Whether it’s Saoirse or Cillian, Siobhan or Domhnall, when it comes to pronouncing Irish names, people beyond these shores can’t seem to get it right.
But if we look closer to home, something else has been lost in translation. Turns out, some people have been celebrating St. Patrick’s Day all wrong. So, this year, Guinness 0.0 is teaming up with award winning Irish actress Saoirse-Monica Jackson to help put moderation at the heart of celebrations throughout Ireland and paint the town blue this St. Patrick’s Day.
St. Patrick’s Day is all about the green, right? Well, not exactly. It turns out St. Patrick wore blue long before he wore green. And that’s not all, the iconic Guinness Gates at Rainsford Street were once blue before they were painted black c. 1988.
So, to get things back on track, Saoirse-Monica Jackson is helping to right some wrongs associated with our national holiday, inviting people to embrace the blue with Guinness 0.0, through a message of moderation this St. Patrick’s Day that celebrates getting it right.
Saoirse-Monica has been busy with her paint brush at St James’s Gate, turning the famous Guinness gates an unexpected shade of … blue. And she has released a rallying call on her social channels encouraging people to ‘Make it a St. Patrick’s Day to Remember’, making sure the people of Ireland celebrate right once and for all.
In the 60 second film, Saoirse-Monica is faced once more with one of the many mispronunciations of her name that she’s had to endure when she encounters some excitable tourists in a pub who are in the festive spirit, decked out in green for St. Patrick’s Day. During the encounter, she uncovers a few home truths about our national holiday that then sets her on a journey of discovery, getting her thinking about some of the other things that we have got wrong over the years. She’s here to set the record straight, starting by celebrating our national holiday with a pint of Guinness 0.0 this weekend.
The famous gates are seen by over 30,000 people during the week of St. Patrick’s Day celebrations, which is the busiest period of the year at the Home of Guinness. This is the first time since 1988 that the gates have been painted Guinness 0.0 blue, a demonstration of the brand’s commitment to moderation during Ireland’s national holiday.
In the largest ever sampling of its non-alcoholic beer, Guinness is making free pints of Guinness 0.0 available nationwide until 18th March, in over 800 different locations across Ireland. Pints are available via the FANZO App and in select pubs and Tesco stores nationwide. From March 13th to 18th, consumers will be able to download the FANZO App, register themselves and redeem a free pint of Guinness 0.0 by showing the voucher in one of the 800+ participating pubs all over Ireland.
There will also be sampling for visitors landing into Dublin Airport, and Tesco will be running a buy one get one free promotion for Clubcard members throughout Ireland and half price promotion for members in Northern Ireland. At the Aviva Stadium on Saturday 16th of March, match attendees will be able to go to a bar serving Guinness 0.0 on draught and redeem a free pint to celebrate the last match of the Guinness Six Nations and St. Patrick’s weekend with moderation.
Speaking to OnlyMassive Saoirse-Monica Jackson, said:
“I am delighted to partner with Guinness 0.0 this St. Patrick’s Day to address some of the biggest misconceptions around Irish culture. Since the early days of my career, I’ve encountered countless people having trouble pronouncing my name. So, from mispronunciation of our names, to misunderstanding how we should be celebrating, I’m delighted to team up with Guinness 0.0 to encourage people to give moderation a seat at the table this St. Patrick’s Day through this playful collaboration.”
Across the weekend, there will also be an elevated visitor experience at the Guinness Storehouse, celebrating the best of modern Irish creative arts over five days with 95 Irish artists, 20 International artists, 855 songs performed, and six different dance styles for nine-and-a-half hours per day.
From March 14th -18th, the Home of Guinness will open its doors to visitors from all over the world to come and enjoy a taste of world class, modern Irish sociability and culture featuring performances from over 100 artists including The Bonnymen, Kíla, punk-folk band Ispíní na hÉireann and Dublin’s The Len Collective. Dublin artist, Cyan Ryan, will also lead a collective of talented local street artists, who are transforming the visitor experience with artwork inspired by the captivating world of Gilroy’s famous characters from the Guinness archives.