Talbot Mall

Talbot Mall (formerly known as Irish Life Mall and later Irish Life Shopping Mall prior to a 2013 rebranding) was a small shopping arcade located between Talbot Street, Northumberland Square, and Abbey Street in Dublin, Ireland. Operating for some years with only a few trading units, it latterly primarily formed a public passage between Talbot and Abbey Streets. As of 2021, permission was granted for a development which would replace the mall with a single supermarket and close the public passage between the streets, and this proceeded in 2022.

History

Development

Opened in September 1979 by the chairman of Ireland's largest life assurance company, Irish Life, the Irish Life Mall was a second-phase element of the nine-building Irish Life buildings complex, originally built between 1974 and 1977 and mostly comprising office space, as well as two blocks of apartments. The mall was constructed partially on the site of the Georgian era Marlborough Bowling Green.

The mall runs from the midpoint of Talbot Street to Northumberland Square and Abbey Street. It originally had two entrances on Talbot Street, with the passages merging at a central atrium; one entrance and passage were later absorbed into rental units. The mall's name was later expanded to Irish Life Shopping Mall. The complex was built on the former site of the Brook Thomas warehouse and timber yards along with other adjoining sites costing £900,000. The 14 artisan houses of Northumberland Square were demolished as part of the redevelopment.