Face to Face with Patsy Kelly: For the weary Donegal or Derry traveller, to or from Dublin, Kelly’s Inn at Garvaghey is always a welcome sight. Over the years it has built up a reputation for excellent food and a warm friendly welcome and has thus become a household name the length and breadth of Ireland. Tommy Kelly purchased a small bar and grocery shop from Joe Higgins in 1937 and from those humble beginnings the modern Kelly’s Inn developed with the times. For almost 40 years it has been in the capable hands of the late Tommy’s two daughters, Patsy and Mary. Patsy’s daughter, Ann Marie, is now working in the business too. It is a busy place but Patsy was relaxed as she took time out to chat to us last week. Patsy was born and reared on the exact site where Kelly’s Inn now stands. She went to the Loreto Convent in Omagh for her second level education and at the age of 16 she joined her father in the grocery and bar business in 1957. It was a grocery shop with a small bar attached and was already a favourite haunt for locals and the odd passer-by. The grocery trade was doing well and they then put a Van on the road, which went from house to house selling the needs of the people in the hinterland. It ceased its ‘rounds’ in the late 70’s. In those days the farmers sold the eggs in return for food and sometimes they were lucky enough to get a couple of pounds back to purchase some non-essentials. Many households ‘lived on the egg-money’, as in those days people only bought what they could pay for. There were no ‘plastic cards’, little borrowing and credit was very seldom asked for. Kellys paid the going rate for the eggs and Booths then collected them, sorted them and sold them on to shops in urban areas. At that time too, farmers brought pigs to Kelly, where they were slaughtered and sent to Grants of Derry for processing. This happened one Wednesday of every month and was always a busy day. In 1968 Kellys opened a ‘Singing Pub’, which was a new departure. The old bar could hold so few that an extension was needed and the ‘Singing Pub’ was an idea that was to become the ‘in thing’ all over the country. However the old bar was a great meeting place, with many local characters gathering there. James Sherry was a terrific singer and story-teller. There was Mick McRory, John Mullen and Tom Pearson too and they were great characters. We must remember that there was no dependency then for entertainment from Radio, Television, DVD or the like. It was all ‘home produced’ and was very wholesome. Another great story-teller in the area was Barney Horisk. The ‘Singing Pub’ era was also a time when the female was an accepted person in the pub. Until then it was frowned upon for a girl to be in a pub and certainly not drinking in public. This was all changing now and it was a very good thing for females and indeed the males. It was important for the ladies to socialise and to give them an outlet from the drudgery of the home. It also meant that the men did not drink as much, as they were taken home earlier than they might when on their own. It also meant a new and increasing list of drinks available to suit the new type of customer, though it would be difficult to change the man with the bottle of stout and the half-un. This new craze was the opportunity for many people to develop their musical talents as there was now a demand for musical groups to play in the ‘Singing Pubs’, which were opening up all over the place. Paddy Douglas was a great musician and used play in Kelly’s regularly with his group. John Taggart and John Kelly were also regular and top class performers and, towards the end of the 70’s, a young Dominic Kirwan became a popular entertainer there. In 1978 Kellys came up with a new idea, which was to become another success - they demolished the home house and built a restaurant. They also built a new shop and extended the filling- station. Then in the 80’s a function room was added and then accommodation at the rear of the building. How things have changed. In her early days in the business Patsy remembers that the pub closed at 9pm. Then it became 10pm, later to become 11pm and now, as they provide food, closing time can be 1.30am. The new Smoking Ban has improved working conditions for staff and makes it much easier to maintain the various rooms. The customers accepted the Ban very quickly and easily as they knew the benefits to all or perhaps because it was accepted readily in the South but it is certainly more pleasant to sit and work in the smokeless atmosphere. With their facilities they can cater for a wide range of functions and so Patsy comes in contact with a wide range of people and gets great satisfaction from her work. She is proud of what they have built up and her eagerness to provide good customer care is evident from her conversation and her approach to her work. Her father was a great GAA man and never missed a Tyrone game, wherever it might be in Ireland. He also supported the Errigal Ciaran club and attended all their games. Kelly’s Inn now sponsors the club jerseys. He was never a player but loved the game. There were three emotional occasions for Patsy resulting from her father’s love of GAA. When Errigal Ciaran arrived at her premises with the County Championship Cup, she welcomed them and thought of what it would have meant to her father, had he been alive to welcome them. The same feelings welled up when they arrived with the Ulster Cup and the greatest of all, when Tyrone arrived with the Sam Maguire in 2003. Her father would have been so proud of every man on the squad. Patsy has continued the family interest in the GAA and now hosts the county teams and local clubs for meals and functions. It also means that every GAA President on the past 40 years has called in Kelly’s and signed the visitor’s book. Looking through that book there were many famous names, including Ronnie Drew, Seamus Heaney, Sam Neill, Brian McFadden, Dana, Shay Givens, Brid Rodgers (as Minister for Agriculture), Dusty Springfield and John Montague. Jim Aiken, the entertainments promoter, used call with famous singers on their way to or from a ‘gig’ but the most memorable visitor was Tom Jones. Indeed there are other famous names in that book but, to be honest, they were written with such a scrawl that we were unable to identify the person. Kelly’s was one of the first venues to hold Discos and they came from Derry and Armagh to it but they became very difficult to monitor and were ended. Big bands are still favourites with the crowds and Mick Flavin, Declan Nerney, Jimmy Buckley, Eamonn McCann and others will pull in the crowds. The age group attending might not be the younger set but it is great to give that age group the opportunity to socialise. The young people go to Cookstown, Omagh or further afield. Patsy says that people today are more musically critical and demand higher standards of performances from the entertainers. They are exposed to more music on radio, television and other means, with the result that they demand good music from live entertainers. But then it was always like that. In her younger days Patsy went to dances in the Royal Arms, Omagh; McQuade’s in Dungannon; the Gap and many other similar type venues and the bands producing the good sound attracted the big crowds. She was lucky in that she had a car from early on and could travel to dances but she would always have a full load of others with her. In her spare time Patsy loves nothing better than to head off to Donegal for a few days with husband Aiden. There she reads, walks and generally relaxes. She loves the quietness of the place and the natural beauty. She also likes the sun and tries to get a foreign holiday each year as well. As for the future – who knows. The main road, on which the business is situated, could be changed with a new road going through a different area, the local area could be developed, anything is possible but she will take what comes. Garvaghey was named a Hamlet in recent years with its pub, shop, school and Church and for many it is an oasis on their journey. Patsy Kelly has played a major role in providing that oasis. Peadar McMahon All content Copyright of emyvale.net