61) The George of South Great George's Street, D2
Dublin's leading gay bar, vast and populous. Established in 1985 years before homosexuality became legalized in Ireland. It's now the oldest and largest gay bar in the nation and opens until 2:30am most nights. Once rivalled by The Dragon which stood further up the same street, since shut. It is reputedly less bacchanalian nowadays than in days of yore, according to Marco(?), a flight attendant with a grotesque religious streak and a penchant for boasting about his endowments – from certain angles he resembles Robert Shaw in Jaws.
We treaded softly past the bouncers one night at the end of a hefty pintcrawl and found ourselves feeling a little wet behind the ears. We allowed gravity to pull us towards the relative calm of the smoking area. Large statues of angels with wings outstretched (known as Healing Machines) stand on either side of the main bar where they appear to be mock-poll-dancing. The side bar and its melancholy elder clientele has a very depressing aspect in the dreary daylight. This smaller bar was the original establishment before many subsequent expansions and is known as ‘Bridie’s Bar’ which is now the smallest part of The George. The main bar stretches over two floors and is home to a stage area for DJ’s, karaoke nights and drag shows.
It made national news in 2008 [1] when a hoax caller claimed to have planted a bomb in the venue on the night of the Gay Pride celebrations. This led to the entire building being evacuated and traffic in the surrounding area diverted as teams of Gardai searched The George with sniffer dogs. Within an hour and a half the hoax was officially declared and all was well and gay again. Tipplers Tip: Arrive early to avoid long queues and a €10 entrance fee.
Pair of legends in a smoking area who may or may not talk to each other
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