We’ve all been there, out for a social gathering and everyone is on their phone. It is a frustrating situation for many as there is zero socialising to be had. One pub in Ireland has come up with a delightful solution: encourage drinkers to put their phone away for 30 minutes and they will be rewarded with a free drink.

A young Irish pub owner decided the time was right to take action against the technology “epidemic”. Whiskey Joes, a pub in Loughrea, Co Galway, is offering a free drink for anyone who can manage to keep their eyes off their screens.

The brains behind the operation is manager, Gary Kilcar, who said the move “might be a bit extreme” but remembers a time when revellers talked instead of tweeted. Hopefully many more pubs will adopt a similar strategy and!