Liam Neeson has donated a Celtic cross prop he famously carried in the movie Gangs of New York to a Manhattan Irish bar.
The 64-year-old Ballymena man, who played Priest Vallon in Martin Scorsese's 2002 drama, donated the ceremonial battle cross to The Dead Rabbit Grocery and Grog establishment over the weekend.
Neeson's infamous cross wielding scene in the film sees his Irish-American gang The Dead Rabbits take on their rivals The Natives in a bloody street battle.
Priest Vallon is killed in the bloody battle by Daniel Day-Lewis' character William 'Bill the Butcher' Cutting, causing the Priest's son Amsterdam, played by Leonardo Dicaprio, to vow to avenge his father.
The delighted bar staff took to Facebook to share the news, and posted a snap of the man himself handing the cool gift over to a beaming staff member.
In 2015, The Dead Rabbits pub was named as the World’s Best Bar by the organisers of U.S. drinks festival Tales of the Cocktail, who also handed the bar an award for World’s Best Cocktail Menu.
Gangs of New York was nominated for ten awards at the 2003 Academy Awards, but failed to win in any category, with Day-Lewis snubbed in the Best Actor category, Scorsese falling short of a Best Director win, and the movie overlooked in the Best Picture category.
