Murphy-Stout bound for export Down Under

Meet Murphy’s finest Stout, who’s bound for export Down Under.

James Stout and his wife Orla Murphy-Stout are about to join the thousands of other Irish people forced to emigrate to find work in Australia.

And last night, brewing giant Murphy’s stepped in to treat their unique “brand ambassadors”, Mr and Mrs Murphy-Stout, to a romantic candlelit dinner in a top city restaurant, and a few kegs of the famous Leeside’s brew for their farewell party this weekend.

“It will be a nightmare saying goodbye to family and friends over the next few days. And I’ll be leaving my 11-year-old son, Paul, behind too, with his mum,” said James.

“I’ll Skype him every morning before he goes to school. The next time we see our family will probably be Christmas.”

James, 36, whose father grew up in the Fever Hospital Steps area of Cork City, in the shadow of Murphy’s brewery, grew up in Dublin Hill.

He married Orla Murphy, 29, also from Dublin Hill, last July. She kept her maiden name, making her the only Irish Murphy-Stout in the country.

“We joke that there’s 50% Stout in our blood and 50% Murphy,” said James.

Orla joked: “I always wanted to keep my maiden name when I got married. It just so happens I fell in love with a Stout. We got a good giggle out of it when we realised how well they go together and I think it’s quite quirky. I wouldn’t want to change it.”

James, a master stonemason, has been out of work since the collapse of the construction industry.

His brother, who is based in Perth, helped him find work in Australia, and he is jetting off to Perth — where a can of Murphy’s Stout can cost up to A$12 (€9.24) — on Tuesday to set up home. Orla will join him in a few weeks.

The couple will be known as FiFos (fly-ins fly-outs) — flown from Perth to spend four weeks working on site before being flown home for a week off. They have four-year visas and hope to make enough to be able to return home in a few years.