St Patrick’s Day: Green galore and happy hours a plenty

There were some early starts and possibly long hours as St Patrick’s Day adherents ripped into action in Hawke’s Bay.

While there wasn’t a queue, there were people waiting for the doors to open, at the most obvious target – Paddy O’Sullivan’s Irish Pub in Napier’s West Quay bar quarter. It had advertised music and entertainment from midday today.

An early start to St Patrick’s Day on West Quay, Napier, for (from left) Tyler Newport, Autumn Parata-Paul and Carina Viljoen. Photo / Paul Taylor.

It was the first time St Patrick’s Day has fallen on a Sunday since 2019.

With no sign of any abatement in New Zealand’s annual marking of Ireland’s special day, several other bars were also turning green for the day, especially in the Napier CBD.

In addition to the dockside commemoration there were three bars rollicking well into the afternoon in town, with such entertainers as the Irish Gnomes at the Rose Irish Pub on Hastings Street, and at Rosie O’Grady’s Irish Pub facing Clive and Memorial squares. In the old Provincial Hotel, “an Irish guy from Australia” was entertaining in the back bar with revellers sitting at the footpath tables in the sunshine outside.

At the nearby Bay City Club, off Milton Road, there were about 50 green-hatted, or green-haired, or green-dressed members, including Nuala Walsh, from Tipperary, in Ireland, marking her 19th St Patrick’s Day in New Zealand.

“There’re two I don’t remember,” she confessed, “but most of the others I can remember – t’be sure, t’be sure.”

Entertainment morphed into another wake for Shane McGowan, the popular frontman of legendary Irish band The Pogues who died just over four months ago.

There happy hours stretched somewhat longer than the advertised happy hours, t’be sure, everyone is happy.

Doug Laing is a senior reporter based in Napier with Hawke’s Bay Today, and has 50 years of journalism experience in news gathering, including breaking news, sports, local events, issues, and personalities.