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The following is a transcript of the sixteenth Sir John T. Gilbert Commemorative Lecture "Dublin after Dark: Glimpses of Life in an Early Modern City", given by Maighréad Ní Mhurchadha, Local Historian, on Wednesday 23rd January 2013.

"Dublin after Dark: Glimpses of Life in an Early Modern City", by Maighréad Ní Mhurchadha, Local HistorianOn 23 January 2013 sixteenth annual Sir John T. Gilbert Commemorative Lecture was held at Dublin City Library and Archive, Pearse Street.

On 28th January 1813, Jane Austen’s second novel was published. Pride and Prejudice, for which Austen received a single down-payment of £110, was originally called First Impressions, and had been started when the author was only twenty-one. It was to become one of the best-loved books ever published.

In honour of the late Dublin GAA legend Kevin Heffernan, who died on the 25th January, Dublin City Public Libraries have put the exhibition ‘The Jacks Are Back : The Dubs in the 1970s’ on display in the Dublin City Library and Archive, 138-144 Pearse, Dublin 2, until Thursday, 31st January. The exhibition celebrates the Dublin team that contested six All-Ireland Finals in a row between 1974 and 1979.Right: Click image to view larger version.Also worth noting is the accompanying online image gallery consisting of previously unseen photographs of the Dublin team at various Civic Receptions. These images were taken from the Dublin City Council Photographic Collection. Amongst them are a number of images (Image 005; Image 006; Image 024 and more) of Kevin Heffernan. ‘Heffo’s Army’, as the Dublin supporters became known, became famous nationwide for their passionate and vocal support of their team. Read more in the story accompanying the online image gallery and published here on our blog.Freeman of Dublin...In May 2004 Kevin Heffernan was awarded the Freedom of the City by Dublin City Council. To date, he is one of only three sportsmen to have been honoured as Freemen of Dublin. Kevin Heffernan's citation read as follows:"In recognition of his role in encouraging young people to participate in sport and stay on the right path. And for being a guiding light and inspiration to generations of young Dubliners".Kevin Heffernan received the city's highest honour for his services to Dublin GAA as a player (he captained the All-Ireland winning team of 1958 and was named at left corner-forward on the GAA's 'Team of the Century'), manager (1974-76, 1979-1983), and as an influence on thousands of Dubliners who, inspired by the heroics of the Dublin teams in the 1970s and 1980s, made Gaelic Football the predominant field sport of the city. His commitment to the game continued to be reflected through his work with juvenile teams at St. Vincent's GAA Club.May he rest in peace.

Between 1845 and 1850, out of a population of approximately 8.2 million, some one million died and another million were forced to emigrate. By 1881 the population had fallen to 5.2 million and continued to fall for many more years.

Contemporary with the time-period covered by Anne Plumptre’s ‘Narrative of a Residence in Ireland’ (1814-15), available in a three volume set in the Special Collections of the Dublin and Local Studies Collection, was the Congress of Vienna, a Pan-European meeting of nations to try to undo some of the political damage caused by the Napoleonic Era. Ms Plumptre, staunchly pro-Napoleon since the time of her earlier Residence in France (1802-05), declared that she ‘would welcome him if he invaded England, because he would do away with the aristocracy and give the country a better government’.Always confident of her own mind she  published fiction, travel writing, translations, drama and political enquiry whilst active in the ‘Enfield Circle’, a group of literati in her home town of  Norwich and throughout her life.After the ‘tedious voyage’ from Liverpool to Dublin and delay on arrival, the book is a like modern-day visitor’s guide to the city of Dublin as its author warms to the city with references to numerous institutions such as the Royal Irish Academy, the Custom House, Marsh’s Library, Trinity College, the  Dublin Society and the Four Courts.  The edition available in the Reading Room is ‘Grangerized’, a ‘hobby’ of extra-illustration of texts which began in the 18th Century as a form of protest against the lack of illustrations in the book Biographical History of England by James Granger (1769).  The Reading Room, Dublin City Library & Archive, Pearse Street, Dublin 2.

Cinema-going has always been extremely popular with Dubliners. It was the city's most famous son, James Joyce, who helped bring the exciting new art-form to Dublin when the Volta Picture Theatre opened on Mary Street in December 1909. Joyce was the Managing Director. This image gallery pays tribute to some of the city's most notable cinemas. Many of these have sadly closed as cinemagoers now frequent multiplexes in the suburbs. We hope these images bring back happy memories of afternoons and evenings spent bewitched by the silver screen.

This gallery celebrates Dublin's Barbers, Hairdressers, Hair Stylists and 'Artists in Male Hair'. Dubliners have always been a fashion conscious crew and we hope these images bring back happy (or maybe not so happy) memories of perms, continental styles, beehives, quiffs, and mullets.

While Nordic authors and settings seem to dominate my crime reads, the list is not exclusively Northern European I am glad to say. I have even endeavoured to go beyond wider Europe, taking in the US of A, the Middle East, south-east Asia, and even Africa. And it is to Africa that I travel in this post, with two authors to mention, South Africa's Deon Meyer and Zimbabwe's Alexander McCall Smith.

For as long as there have been sporting contests, there have been men willing to make wagers upon them. The 'Turf Accountant' or 'Bookie' is as familiar a feature of Dublin City as pubs and churches. This gallery depicts some of the places where Dubliners put their money down and wished for good fortune.