CONNECT 4 is a big favourite in the Gallagher household, which boasts a bulging cupboard of board games.
Every Christmas, parents Niamh, a part-time book-keeper, and Brian, a sales representative, purchase new games to add to the family’s collection.
Their children Kate (11) and Adam (7) enjoy a wide range of leisure pursuits, but board games come very near the top, particularly in the winter months.
“We like movies, and we also like to be outdoors as much as possible, particularly in the summer months. In the wintertime, though, we like to play board games,” says Niamh.
“A great favourite is Connect 4, which we got for Christmas, and we also like Monopoly.
“Another firm favourite is Pictureka!, which is quite a new game and has different levels which suits both children. Cluedo is good fun and we play Boggle too.”
Once or twice a week, when the evenings start to get long and dark, the family, who live just outside Bray, Co Wicklow, sit down together to roll the dice.
“It’s great to sit down as a family and talk as we play. It’s much better than watching TV because with TV you’re not communicating – and often different members of the family go off into different rooms to watch their favourite programmes, so it splits you all up.
“If my kids have a friend over after school I’ll often put a board game out for them to play. I feel it makes them think outside the box a bit. It makes them a bit more alert.
“As a child I played a lot of board games. There were seven in our family – Monopoly was a big favourite in my family too, when I was a child.”
