Bittles Bar is a bar located near Victoria Square in central Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is one of Belfast's more curious pubs being "flat-iron" in shape. It constitutes the ground floor of a 4-storey red brick warehouse built for a flour merchant in 1868.[1] Until the 1990s the bar was called "The Shakespeare",[2] reflecting its theatrical clientele. In 1973 it was the site of an attempted Provisional IRA bombing:[3] [4] Alan Lundy, later killed in a gun attack, served ten years for the bombing.[5]
It is noted for its eclectic range of artwork adorning the triangular lounge—portraits celebrating Ireland's literary and sporting heroes including Samuel Beckett, James Joyce, W B Yeats, Oscar Wilde,[6] George Best, Alex Higgins and Barry McGuigan, plus some of Northern Ireland's most famous politicians.