On a rainy Wednesday afternoon, a crowd of men are glued to a TV screen showing the Cheltenham Festival. As the horses cross the finish line, they place down their pints and inspect their betting slips. Jockey Rachael Blackmore has just won the Champion Chase on her horse Captain Guinness and her shock victory is greeted with a frustrated groan from those who failed to back her. At The Station pub in Didsbury, it's been a busy week - and it's about to get busier. Friday is the Gold Cup, one of the biggest events in the horse racing calendar, and bar manager Eddie Cunningham is expecting a lively day. Yet it will be nothing in comparison to what the rest of the weekend has in store. READ MORE: The two Greater Manchester towns named in The Sunday Times' Best Places to Live in 2024 This Sunday marks St Patrick's Day and The Station is expecting its busiest day of the year. It's not hard to see why. Wedged between a Domino's Pizza and a row of terraced houses, it's impossible to miss the Guinness branding outside the narrow pub at the corner of Wilmslow Road and Norgate Street. Step through the door and you'll find a wooden bar complete with a traditional Guinness pump. A sign above the bar advertises a 'traditional
Irish session' while signs and artwork dotted around the walls are a nod to the Emerald Isle. The traditional Irish
music session held at The Station on a Wednesday night is the longest-running in Manchester, Eddie claims. "Our record takings for a single day was St Patrick’s Day last year," says Eddie. "That’s what we have to beat. St Patrick's is not just a day anymore, it's a weekend. The Station pub in Wilmslow Road, Didsbury (Image: Manchester Evening News) "We've got live music on Friday, Saturday and Sunday but we've had to alter our plans for Sunday. We did have live music Sunday afternoon and evening, then United v
Liverpool (FA Cup) got announced as a half three kick off. "I could've really done with it being a half 12 kick off, we can't have live music over that." Eddie has worked at The Station for more than a decade and prides himself on his knowledge of the pub and its punters. With hours to go until St Patrick's Day, his preparations for the big day are already well under way. He's ordered green bunting, hats and other decorations to kit out the interior of the pub. As we chat, a delivery of Guinness pint glasses arrives. Eddie explains that until recently, he had to import the tulip-shaped glasses from
Ireland at a significant cost, as he was unable to find them here in the
UK. Last St Patrick's Day, the pub shifted 12 kegs of the Irish stout, According to Eddie, that works out at about 1,050 pints. The pub has its own traditional Guinness pump (Image: Manchester Evening News) “Since then, Guinness has gone wildly more popular," he explained. "It’s the trendy drink, so we are hoping to beat that comfortably this year.” Guinness sales at The Station have more than doubled over the last 12 months as the Irish stout has soared in popularity. At £5.20 a pint, it's considerably cheaper than at some of the city's more celebrated Irish pubs and is held in high regard by those with a fondness for the black stuff. "We've always had a good reputation for Guinness," said Mr Cunningham. "There's quite a big Irish community around here so it's done well catering to that. "You will find that almost everyone in this area, if they are not Irish, they will have an Irish parent or grandparent. The Irish community is a huge part of our customer base." Irish ancestry remains deeply rooted across Greater Manchester - with second and third generations carrying the torch to ensure its unique culture remains. It’s now believed that around one in five Mancs can claim Irish heritage. The Station claims to be home to the longest-running Irish traditional music session in Manchester (Image: Manchester Evening News) The Station's landlords, Paul Leavy and Paul Murphy, both have Irish roots, their parents having emigrated to Manchester from the Emerald Isle. The two men have known each other since they were kids growing up in Moss Side and decided to take on the pub together six years ago. "I liked the feel of the place and could see the potential," said Mr Leavy. "My old fella has always had pubs. "The clientele here are fantastic. There's a very loyal following. "There are people that drink here every single night. It's all regulars except for weekends when we get the Didsbury Dozeners. We're the ninth pub so we're the ones who clean up the sick." This weekend, many pubs across Greater Manchester will turn a shade of green as thousands celebrate Irish heritage and culture. Mr Leavy says places such as The Station hold a special place in the hearts of Manchester's Irish diaspora, especially following a string of closures in recent years. Levenshulme favourite Fiddlers Green shut last year after its owner decided to sell the pub, formerly known as Dicey Riley's, and retire. Meanwhile, some regulars at St Kentigern's Social Club in Fallowfield have said they no longer feel welcome there. And Chorlton Irish Club has been closed since the lockdown of 2020. The popular pub says it is expecting its busiest weekend in recent memory (Image: Manchester Evening News) The Irish World Heritage Centre in Cheetham Hill is also facing an uncertain future. The centre off Queens Road has enough money to keep operating until Easter , according to trustee Brian Kennedy, but will need grant funding and a new business model to stay afloat. "It's a massive Irish community round here but there aren't many places for them to go to," said Mr Leavy. "There used to be an Irish pub on every corner." But many regulars at The Station dispute any suggestion of it being an Irish pub. Among them is Justen Gill, originally from Country Tyrone in
