Whist Drive at Granard Community Centre

Sunday nights at the Community Centre on Barrack Street in Granard belong to the regular whist drive, one of the steady card-game fixtures that keep rural Longford’s community centres busy through the year. It draws a loyal core of regular players from Granard and the surrounding townlands, the kind of weekly gathering that has occasionally been used to mark milestones such as a long-time player’s birthday, with proceeds on those nights going to charities like Muscular Dystrophy Ireland.

What to expect

Whist drives follow a familiar rural Irish format: players are seated at numbered tables in pairs, work through a set number of hands, then move tables so everyone plays against a changing set of opponents over the course of the night. Scores are tallied after each round, with prizes for the top few finishers and often a spot prize or two thrown in. It is a quieter, more focused evening than bingo, popular with an older generation of card players but open to anyone willing to learn the rules. Tea and biscuits are typically served partway through, and the format makes it as much a social occasion as a competition. Granard’s whist nights have also been used periodically for special charity drives alongside the regular weekly game.

Getting there

Granard Community Centre is on Barrack Street, close to the centre of Granard town beneath the motte. There is on-street parking nearby and it is within easy walking distance of Main Street.

While you’re in Granard

Granard is a market town built around one of Ireland’s largest Norman mottes, with Dublin Street and Main Street forming the town centre a short walk from the community centre. There is more to see in Granard and across Co. Longford.

Good to know

• Date: Sunday, 19 July 2026, and every Sunday night
• Time: 8.30pm
• Venue: Granard Community Centre, Barrack Street, Granard, Co. Longford
• Price: small entry fee on the door; exact price not confirmed, check locally
• Recurrence: weekly, every Sunday night