Why Gary will never call time
Actor and ex-Whelan’s owner has a new bar
ACTOR Gary Whelan has what he affectionately calls a ‘great love affair’ with his successful pubs.
It is testament to the attention he pays to his bars that his must famous venue, Dublin music pub Whelan’s, enjoys a cult status. Although he sold the Wexford Street venue almost 20 years ago, his name remains over the door.
Now Gary, who has had huge success as an actor in soaps such as The Bill and EastEnders, has bought McDonagh’s in Dalkey, which he has renamed The Dalkey Duck and he plans to make it the most popular watering hole in the town.
Gary told the Diary that his love affair with Dalkey began decades ago during his days as a biker. ‘I used to stop at that bar when I was a biker and drink a cider in the garden. There is an orchard out the back and it is south-facing, so it is spectacular to just sit there.’
But, he conceded: ‘I don’t bike very much any more.’
In 2014, Gary sold his Brighton bar, The Lion & Lobster, for €4.5m in what was the biggest sale price for a pub in the city.
The Dubliner then moved back to Ireland and set about seeking a new opportunity in the pub trade. ‘I have always had pubs. For me, it’s the customers that make the pubs. I always consider my bars like my children. They grow organically. It’s a growing entity. We are just getting started with the food and everything is starting to come together. It will be a pub, food, garden terrace and it will embrace the culture of Dalkey.’
In the 1980s, he set about making Whelan’s on Wexford Street the live music destination it is today. He said: ‘I am extremely proud of Whelan’s. I have a long love affair with all of my pubs.
Meanwhile, Gary said he had not turned his back on acting.
‘I’m an actor by profession. But I’ve put it aside for now. I get lots of offers but I’m focusing on my bars,’ he said. FORMER Miss Ireland Aoife Rose Walsh hit a career milestone last week when she walked her first runway in New York Fashion Week. Proving she has come a long way from Tipperary, the 27-year-old model, left, walked in the Pelush show modelling their faux fur pieces. Aoife told the Diary: ‘It was such a dream, it’s probably something I’ve always wanted to do but never thought it would actually happen. I was thrilled. ‘I actually wasn’t nervous at all. I’ve walked in so many shows already that I just know the drill but I was definitely excited.’ Aoife, who won Miss Ireland in 2013 and moved to New York in February, has also just branched out into blogging, launching her website thatgingerchick.com. She said: ‘I’ve actually been doing a lot of blogging since moving to the States. It was great to attend shows and events as well as walking in one, too. I felt I got a good experience of what [New York] Fashion Week is all about.’ BRAVE beauty guru Pamela Laird, whose Moxi Loves make-up remover cotton buds are hugely popular, is to launch a new product which will hit shelves next month.
Pamela, 27, made Dragon’s Den history as the first person to be offered investment from three Dragons – but having signed contracts, she ultimately turned them all down having secured what she said was a better deal from another investor. She said the Dragons had been supportive of her decision.