It's Good Friday, so here's a great tale of how a Kildare publican got around licencing laws to serve food

Back in 1992 - just as it is today - pubs were not allowed to open on Good Friday due to a law brought in 65 years previously, meaning many publicans missed out on a good day of trade.

Restaurants, other than those in hotels, that served alcohol were not allowed to serve food either, so a good raft of people who usually dined out on a Friday had to find alternative means to get their dinner. One such group of workers who were usually hit by the prohibition were truck drivers, and in the days before delis at service stations were not quite as common it meant that if they didn't have a packed lunch they would usually go hungry.

That wasn't to be the case if you were using the old dual-carriageway between Naas and Newbridge however, as the innovative Tommy Tougher came up with a  plan to feed the loyal group of truckers who frequented his restaurant.

Tougher set up a specially constructed marquee to serve truck drivers from his car park, meaning he would break no laws by allowing patrons into his licensed premises.

"I’m happy enough once I’ve got my meal anyway, I don’t mind where I have it," remarked one customer in an RTÉ News broadcast at the time.

There has been no sign of any tents or marquees outside restaurants or pubs today, but plenty of people have booked into hotels or a night at the Newbridge Greyhound Stadium to get their hands on that illusive drink.