A popular Irish pub that’s been at the heart of its community for 32 years will close its doors for a final time tonight.
Earlier this year, Levenshulme favourite Fiddlers Green confirmed it would be shutting up shop some time after St Patricks Day. The announcement was met by an outpouring of love online with the pub's loyal customers left 'gutted' after branding it the "best pub" in Manchester.
Owners Bridie and James decided to sell the the pub and retire in order to spend more time with their family. The couple first bought the pub, formerly known as Dicey Riley's, in 1990 and despite planning to only run the pub for five to ten years, have stayed for over three decades.
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The name of the Stockport Road boozer is in reference to 19th-century English maritime folklore. In the old tales, believed to have been first mentioned in Frederick Marryat's 1856 novel ‘The Dog Fiend; Or, Snarleyyow’, the Fiddler’s Green was described as a sort of after-life for sailors.
Announcing the news on Facebook at the start of January, Bridie and James wrote: "Well the news is finally out Fiddlers Green has been sold and both of us are retiring. We’re emotional, we're happy ,and sad and probably confused but we’re pleased that we finally made the big decision.
"We’re overwhelmed with the response we’re getting from Levenshulme and the wider community. Levenshulme has been our home for so long it’s going to be hard to breakaway. St. Mary's Parish has always been our parish and will remain so.
"My amazing staff, we were always very lucky to have the best staff ,something I was always very proud of, they’re staying with us until the end. My locals, my regulars you have been our life for so long. We’ve made the right decision for us.
"My family we’ve put Fiddlers before you for so long and you always understood. Thank You. So we’ll try and keep people updated. The support that has been shown to us since the news broke unbelievable."
The post was liked over 500 times and attracted over 200 comments from regulars and those who had passed through the pub's doors over the last three decades.
One person wrote: "Gutted is an understatement...end of an era. I've made my best friends at the fiddlers. It was my first steps into bar work and I couldn't have been happier in the ten years I worked for you. Enjoy the rest."
Commenting on Bridie and James' retirement, another person wrote: "Definitely well deserved! You both deserve an amazing retirement, enjoy every minute of it. You gave me the chance to work in a brilliant pub with some of the best bar staff and regulars."
A third person added: "Good luck to you Bridie and James! The end of an era, so many good times had in "The Fidds" through the years. You ran it so well, never had any trouble, always a great atmosphere."
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News ahead of the closure, Bridie said she was "overwhelmed" by the reaction from her customers and "hugely grateful" for all the support over the years.
"My husband is retirement age and I'll hit retirement age soon too so we decided it was time to stop," she explained. "We've spent our whole working life working, we've worked all our lives since we came to this country - I was 17 when I came here from Donegal and James was 19, and we've just decided we're going to have some time for ourselves and our family."
Describing how they came to own Fiddlers Green, Bridie said she had always wanted to run her own pub and had worked in a number of city centre bars and pubs when she first moved over from Ireland. "I first worked at the DHSS behind Kendalls in the city centre, and my husband was a tunnel miner, he worked underground. To support myself when I first arrived at night I would also work in various bars and an Irish bar called The Cleveland in Ardwick.
"The when our middle child was two I decided I needed to do something, so we took on The Cleveland as a rental and we were there for three and a half years, but I always wanted something of my own so kept an eye out and then Dicey Riley's came on the market.
"We bought it in 1990 and I initially said we would be there ten years and then we had our last child James and he was born in 1991 and then it was just a cycle of raising our family, keeping going and then we said we would close when the kids left school and then that led to leaving once they've got jobs, or their own houses and married. Our youngest gets married in August, so it went from ten years to 32 years."
As well as wanting to spend more time with their family, the landlady explained that like other hospitality businesses, the landscape was very different after the pandemic. "After Covid things never got back to how to how they were before.
"On top of that there's utilities, the cost of electricity and Sky TV. Those three things have gone up, and it feels like they're trying to put people out of business.
"At the same time, we've had 32 glorious years, we've had so much support from the people of Levenshulme and the surrounding area. All down the years, we've had amazing support, so we're very emotional about selling up.
"I thought we would fade away, but when we told everybody we were leaving, we were astonished at the response. People that came here 32 years ago have come back to say goodbye, and we've received so many cards, flowers and chocolates. I would never expect anything so it's been unreal, people saying we're a real loss to Levenshulme."
Reflecting on the good times at the pub, Bridie said the pub was known for its sport and live music. "We 've had so many memorable nights, the customers in here are very into horse racing so always busy around Cheltenham and the Grand National. We're also a big Manchester United club so in the 1990s when Alex Ferguson was in charge it was massive. We also show Gaelic football too.
"I've never known such emotion in my whole life, it's changed both our our lives. We've had so much support from our family and staff too. Our staff are amazing, when we told them they were closing, not one of them left to find other jobs, they said they would be staying until the end.
"I'm so overwhelmed by the lovely comments because we're just doing a good days work. We're so grateful, it's been amazing, what a journey we've had."
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