Brennan's Criterion Bar

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Brennan's Criterion Bar
Type Irish pub
Location Bundoran
Coordinates 54°28′44″N8°16′40″W / 54.4790°N 8.2779°W / 54.4790; -8.2779 Coordinates: 54°28′44″N8°16′40″W / 54.4790°N 8.2779°W / 54.4790; -8.2779
BuiltBefore 1900
Original useGuesthouse
OwnerJames Ward (1900–19??)
James Brennan (1932?–1981)
Nan Brennan (1981–2017)
Patricia Brennan (1981–2018)

Brennan's Criterion Bar was an Irish pub in Bundoran, County Donegal.

History

The pub opened for business on Saint Patrick's Day, 1900. Owners James and Catherine Ward bought a former guesthouse and converted it to a pub. [1] In 1933 the Wards' daughter, Mary, married James Brennan, who remained behind the bar until 1981 when his two daughters, Nan and Patricia, took over the business. [1] Nan worked while Patricia cooked (or so Nan told The Irish Times shortly before her death). [1]

Part of the pub's appeal in its latter years was its lack of television, internet, and other modern conveniences (including live music), as well as its ban on swearing. [2] Even professional musician and songwriter Phil Coulter, encouraged one evening to sing "The Town I Loved So Well", was not allowed to get away with breaking into song. [1] In May 2015, TheJournal.ie named it on its list of "18 of the greatest Irish pubs that tourists (mostly) don't know about", stating: "Retreat here and find peace." [3]

In 2013, Brennan's was featured in an RTÉ documentary, The Irish Pub. [4] In March 2016, a reporter with The Boston Globe wrote a feature on the pub. [5] In 2017, the sisters appeared together in a screen advertisement for Guinness. [2] Nan's death in her early eighties [1] in mid-August 2017 was reported in the national media. [2] An elder sister, Cait, was reported to still be living in Dublin, while a younger brother, Seamus, had died in 2007. [6] Following Nan's death, Patricia (in her late seventies at the time her sister died) [2] closed the pub. It shut its doors for the final time on the night of Sunday, 30 September 2018. [7]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 McBride, Catriona (7 January 2017). "No TV or singing: sisters rule the roost in Donegal pub - The Brennan sisters have lived above the Criterion Bar in Bundoran all their lives". The Irish Times . Retrieved 7 January 2017. You may also be overcome with an urge to become best friends with the wonderful, unique sisters, Nan (80) and Patricia Brennan (78) who run it, have been reared there, and call it home.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Ní Aodha, Gráinne (14 August 2017). "'End of an era': Well-known Donegal pub owner Nan Brennan has passed away: The pub's famous sisters have garnered national and international attention over the years". TheJournal.ie . Archived from the original on 16 August 2017. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
  3. ↑ Freeman, Michael (10 May 2015). "18 of the greatest Irish pubs that tourists (mostly) don't know about". TheJournal.ie . Archived from the original on 3 October 2017. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
  4. ↑ Elkin, David (15 August 2016). "Brennan's in Bundoran is one of the best old school pubs in the country". TheJournal.ie . Archived from the original on 28 November 2017. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  5. ↑ Cullen, Kevin (13 March 2016). "An Irish pub where civility is always on tap". The Boston Globe . Archived from the original on 23 November 2017. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  6. ↑ "Funeral details have been announced for beloved Bundoran woman Nan Brennan of Brennan's Criterion Bar". 14 August 2017. Archived from the original on 6 September 2017. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
  7. ↑ Daly, Michael (30 September 2018). "End of an era tonight as Brennan's in Bundoran, one of Ireland's most famous pubs, closes its doors". Donegal Democrat . Retrieved 30 September 2018.
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