Special reserved sign for Daffodil’s 78-year-old VIP regulars Irene and Pauline

Twins Irene and Pauline are such popular regulars at Liverpool’s floating bar and restaurant the Daffodil, they’ve now got their own special gold reserved sign to keep their favourite table.

Owner of the Daffodil, actor Phil Olivier, thought it was only fitting that the cheery pair should be assured of their place within the former Mersey ferry now based at Canning Dock.

He said; “all our other signs are chrome, but theirs is gold and says ‘reserved for Irene and Pauline’.”

The sisters visit the bar almost every single day and have been among its most frequent visitors since it opened in December 2024.

They each get the bus into town and meet up at the Daffodil, arriving at 11.30am: “Half an hour before normal opening hours,” smiles Phil, “but we always let them in out of the cold and rain. We call them the early birds!”

Irene says; “I have two glasses of Pinot, and Pauline has one, and we just love coming here. That’s our day, our little ritual.

“We have a chat – or an argument (well, we are twins) – and we talk to the staff because they’re just lovely.”

The 78-year-old women are both former nurses.

Irene is Irene Lloyd-Jones and lives in Chinatown. Never married, she worked as a nurse at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital before transferring to the blood transfusion service where she stayed for 16 years before she retired.

Pauline, who reverted back to Jones after she got divorced, now lives in Liverpool 8. She worked at the Royal for 45 years before she retired too.

When they first began their trips to the waterfront bar, the women were accompanied by Irene’s late dog, a little Pomeranian called Enzo.

“I brought him in a pram,” she says. “He was a beautiful little thing who sadly passed away. But Irene and Pauline are so loved by the staff that they put a picture of him up on the cabinet of the Promenade Bar where they sit,” adds Phil. 

“So he’s still sitting with us every day when we’re here,” says Irene, who’s looking forward to caring for a new Shih Tzu dog for a friend.

There’s the promise of a free glass of wine on the house the next time they’re in – but you get the impression that even if they had to pay twice the price for their usual tipple, Irene and Pauline would be at the Daffodil as always.

“I think like most of their generation they just want to chat to people and be included and that’s why I put out a social post about them, because I want people to come in and say hello to them and make them celebrities in their own right,” says Phil, who jokes: “And maybe then they’ll stop chatting to the staff so much and let them get on with their work.”

Phil’s clearly fond of Irene and Pauline who, he says, are now part of the Daffodil family: “We’re their adopted children!

“It’s great. My vision and dream with Daffodil was to create a business where it was mixed generations coming in because remember, this boat has got a lot of history.

“It connected Birkenhead and Liverpool together.

“I’m passionate about the city, I’m passionate about this as a community project, and when Irene and Pauline started coming in it was right up my street. I loved it.

“They come in here for solace.  The staff members welcome them and that’s what this boat’s for, including and surrounding the people of Liverpool.

“I’m just over the moon that with this new lease of life, the Daffodil is having the same purpose as it’s always had and bringing people of the wider Liverpool area together.

“When I got the sign made and told them what it was for, Lewis Howes in the city insisted on doing it for free. I’m just so happy.”

And he adds: “Pauline and Irene brighten the room and bring a smile to everyone’s face. And whether it’s a friendly chat, a laugh with the team, or simply enjoying a glass together, it’s always a pleasure to see them walk through the door.”

Book your table at the Daffodil here.

The iconic Mersey Ferry, the Royal Iris, embarked on its final voyage after 60 years.

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