Annie’s is gone but the memories live on

A BUILDING that held a special place in the heart of Omagh came tumbling down last Friday.

The once-home of the Post Office Club, The Junction Bar, McGurk’s Bar and, most recently, Annie’s Bar was demolished to make way for Lidl’s new ‘concept store’.

Tributes were paid and good times were recalled when photos of the demolition went up online, the messages which flooded in clearly demonstrating that the building had been a repository of cherished memories for many people across Omagh.

The building started out as the town’s telephone exchange back in the 1950s, until the exchange found a new premises, leaving the buidling abandoned, and, eventually, to fall into dilapidation.

However, after a few years, the old defunct building found a new vibrant purpose as a licensed premises when it became the BT and Post Office Club. And, while the premises would change hands a number of times over the years, it would remain a bar and social hub until the end.

The comments which poured into our Facebook page this week reflected the fond memories that still surround it, and, too, the sense of local loss triggered by its demolition.

“PO club was hard to beat after everywhere else was shut. #EarlyHourTipples #GreatCraic,” said one lady.

While another said, “Annie’s Bar was a lovely place to meet up with friends x.”

The Junction was recalled also as being “some bar in its day too!”

Another woman recalled, “This is where I met my sweetheart.”