Sheriff Street

Sheriff Street (Irish: Sráid an tSirriam), known by locals as "Sheriffer," or "The Street" is a small area in the north inner city of Dublin, Ireland, lying between East Wall and North Wall and often considered to be part of the latter.

The Sheriff Street area might be defined as Upper and Lower Sheriff Street, Mayor Street, Guild Street, Commons Street, Oriel Street, Seville Place, Crinan Strand and Mariner's Port. Sheriff Street had a reputation as a run-down area with a high crime rate. There were ongoing issues with poverty and crime, peaking during the heroin epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s. In the late 1990s, the Sheriff Street flats (St.Laurances Mansions, St.Bridgets Gardens, and Phil Shanahan House) were demolished and the area quietened down.

Although the area has been redeveloped it still remains a mainly working class area.

Traditionally, work on the docks provided employment, but the arrival of containerization led to mass unemployment in the late 1980s.

Luke Kelly of The Dubliners was born in Lattimore Cottages, 1 Sheriff Street, a quarter of a mile from Dublin's main thoroughfare, O'Connell Street. His place of birth has since been demolished.

In popular culture

• Sheriff Street was the filming location for scenes in the 1993 film In The Name of The Father.
• The Sheriff Street flats were where Daniel Day-Lewis's character in the 1997 film The Boxer lived.
• The crime drama Between the Canals was shot and based in Sheriff Street.
• The late former Boyzone singer Stephen Gately was born in Sheriff Street.
• Former Dubliners Singer Luke Kelly was born in Sheriff Street.
• Irish professional footballer Keith Treacy was born in Sheriff Street.
• Irish international footballer Olivia O'Toole was born in Sheriff Street.
• Bernard J. "Bertie" Donnelly (Olympic Cyclist) owned a pub in Sheriff Street.

External links

• [1] - In 1973, RTÉ Radio 1 producer, Seán Mac Réamoinn set out to capture life in the North Wall/Sherriff Street area of Dublin city. What emerged was a radio documentary looking to the past, present and future. Recently aired on RTÉ Radio 1 on 17 March 2009.