United we revamp

THE SOCIAL NETWORK:The former president of the United Arts Club on Fitzwilliam Street in Dublin, Micheál Mac Liammóir, would approve of the new-look club bar. It's nothing if not bohemian, with its pink leather seating and plum carpet.

The club has undergone a revamp under the watchful eye of Francis Brennan and John Brennan, as part of their At Your Service television programme, which will be televised in January.

Cllr Mary Freehill told me she is looking forward to heading to Beirut today with some other members of the club for the 38th International Byron Conference in Beirut, Lebanon.

The chairwoman of the club, Mary Dunne, greeted members and their guests on Wednesday evening. Stephen J Tracey, from Templeogue, accompanied his wife, Eileen Tracey. The couple celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary last weekend.

Francis Brennan is looking forward to taking his niece, Ruth Brennan, to London for four days to mark her Confirmation. Ruth’s private tour with uncle Francis begins on July 9th. “We’re staying at the County Hall Hotel, beside the London Eye.” He is going to Lourdes in September and Ethiopia in November with Connect Ethiopia, an Irish business initiative.

John Brennan is gearing up for the Kenmare Food Festival from July 13th-15th. “It’s really a food carnival,” he said.

A former chairwoman of the club, Mary Caulfield from Howth, is looking forward to her friend Lord Oranmore and Browne visiting her during the summer. He usually stays with Caulfield when he visits from London. “He is trying to have the hereditary peers reinstated in the House of Lords,” Caulfield told me.

Who we spotted: The honorary secretary of the club, Anne Corrigan; artist Carmel Mooney; soprano Siobhán Doyle; artist John Maher; rally driver and motor-school owner Rosemary Smith and her friend Eileen Murphy