Northern Ireland and a regular at the pub for 20 years. "This is a community pub," he said. "A creche for men. "The Irish pub is a bit of a cliche. Putting a Guinness mirror up and a wheelbarrow on the wall doesn't make it an Irish pub. "First and foremost, it's a local pub and some of the customers just happen to be Irish or of Irish descent." After moving to Manchester to attend university back in 1992, Mr Gill said he 'refused to get stuck into the Irish thing'. Irish signs adorn the walls of the pub (Image: Manchester Evening News) He explained: "What's the point in living here if you're not going embrace a different culture? I had a choice to come here, the previous generation had to. "Maybe they were not as welcome and had to stick together and that brought these pubs and places. There was a place and a time when people did pull their arms 'round each other and didn't feel as confident to go out, but that's gone now. "The world has changed. There's not a chance, given the amount of people that live in Manchester, first generation or second generation, that we are not welcome. "Manchester has been nothing but good to me. I was supposed to be here for three years and I've been here for 32." Mr Gill, who coaches a local Gaelic
Football team, visits the pub most days with his dog Oliver and claims it is the 'best pint of Guinness in Manchester;. Eddie Cunningham, bar manager at The Station in Didsbury (Image: Manchester Evening News) "I know people who travel here from Stockport and Derbyshire because they want to have a day on the Guinness," he said. "People come in of all shapes and sizes. "You just are who you are in here, there are no preconceptions. As long as you're not an a*** ****, you're good." Having grown up accustomed to a more traditional St Patrick's Day, he says he finds the focus on the more boozy nature of the day 'strange'. "When I was growing up in Ireland, St Patrick's was back to being a feast day," he explained. "We went to church and had a parade then you went and had family time. "The concept of St Paddy's being a massive drinking day is pretty alien to me. It's been imported from the States and embraced." The beloved boozer is wedged between a Domino's Pizza and a row of terraced house (Image: Manchester Evening News) Despite that, he says he will still call into the pub on Sunday to say hello to
Friends. "It's a green equivalent of New Year's Eve," he said. "The kids love it. If a load of people want to get together and wear green and celebrate a saint then good luck to them." With its intimate layout and cast of colourful characters, The Station is the sort of pub that is hard to come by these days. It is believed to date back to 1879 and its old-fashioned feel is an integral part of its appeal. Open from 10am-midnight 365 days a year - including
Christmas Day - it shows live sport, including football, rugby union and Gaelic football. A Celtic supporters group regularly meet at the pub to watch matches while the numerous photographs of George Best that line the walls of the pub suggest its clientele leans more to the red side of Manchester than the blue. The pub is also frequented by famous faces, with former Ireland international footballer Kevin Kilbane having been a regular before moving to
Canada in 2020. Tyson Fury has even called in for a pint in the past, Eddie says. 'A Guinness a day' (Image: Manchester Evening News) Eddie Rolph, 85, has been coming to the pub for 35 years. Back then, it was even smaller than it is today. What is now the back room of the pub used to be the landlord's living quarters, he recalls. "It's very social," he said. "It's a good community. "Some people come in early and go home early, then there's the afternoon shift who come in about half four until seven, then you have an evening shift, then a group that comes and watches the football. "It's got a good reputation for the beer. Older people vote with their feet. If it's no good, then they're gone." Mr Rolph is one of many regulars propping up the stools by the bar. But during the
Coronavirus pandemic, lockdown restrictions forced all punters to sit at tables - and in groups of no more than six. "A lot of our day trade is people who come in for a pint and a chat and sit at the bar," explained Eddie. "It was horrible when we had to tell them to take a seat by themselves. It was a concerning time but since everything reopened it's bounced back stronger." While other pubs have struggled during the cost of living crisis, The Station is thriving. "Every time I open a news article I see another pub shutting down but we have gone the opposite way," said Mr Cunningham. "I can't put my finger on what that's down to. "As a village, Didsbury is a bit of an anomaly. It has plenty of pubs that don't do food but they seem to survive."