'I just stood there looking at 150 years of history going up in flames, I was in shock'

The co-owner of one of Ireland’s oldest pubs has vowed that it will rise from the ashes after a devastating fire reduced the 150-year-old Scut Fagan’s Pub in Moynalvey to ruins, describing the loss as watching generations of history disappear in a matter of hours.

John Reilly along with sister Beth Ann said his family was left in shock by the scale of the destruction but deeply moved by the outpouring of support from the local community and from people around the world.

“Our family have been overwhelmed by the support from the community, but at the same time I’m not surprised because it is such a lovely little parish, they are fantastic people,” Mr Reilly said.

“The support has come from far and wide, people as far away as Australia and America have gotten in touch with us.”

Recalling the early hours of New Year’s Eve, Mr Reilly said he received a call from the alarm monitoring company shortly before 5am.

“I got a phone call from the security company at around 4.50am and they asked if we wanted them to alert the emergency services, and I said yes, absolutely. I got down there around 5.20am and there were around six or seven brigades and gardaí.”

Standing at the scene, he said the scale of the loss was devastating.

“I just stood there looking at 150 years of history going up in flames. I was in shock. There was nothing salvageable from it, but at the same time it is only bricks and mortar nobody was hurt, which is the main thing.”

Mr Reilly also praised the emergency services for their response.

“I want to pay tribute to the emergency services they went above and beyond and they deserve huge credit.”

While the cause of the fire remains unknown, Mr Reilly said plans are already underway to ensure the pub remains part of the community’s future.

“Fagan’s is extremely important to everybody in the community and beyond. We don’t know how the fire started, the forensic team has been in, but we have no idea right now. It’s still very early days.

“There were paintings and pictures that we are very sad to lose, it was a real quirky place but the plan now is to put in a temporary set-up and build again as soon as possible.”

Reflecting on the pub’s legacy, he added: “My father bought it in 1999 and everyone was asking him if he was going to change the name and do it up, and he said absolutely not if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

He said the support since the fire has been extraordinary.

“People have been offering their help in every way the support has been phenomenal. Some of these pubs are few and far between, so I just hope they remain.”

Mr Reilly also noted one poignant symbol that survived the blaze.

“The Moynalvey GAA flag survived the fire, it’s only on a bit of timber and cloth, and it’s flying away, not a bother on it.”

Residents of the rural village awoke on New Year’s Eve to the shocking sight of the historic landmark gutted by fire, bringing to a halt generations of memories centred on what was the heart of community life in the area.

Gardaí have said that the cause of the fire has not yet been determined and enquiries are continuing.

Two weeks on, the scale of the loss is still being felt locally. Scut Fagan’s was the only remaining community gathering space in Moynalvey, particularly since the closure of nearby Dorey’s Forge, and regularly hosted social events, functions and seasonal traditions.

Following the fire, Beth Ann and John Reilly shared a poignant image of the gutted interior on social media, accompanied by the words: “A lot can change on a Wednesday morning… we will go again.”

The post prompted an outpouring of support, with customers and locals sharing fond memories and messages of encouragement as the family begins to plan the next chapter for the much-loved pub. Maynooth GAA shared a post saying:"Our thoughts and best wishes are with club member John Reilly and his family following the devastating fire at the family business - ‘the iconic ‘Fagan’s’ of Moynalvey, Co Meath. The Reilly family have been great supporters of our club over the decades, and we are especially thinking of them at this difficult time."

Meanwhile Moynalvey GFC said: "A dark cloud lies over our community..... Not the turn of year John/Beth-Ann would have been thinking of! Beth-Ann, John and the entire Reilly family, you are in the thoughts of all the Moynalvey community, chins up and 2026 can only get better!" The famous landmark pub has been at the heart of the Moynalvey district for generations, and has featured in movies and television series.

Paddy Fagan's mother, Jane, was a member of the Brien family who had owned the pub at the turn of the 20th century, and she had been born there.

Fagan's Pub became the centre of social activities in Moynalvey under Paddy and Kay from 1961. He was regarded as one of the great Irish publicans with the ability to converse on sport, politics, religion, delicate and indelicate matters, keep secrets, listen to people's problems, give advice and help people, according to the history of Moynalvey parish, published in 1999.

Frequent visitors were the travelling show people, McCormacks, who stayed in Fagan's yard each winter, with Kevin McCormack painting the sign over the door.

The pub became famous on the 1970s RTE satire series, 'Hall's Pictorial Weekly', where the fictitious village of Ballymagash featured, with the pub scenes filmed in Fagan's. The crew, including Frank Hall, Frank Kelly, Eamon Morrissey and Brendan Caldwell, filmed from Monday to Friday.

Paddy also appeared on an RTE current affairs show with Frank Hall, where he was interviewed about alcohol in society, young drinkers, buying rounds of drink and credit in pubs, for 'Ireland's Eye' in October 1980.

When the Fagan's sold the premises to the late Trevor Reilly and family from Maynooth in 1999, the then parish priest, the late Fr Peter Mulvany, paid tribute to Paddy and Kay Fagan.

Moynalvey History Group used the relaxed atmosphere of the inner snug of Fagan's to gather stories, memories and documents for their 1999 parish history publication. In an interview for the book, Paddy and Kay said: “The day of the auction was an emotional one. We had met and got to know a lot of people over the 38 years we were here, three generations of families in some cases, and we would have seen them come and go in that time.”

In more recent times, the pub has been used as a location for the Academy Award-nominated film, 'An Cailín Ciuin', and featured in Natasha Duffy's series of short documentaries looking at some of Meath's oldest and most authentic public houses and pub experiences for RTÉ Culture.