Damien Devine behind the bar at the Old Red Lion in Angel

A THEATRE pub with six centuries of ­history is on the market, with its popular licensee set for a final bow.

Damien Devine, 63, took over running the Old Red Lion pub in Angel with his brother Lorcan 25 years ago but has put the establishment up for sale, saying: “I think I’ve served my time there.”

Describing the legendary St John Street bar, which dates back to 1415, making it one of London’s oldest pubs, he said: “It’s been great. It’s always been a family business. There’s numerous members of my family who have been involved: my three daughters; my niece Helen ran the theatre for 17 years, I think, as well as nieces and nephews, and cousins.”

Lorcan died unexpectedly and suddenly in 2009, aged 52, from a brain aneurysm.

Damien Devine, who took over the Old Red Lion theatre pub in Angel with his brother Lorcan 25 years ago

“It’s more than a pub, more than a theatre, it’s been a lot of family memories as well,” said Damien, reminiscing about the various family weddings and birthdays that have been held there, as well as a number of funerals.

“I’ll definitely miss the pub. I’ll miss Islington as well,” he added, explaining that the time was now right to sell it after securing a new 15-year lease with Heineken.

One evening that stood out for him amongst his quarter-century turn was the evening Elephant Man and Alien actor John Hurt came to watch a performance before settling in for the night downstairs.

“That’s the biggest impression anyone’s ever made on me,” he said of the award-winner, once described by director David Lynch as the world’s greatest actor.

Helen Devine, who ran the theatre for 17 years

“He was exactly what [you would expect] he was like. He came in one night to watch a show, and he kept me up to about four in the morning. And I wish, I wish I’d run a tape recorder or taped it – just the anecdotes and just what he was talking about. Absolutely humble, engaging, funny. And just such a genuinely nice man.”

But Mr Devine won’t be drawn on any other famous faces to have crossed his threshold, stating while actors came and went every day, what the famous ones appreciated about his venue was the minimum fuss that was made about them.

“I sort of don’t really like the kind of name dropping – and also I’m useless at names, useless at faces. If someone famous comes in the pub, I probably wouldn’t recognise who the hell they were anyway, and one of my daughters would tell me afterwards,” he laughed.

Productions during Mr Devine’s time at the Old Red Lion: No Place Like Hope (above) and Tiny Dynamite (below)

The Old Red, as it’s known to regulars, first became a theatre pub in the 1970s and enjoyed a run of success in its early days, launching the careers of several well-known actors before falling into decline.

Mr Devine took over the lease in 2000 and ran it for several years before the Devine brothers hit upon an idea which, he says, wasn’t a thing back then.

“We deliberately smashed the pub and the theatre together,” he said.

“A theatre pub: I don’t think it was a common term about 15 years ago. And also maybe it was slightly derided as somehow it was reducing the quality of something to call it, rather than theatre, part of our stance was, guess what, this is a theatre pub.”

He said the charm of the place could be found in the way a sensitive scene could be playing out upstairs while rugby aficionados cheered on a spectacular try downstairs.

While Mr Devine will be taking a “semi-retirement” holiday, with plans to travel with his wife to visit his brother in Canada and then on to India, he will return to his Essex home and take on some new projects. But there is one more thing on his to-do list.

“I was thinking of watching The Sopranos from the beginning again,” he laughed.