The Stables is a nationally recognised music venue in Mullingar which first opened in 1989. The club hosts a wide variety of music and has featured well-known performers; critic and writer Ronan Casey has described it as an "essential" stop for any national touring act.[11] Niall Horan, born and raised in Mullingar, is a member of the boy band One Direction. Horan is the only non-British member the band. He was the first Irish citizen[citation needed] to sing at the Olympic Games in London 2012, and has also won four Brit Awards and four MTV Video Music Awards with One Direction.