourg and longing for a different kind of life. The old Ireland — insular, agricultural, dominated by the Church — was still very much present, but something was shifting.