Tullamore personalities star in major billboard campaign in New York

Start spreading the news... two well-known Tullamore people are now the faces of a major billboard campaign in New York City!

Publican Paul Bell, of The Brewery Tap on High Street, and Ann Tyrrell, of Tyrrell's shop on Henry Street, recently started appearing on billboard ads for Tullamore Dew throughout various parts of the Big Apple, including areas around Times Square, Soho, and Brooklyn.

Paul travelled to New York in recent days to see the billboards, which feature a photo of him smiling behind the bar in his well-known pub.

"My kids were telling me that I had to go over and get a photo of myself beside one of the billboards, because it's the sort of thing that will never happen again in my lifetime," he told the Offaly Independent today (Wednesday).

Asked about how he felt when he saw his image on public display in one of the world's most famous cities, he replied: "It feels a bit surreal, but it's good fun. We were honoured to be asked to do it."

The Brewery Tap has a very positive working relationship with Tullamore Dew, and the idea for the billboard campaign originated about a year ago when representatives of the whiskey brand called into the pub to take a series of photos for possible use in its advertising.

The photo of Paul at the bar - with the tagline 'In Tullamore, an influencer is whoever picks up the bar tab' - is now dotted around various parts of Manhattan and elsewhere in New York City.

"It's all over the city - you could turn around a random street corner and see one of them," said Paul. "It's been good fun standing beside them for a picture, because people are looking over at you and saying to themselves, 'who's your man?!'"

He explained said that since William Grant & Sons took ownership of Tullamore Dew a number of years ago, the company has been doing a lot of work to increase its share of the Irish whiskey market internationally.

"Tullamore, as a town, has benefited a lot from Tullamore Dew in terms of tourism. People like to be able to come and have a Tullamore Dew in Tullamore."

Paul added that The Brewery Tap was one of the leading pubs in the country for Tullamore Dew sales, something which has been helped in no small part by the development of its signature drink - 'Tapple Dew' - which has become hugely popular in the last few years.

He said that, in addition to himself and Ann Tyrrell, other locals were likely to begin appearing in Tullamore Dew ad campaigns shortly.