To some it was an unassuming pub on a side street behind the Four Courts in Dublin City centre. To musicians, dancers, singers and listeners, it was a mecca of traditional music for over 35 years. In 2021, Hughes’s pub closed its doors for the last time, the echoes of musical memories left buried in its walls.

Brendan Gleeson played there often. It was a kind of hideout for him — its musicians and music providing a blanket of escape.

Filmed over five days in January 2022 in and around the pub, Brendan Gleeson’s Farewell to Hughes’s records and interviews various musicians, dancers and singers as they gather one last time to revisit the magic, with archival footage inserted throughout to tell the story of Hughes’ contribution to both the traditional music community in Dublin and the city as a whole.

This screening will be accompanied by a Q&A with Brendan Gleeson and director Ciarán Ó Maonaigh.