Weirdo Guide to Dublin Pubs: Brogan’s

We briefly name-checked Brogan’s in our roundup of the Best Pubs for History, but having recently had occasion to stop in on our way to a gig at the Olympia, its near neighbour, it was high time to expand upon that. Unlike some other pubs which trade on either imagined or exaggerated history, Brogan’s nearly does the opposite; there are many fascinating layers here that are barely touched upon in promotional material for its current incarnation.

Although it’s been Brogan’s since the early 1990s, the 4-story building at 75 Dame Street began life as a Georgian townhouse in the 1750s. It had a number of commercial uses, beginning later in the following century, finally becoming a pub in the late 19th century. This is perhaps when its most well-known Fenian connections date from: this is where the Invincibles, who met here regularly when it was known as Wrenn’s, planned the 1882 Phoenix Park assassinations. It was also a regular meeting spot for some key figures in Ireland’s independence struggle in the 1920s, or so the stories go (yes, despite being just opposite Dublin Castle, and no, we don’t believe there’s a tunnel – if nothing else, it would be constantly flooded).

But this pub was also an important spot for more recent social history; before becoming Brogan’s, it was The Viking Inn, one of Dublin’s first reasonably well-known gay bars. From 1979 until 1987, this was a true community meeting spot in a very different Ireland. Its proximity to the (also allegedly haunted – we’ll come back to this in a moment) Olympia Theatre didn’t hurt, either.

And local craft beer nerds may not find much to get excited about here nowadays (though there is a well-used Ambush tap – it just looks a bit lonely amongst all the Guinness memorabilia, unless you count the Beamish tap as ‘other’), the basement was the original home to Underdog, so once upon a time, there were more varied beer options here (if you didn’t mind your feet occasionally getting damp).

But Brogan’s also appeals to us as one of the few Dublin pubs to have a bit (emphasis on the ‘bit’) of ghostlore…it’s of the low-key poltergeist variety, with clinking glasses, footsteps and the odd slamming door. As we get closer into Spooky Season, and with so few good Haunted Pub stories in the neighbourhood, we’ll take it.

Bring on the ghosts!

Where: 75 Dame Street, Dublin
Access from the city centre: More or less in it
Food: Crisps, peanuts
Sport: All the usual big sports
TVs: Quite a few, not always on
Music: Very MOR on most of our visits
Family-friendliness: Not the most kid-friendly spot
Pub-crawl-ability: High – Porterhouse, The Lord Edward, The Bull & Castle, The Christchurch, The Brazen Head, Thomas Read’s, The Oak…and that’s just getting started (and avoiding most of Temple Bar)
Local sites of note: Olympia Theatre, Dublin Castle, Dublin City Hall, Chester Beatty Library, Christ Church Cathedral, Dublinia
Haunted: Knock once for yes?
Other notes: Although not on our Best Pubs for Books list, there are some books to borrow while you relax with a pint
Socials: Facebook