THERE IS A Lord Of The Rings theme pub opening its doors in Killarney today.

It’s called The Shire, and it is entirely kitted out around the JRR Tolkien fantasy series.

Its bar area has a sign for The Prancing Pony, an inn described in the books that is a favourite of hobbits.

The Shire The Shire

The watering hole has even been adjusted closer to hobbit height. “We’ve dropped the ceilings throughout, and we’ve a lot of quirky stuff done with the bar,” owner Ollie Favier told DailyEdge.ie.

Our party area is called Middle Earth, so when you rent a room you’re renting Middle Earth. We serve Gandalf Ale, Frodo’s Lager, Bilbo’s Beer and Orc Draught in tankards.

The Shire The Shire

So why open a Lord Of The Rings themed bar? “Basically, initially I’m a fan of it,” Ollie says.

When Lord Of The Rings came out first, well, my brothers would be a bit vertically challenged and the joke went round the place that they were hobbits. We’d be out and we came up with our own cocktail, called Hobbit Juice.

Then, he said, the opportunity to take over the pub came up. The premises in Killarney was formerly known as Kelly’s Corner Bar.

The Shire The Shire

The Shire opens its doors for the first time today at 3pm, with a full launch next month. Favier already has plans for the coming week.

We’re looking at getting Gandalf on the door next week, opening and closing the door. We’re looking at getting Sméagols for Halloween.

The Shire The Shire

The response so far, Favier says, has been “phenomenal”. “Everyone’s very excited. I’m trying to create something fun, something different, and get people back into the bars.”

He says two UK movie magazines have already been in touch looking to feature the bar, which he believes is unique in the world. “There’s a Hobbit Bar in Amsterdam. But as far as I know there’s nothing called The Shire.”

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