Welcome to Clarkes Bar Drogheda                 

WHAT do the snooker player Alex Higgins, international pianist Michael Nyman, Golden Globe winning actor Brendan Gleeson and local politician Ged Nash have in common?

Well, before you come up with your own inventive answers, I'll tell you that they have all had a pint or two in Clarke's pub, Peter Street at one time, although some more than others!

'I suppose for many years it had a reputation for being a bit of 'an old man's pub', but now it is seen as perhaps 'bohemian' and somewhere for artists to gather in the evenings.'

The building itself dates back to 1800, with the front we see now from about 90 years later. The pub was first owned by one Thomas Reid, who was father to the renowned Drogheda artist Nano Reid and also Mollie Reid, so perhaps the current clientele are drawn by her legacy.

You can imagine the two girls spending happy hours swinging on the doors of the snugs and playing hide and seek in the various compartments.

'The pub really hasn't changed at all since it was first built,' says Mary Ellen, who works alongside Gill Durnin and Declan Dawe, with Landlady Fionnuala Keenan.

'The four snugs were put in because women weren't allowed to drink in public back then, but they are still really popular today with people who want a quiet drink, or a bit of privacy.'

The Current owner, Brian Browling purchased the bar from the Clarke Family in 1996.