Ironies about Ireland
Technically, It Is an Offense to Be Drunk in Public in Ireland
This has to be one of the least enforced laws in the history of any legal system. If the letter of the law were to be enforced in this area, half the county would have to be incarcerated every weekend -- but it is indeed true. Regulations introduced last year allow the police to issue on-the-spot fines for anyone caught being drunk in a public police In Ireland.
In reality, however, the police are generally pretty happy for you to get as hammered as you want, as long as you aren't bothering anyone else, and aren't in any immediate danger of hurting yourself. So drink up! (But do it safely.)
Up Until Around the Early 1990s, Ireland Had a Low Per Capita Consumption of Alcohol
Obviously whenever the word "Irish" comes up, "drinking" is never far behind. And it is true that today, Ireland's alcohol consumption, which has fallen in recent years, is still very high by international standards.
A survey in 2006, for example, found that the Irish spend a higher proportion of their income than any other country in Europe, and also found that the Irish were the worst binge drinkers in Europe. So the recent evidence certainly supports the old Irish drunkard stereotype. But prior to Ireland becoming a wealthy country, its alcohol consumption per population was actually quite moderate: throughout the 20th century in Ireland, there was a high level of alcohol abstinence, as this is a trait more commonly associated with Protestant countries.
But as the Catholic Church saw its moral authority decline toward the end of the 20th century, and as the country became wealthier, the Irish became to drink a lot more -- finally earning themselves the stereotype that has been fixed to them for so long. One likely reason the Irish had earned themselves this stereotype of being heavy drinkers was because of their immigrants: no doubt to drown out the pain of being dislocated from their home country, Irish immigrants in the U.K. and the U.S. tended to be big drinkers.
More Guinness Is Sold in Nigeria Than in Ireland
That's right: Ireland is the third largest market for Guinness. Nigeria is at second, and the U.K. is the first.
Playboy Was Banned in Ireland Until 1995
That's right -- in 1995 although you could get Playboy TV, you couldn't get the magazine, which was banned under the country's censorship laws.