July 2026. Whitchurch. Salop. Apart from visiting (spoiler) five pubs in Whitchurch, what is there to actually do in this compact little borders town of 10,000 if the award winning pie maker is unexpectedly closed ? Well, I could have got my hair cut at a barbers with the best window display in decades, and… Continue reading THINGS TO DO IN WHITCHURCH WHEN POWELLS PIES IS UNEXPECTEDLY CLOSED
“Ain’t that just lil ‘ol England”. DODINGTON, WHITCHURCH
July 2026. Dodington. Whitchurch. “Ain’t that just lil ‘ol England” is a line said to me by (wait for it) an American tourist in Haddenham (Oxon) a few years back as she stared at a street of coloured timber. Several Haddenhams, and many Whitchurches. Our Shropshire one has all the usual features of a Borders… Continue reading “Ain’t that just lil ‘ol England”. DODINGTON, WHITCHURCH
FIVE WHITCHURCH (SALOP) WONDERS – (ii) THE OLD EAGLES
July 2026. Whitchurch. Shropshire. By law all blog posts must show where the subject of your writing is in relation to Wrexham. Well, Whitchurch must be close, as I had Magic Dragon’s beers in three (3) pubs last Thursday. A fourth was Joules from Market Drayton, practically the next town down, and the nap hand… Continue reading FIVE WHITCHURCH (SALOP) WONDERS – (ii) THE OLD EAGLES
FIVE WHITCHURCH (SALOP) WONDERS – (i) THE WHEATSHEAF HOTEL
July 2026. Whitchurch (Shropshire). OK, they’re not all “wonders“, but illiteration innit ? Whitchurch (Salop, there’s loads of them. See also : Newport) is a pretty little town, overlooked by those on the way down to bigger hitters like Shrewsbury and Ludlow and Cwmbran. Famous for clocks, I later learn. The half mile from station… Continue reading FIVE WHITCHURCH (SALOP) WONDERS – (i) THE WHEATSHEAF HOTEL
TAKE THE FIRST TRAIN TO MILFORD HAVEN
July 2026. Heading towards Wales. Regular readers will know that “family issues” have conspired to keep our travels to a circuit between Sheffield, Cambridge and Tunbridge Wells these last few years, with a few interludes in the Balkans and along the Leeds- Liverpool canal to break the monotony. On Thursday I broke the shackles and… Continue reading TAKE THE FIRST TRAIN TO MILFORD HAVEN
LOOKING FOR ROTHERHAM’S NEXT BEER GUIDE PREEMPTIVE AMONGST THE FAMILY DINING PUBS
July 2026. Rotherham. Mrs RM’s sports injury persisted into the new week, scuppering a restart of the Cask Camino. I said “I’m off” and took the tram down into Sheffield, and just kept riding on the Tram Train, like in a 10,000 Maniacs Cat Stevens song. Parkgate retail park marks the end of the Sheffield… Continue reading LOOKING FOR ROTHERHAM’S NEXT BEER GUIDE PREEMPTIVE AMONGST THE FAMILY DINING PUBS
THE WORLD CUP FINAL, TATER TOTS AND TEMPER TANTRUMS
July 2026. Sheffield. Back from Darlington and a disappointing Chinese takeaway (life lesson : never go back) I popped next door (ish) to see how many folk were going to watch the World Cup Final at our local. The Blind Monkey had decent crowds this last month for the England matches; I even heard people… Continue reading THE WORLD CUP FINAL, TATER TOTS AND TEMPER TANTRUMS
BASS BY THE TEES
July 2026. Middleton One Row. Near Darlington. From the Steam Machine I walked to Heighington Station, a dull mile through industrial estates, ending at a dead pub commemorating the first ever train. Somewhere along the way I realised I could stay on the service towards Saltburn and get off at Dinsdale, which I’d never heard… Continue reading BASS BY THE TEES
TOP 100 PUBS – STEAM MACHINE, NEWTON AYCLIFFE
July 2026. Newton Aycliffe. County Durham. A fascinating extract from the CAMRA pubs website here; The birth of the railways, the decline of the mines, the posh pubs either side of the Great North Road, and a star in the craft beer firmament that’s made the Good Beer Guide after a decade. What took it… Continue reading TOP 100 PUBS – STEAM MACHINE, NEWTON AYCLIFFE
90 MINUTES IN NEWTON AYCLIFFE
July 2026. Newton Aycliffe. Durham. I was staying overnight in a grim car park in Darlington as I didn’t fancy paying the outrageous hotel prices that kick in during the English summer. That £1,492 a night wellness retreat is walking distance from my next pub in Newton Aycliffe. To be fair, you do get a… Continue reading 90 MINUTES IN NEWTON AYCLIFFE
retiredmartin 