storytelling/pubs in ireland

Storytelling? Like of the wee fairies? Or are you meaning more conversational?

Ye olde two score ago a cockroach as big as me thumb crawled out at night and bite off me big toe. I chased that little bastage ..........

Can't help with storytelling in pubs but for listening here in the US you might do a search for Eddie Lenihan or Pat Speight. They are well known Irish story tellers/historians(Seanchai) who both have CD's for sale and which you can probably find a sample of on you tube. A great way to entertain your children/grandchildren or whomever is to light a single candle in a darkened room and then play one of these storytellers CD's. I can guarantee no one will doze off in the middle of such a session.

hey thanks... i was told you can listen to these over dinner in dublin... so was curious if anyone knew which places were good...thanks

For great Irish music in Killarney have someone point you to Buckley's Bar. In almost any pub in Ireland if you strike up a conversation with the locals you'll soon be hearing great stories. In the smaller towns those in the local pub will often approach you - in the hopes that you might have some stories for them. Remember that in Ireland a story doesn't have to be true - it just has to be a good story.

"In almost any pub in Ireland if you strike up a conversation with the locals you'll soon be hearing great stories. In the smaller towns those in the local pub will often approach you - in the hopes that you might have some stories for them." And they will sometimes be making fun of you (taking the piss) without you ever realizing it. All part of the fun (recognizing it).

I'm not sure what you're specifically referring to, but if you want to hear traditional Irish storytelling (folk stories) I would research the cultural centers and theaters. The Irish and Ulster Scots do have a strong tradition of storytelling (which influenced storytelling in the American South, esp. Appalachia) and I'm sure there are professional storytellers and acting companies all over Ireland that you can seek out. Maybe they do have storytelling nights in pubs, similar to poetry readings, but I don't know. In any case, when I was in Dublin a couple of years ago an Irish cab driver told me that Ireland's storytelling tradition has faded in Dublin and you're more likely to find it in the west and north. If you simply go to a pub and ask someone for a good Irish story, you're likely to get treated like an idiot tourist. Though, my experience in Northern Ireland and Dublin was that the Irish and Scots-Irish were really flattered when you expressed an interest in their cultural heritages and daily lives.

Here's what you are looking for. :) At the oldest pub in Dublin, The Brazen Head, you can eat a 3 course dinner, enjoy a pint, and listen to stories about fairies. I went a few years ago, and highly recommend it. Hope to go again this summer. Read all about it on tripadvisor. Food, Folk, and Fairies
www.irishfolktours.com