November 2026. Swinton. Greater Manchester. 12 minutes out from Manchester Victoria lies Swinton in the city of Salford. Wiki says “Historically in Lancashire, for centuries Swinton was a hamlet in the township of Worsley, parish of Eccles and hundred of Salfordshire (a clearly made-up place)“. An unheralded town of 22,931 souls, notable for Holt boozers,… Continue reading SINGALONGA SWINTON
CRUSHING DEATH AND GRIEF PRESENTS WENDY EISENBERG AT THE NEW CHESTERTON INSTITUTE
November 2026. Cambridge. “We’ve really missed your weird music rants, Retired Martin“. Aww, nice of you. Whenever Tidal recommends an album as good as this year’s eponymous “Wendy Eisenberg” I always go straight to the Dice app to find gig tickets in weird places, and could think of nowhere weirder to see Wendy than back… Continue reading CRUSHING DEATH AND GRIEF PRESENTS WENDY EISENBERG AT THE NEW CHESTERTON INSTITUTE
FIREWORKS AND KEY KEG
November 2026. Cambridge. You might have thought I’d had enough “Crushing Death and Grief” of late, but here they are, like darkness my old friend, promoting a gig by THE hot indie sensation of 2026 at a social club in the back streets of workingmen’s Cambridge on Bonfire Night. They’ve delayed the gig ’till after… Continue reading FIREWORKS AND KEY KEG
MILTON CONQUERS HISTON
November 2026. Histon. A couple of days in Cambridge on funeral planning duties, staying in the “PLUS” room at the otherwise spartan Travelodge in Orchard Park. I really should review the Madri at the hotel bar. I’m a regular there now, probably get my own pewter jug for the hot chocolate that’s one of the… Continue reading MILTON CONQUERS HISTON
AT LAST ! A GOOD BEER GUIDE ENTRY FOR COTTENHAM
November 2026. Cottenham. Cambridgeshire. Yes, that red P above Village College is a Good Beer Guide entry for Cottenham, which according to my spreadsheet is the first in at least a generation, whatever a generation is. But I had been to the Chequers, nicely placed at the village crossroads next to the war memorial, at… Continue reading AT LAST ! A GOOD BEER GUIDE ENTRY FOR COTTENHAM
GOTHIC COTTENHAM
November 2026. Cottemham. Cambridgeshire. Back in Cambridge, I complete the funeral formalities and pop to the local Building Society to put a hold on Dad’s accounts. The folk at Cottenham branch were the loveliest in the aftermath of Mum’s death and Dad’s Power of Attorney shenanigans, and I kid myself it’s nice to reminisce about… Continue reading GOTHIC COTTENHAM
GETTING BEST VALUE FROM YOUR SPOONS TEA
November 2026. Hillsborough. Sheffield. One of the issues about flitting between a Sheffield home, a Sussex caravan and a Cambridge Travelodge is that we never quite have enough food in any of them, but always seem resigned to chucking away vegetables into a black bin we never quite get collected. With a return to Waterbeach… Continue reading GETTING BEST VALUE FROM YOUR SPOONS TEA
THAT ORVAL MOMENT
November 2026. Sheffield. I don’t know how folk with a full time job and dependent children cope with parental death and infirmity. In retirement it’s been draining making weekly trips up and down the motorways from Sheffield to Cambridge, and Tunbridge Wells, and back. Four trips to Cambridge in the fortnight following Dad’s death, all… Continue reading THAT ORVAL MOMENT
TOP 100 PUBS – THE KING’S HEAD, MARYLEBONE
November 2026. London. It’s 15:57 in Kensington last Sunday and I need to catch the 17:20 from King’s Cross. Let’s walk it. Google maps says 1hr 27, so I’ll need to get a move on if I want to make random stops on the way to take photos of the drawing man in “Real Time”… Continue reading TOP 100 PUBS – THE KING’S HEAD, MARYLEBONE
THE BLUE STOOPS. A SLICE OF KIRKSTALL IN KENSINGTON
November 2026. Notting Hill Gate. London. An afternoon in West London, always a joy, and a reminder that you can never really get to grips with the capital. I take the tube a couple of stops from Edgware Road to Notting Hill Gate, and magically from £2.72 a pint in the Paddington Spoons to £6.80… Continue reading THE BLUE STOOPS. A SLICE OF KIRKSTALL IN KENSINGTON
