A pub in Galway is offering a free drink to groups who put their phones away for 30 minutes

This is a cracking idea.

We love our smartphones and we feel lost without them, but one of their biggest drawbacks is their part in the demise of general social interaction in public places. The art of conversation in a pub, for example, is practically dying out because people are too busy texting, taking pictures, sending Snapchats etc. That might be the old fogey in JOE coming out, we don’t think we’re the only people that feel that way. In fact, we know we’re not, because Gary Kilcar from Whiskey’s pub in Loughrea in Galway (you may remember it from a Love/Hate themed promotion last year) has noticed it happening and is planning on doing something about it. After witnessing a group of girls in the bar spend more time on their phones than talking to each other last Saturday, Gary has come up with an idea. Pic via Facebook/Whiskey's Loughrea This Saturday night, from 8pm until closing time, he will approach groups of friends in the bar and reward them with a complimentary drink if they agree to put their phones into a money box and leave them there without access for 30 minutes. You can see Gary’s proposal in greater detail on Whiskey’s Facebook page, but we think it’s a great idea and would encourage other pubs to start doing likewise. Who knows, if it catches on, maybe the sight of people actually talking to each other without looking down at their phones every 30 seconds will actually become a common one once again.