Fancy owning a piece of Bernard Shaw history…?

The Shaw is dead, long live the Shaw!

While Bodytonic may have closed the iconic Bernard Shaw venue on Dublin’s South Richmond Street once and for all, this Friday (15 November) sees the iconic pub-cum-disco-cum-art space reopen at its new location at Crossguns Bridge on the city’s Northside. And a thing of beauty it is too (see below).

As Bodytonic mentioned on its website recently, the new venue was originally going to be named Racket, a Phibsborough equivalent to the popular Portobello boozer, it “made sense” for the new site to adopt the identity of its predecessor, with the return of Eatyard, the Big Blue Bus, and all the artistic happenings that made the Shaw so iconic.

It’s even on the canal… albeit a different one. 🙂

Kicking things off with the obligatory bang, Andrew Weatherall​ and LSDXOXO have been confirmed as being among the early bookings for the new space – click here to find out what’s on and when.

But what of the former Portobello space?

Before it is razed to the ground to make way for a hotel/apartment block/WeWork space or some other godawful venture, Bodytonic will be auctioning off the fixtures and fittings to raise money for the Simon Community, as well as local community groups in both Portobello and Phibsborough.

So if you’ve ever fancied owning your own official Bernard Shaw toilet seat – or perhaps the smiley-bedecked Bar Closed sign (very apt) – bring your wads of cash along to the new venue at Crossguns Bridge on December 7th and help make a difference for the most needy in society.

In the meantime, however, see you in the (brand new) Bernard Shaw!

PS: As an addendum, this month marks the 19th anniversary of the sell off of another great venue’s various artefacts – Manchester’s The Hacienda, which auctioned off its fittings on November 25th, 2000. But as Mixmag’s Conrad Murray reported at the time, “despite the initial buzz in the building, the auction is a non-event. Like the reading of the will of an aunt you once adored but who quickly faded from memory, no-one seems over anxious to gather up the old belongings.” We’ve no doubt that the Shaw’s relics will garner a more appreciative response… 🙂