Ukategorisert
Davy Byrne’s Pub: The Ghost of James Joyce Still Raising a Glass
Said to appear in the mirror of his favorite place for a pint in Dublin, the ghost of James Joyce is rumored to still linger in Davy Byrne’s Pub.
Said to appear in the mirror of his favorite place for a pint in Dublin, the ghost of James Joyce is rumored to still linger in Davy Byrne’s Pub.
In the heart of Dublin’s literary quarter stands one of the city’s most famous pubs, Davy Byrne’s, where polished wood, gleaming mirrors and a literary history draws people from near and far. Some even say that some stay after their death.
Read More: Check out all ghost stories from Ireland
For more than 125 years, this elegant public house has been a gathering place for writers, rebels, and thinkers. Yet behind its warm glow and literary fame lingers a story of something spectral. They say that James Joyce himself, the master of Dublin’s soul, never truly left the place that helped make him immortal.
A Pub of Poets and Patriots
First opened in 1889, Davy Byrne’s Pub quickly became a cornerstone of Dublin’s social life. The upstairs rooms were once used for clandestine Republican meetings, with none other than Michael Collins himself said to have gathered here in secret during Ireland’s struggle for independence. The pub became a crossroads of revolution and intellect, where whispers of rebellion mixed with the smoke of pipes and the clink of glasses.
But while politics left its mark on these walls, literature would make the pub eternal. James Joyce, who frequented the establishment in the early 1900s, captured its spirit in his masterpiece Ulysses, where Leopold Bloom famously orders a gorgonzola sandwich and a glass of burgundy at Davy Byrne’s. That passage ensured that the pub’s name would live forever, etched into the pages of one of the greatest novels ever written. Joyce also mentioned the pub in the short story “Counterparts” in Dubliners as a bar visited by the office clerk protagonist named Farrington following an altercation with his senior at the office.
The Writer Who Never Left
Book fans travel long distances to visit the place and The pub is particularly popular on Bloomsday, an annual 16 June celebration of both the book and James Joyce.
Regulars and staff will tell you that Joyce still lingers here. His image, they say, appears in the bar’s ornate mirrors, watching quietly from the corner as if observing his characters come to life once more. Some claim that his reflection moves independently, tilting its head or raising a glass, even when no one is standing nearby.
A few have even reported hearing the faint scratch of a pen on paper, or the ghostly murmur of a man reciting words from memory. Whether it is the echo of Joyce’s creative spirit or a trick of the mind, no one can say for certain.
Between Literature and the Beyond
For some, it makes perfect sense that Joyce would haunt Davy Byrne’s. The pub was his muse, a place that embodied Dublin’s wit, melancholy, and vitality. Perhaps his spirit simply returns to where the city felt most alive to him. Or perhaps he lingers to see if his words are still spoken, if readers and wanderers still come to trace the path of Ulysses.
Today, Davy Byrne’s remains one of the most beloved pubs in Dublin, where tourists and locals alike gather to taste a pint and a slice of literary history. Yet those who know its story may pause before the mirrors, half-expecting to glimpse a familiar figure in a dark coat and round spectacles smiling faintly back.
If you do, raise your glass. It might just be that James Joyce has come back for one last drink in the pub he never could forge
Newest Posts
- Feltrim Hill: The Hellhound and the Haunted Well
On the hills where the last wolves in Ireland roamed, ghosts have been spotted on Feltrim Hill, always moving towards the sacred spring that were said to have healing powers. - The Lady of Losby Manor and other Ghosts LingeringA gathering place for the elite class in Norway, Losby Manor house in the countryside outside of Oslo housed kings and queens. It is also said that some of its residents are haunting the place, especially the ghost of The Lady of Losby, who dedicated her life to her home.
- Westown House and the Ghosts Rising from the RuinsIn the Naul outside of Dublin, the Westown House was for a long time abandoned and left to ruins. Now the work of restoring the building has started, but the question is, how about the ghosts said to linger there? Are they still haunting their ruins?
- The Unseen Guests Haunting Lothes Mat & VinhusIn the Norwegian coastal city, Haugesund, Lothes Mat & Vinhus is one of those restaurants that keeps things traditional. But could it be that some of the former residents of the house are behind the strange things that have been going on for decades?
- A Cautionary Tale of the Vampiric Guaxa from AsturiaStalking the northern valleys in Spain, the vampiric Guaxa witch from Asturian legends stalks the night. Although no one is safe, the starved and thirsty monster is especially after the blood of the children.
- Rathfarnham Castle and the Lingering Ghosts Haunting itThe whole estate of Rathfarnham Castle in south Dublin is said to have its ghosts. From the antique ballroom, its icy lakes and roads leading up to it, ghosts are said to linger.
- The Ghost of the Psychic Anne Brandfjell Haunting the old Sjømannsskolen in OsloIs the ghost of Anne Brandfjell, a famous fortune teller and wise wife from Norway haunting the old Maritime school in Oslo?
- John Mulligans and the Pub Ghost on Poolbeg StreetA stop on the haunted pub crawl through Dublin, one of the stops would be John Mulligan’s. Stories about glass and bottles flying from the shelves has haunted the place for decades now according to the people behind the bar.
- The Ghost of General Birthe of ElingaardRuling her Elingaard Manor house with an iron fist, the noble Birgitte Kaas is said to haunt it in her afterlife as well. But what is the truth of her strange disappearance and whispers about a deal with the devil?
- Loogaroo: The Shape-Shifting Vampire of Caribbean FolkloreHanging her skin in trees every night, the vampiric Loogaroo across the Caribbean goes out to hunt for blood to quench her thirst as well as pay her dark lord for her dark powers.
- The Devil’s Castle in the Aubinger Lohe and the Hidden TreasureSaid to be the location of a hidden treasure, the old nobles from the Devil’s Castle in the Bavarian hills are said to roam the forest, still searching for it.
- The Devil’s Footprint in Frauenkirche in MunichInside one of Munich’s landmark churches, something devilish is said to be stamped on the floor. In the middle of the room, a black footprint is clearly seen, named The Devil’s Footprint, as he was said to have left it there.
References:
The 10 most haunted pubs in Dublin | The Irish Post
