Very good post there, Jim.
As for the "bodhran-free" notice, I was in Sandy Bells in Edinburgh on Sunday lunch-time. They have a bodhran up on a shelf with a red ring painted round the perimeter, and a red bar across it, much like a "no-entry" sign. I don't know how rigidly it is enforced, but your "bodhran-free" notice does exist in at least one bar in Scotland.
All the best, Kenny