GREENLAND. AND THE BALL.

Some people dream of a rich and fulfilling life, enriched by career, family, a sense of civic duty and Chinese takeaways.

While those ARE important, I just want a blog view from Greenland.

I should have been in Nuuk last August on the first part of Mrs RM’s world tour, logging into an internet cafe to leave a comment on my own blog, but events, dear boy, events.

So an unsung industrial suburb in east Sheffield will have to do*.

On the way to Greenland, you pass two contrasting classics on Darnall Road.

This is a classic of its kind.

“I’d like to see inside the Salvation Army Place, definitely. And is that a man with a chainsaw outside the fire station?! Is that what it takes to keep you away?!” says an excited Tarkovsky on Derelict Places, and one can understand his fervour. Note also the font in the Young People’s Hall, design to enflame the passions of Matthew Lawrenson.

A minute on, I stop, stunned.

Yes, in that big splash of mud.

I’ve stood in awe and admired the Taj Mahal, the Victoria Falls, the Calf of Man, Carluke High Street…

But this was truly a “Wow” moment.

Closed since 1993 according to the essential Sheffield CAMRA Guide to Pub Heritage,

Perhaps it’s the sunlight, but it actually looked in better nick than it did in 2011.

Could it possibly open again ? What else could you possibly do with it ?

I carried on to Greenland, a welcoming place.

There’s a long-closed pub/club that neither Will nor Alan made it to.

The Greenlands was formerly the Fiery Fred, a sort of Yorkshire cousin to Manchester’s Fiery Jack by The Fall.

Sadly Greenland was a bit of a let-down, the highlight being these ruins from an unfinished gastropub in Phillimore Park;

Still, the delights of the Olympic Heritage Park awaited. I could barely contain myself.

*And if you think that’s exciting, there’s a Rhodesia and a Wales down the A57.

Published by retiredmartin

Retired NHS, doing long walks around UK and the world to record the great bits. Focused on Good Beer Guide pubs and live music.

31 thoughts on “GREENLAND. AND THE BALL.”

  1. That makes me wonder what Young People get up to nowadays.
    That Young People’s Hall looks closed and they don’t get in pubs from the age of sixteen like when I were a lad.

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  2. In case it is of interest to you, below is a link to a pub blog that I haven’t updated for a few years. If you click on an image there is more information and often more pictures of the pub under the ‘info’ tab… Like The Abbey on the first page has some nice shots of it’s bowling green 🙂
    It has a search bar so you might find something of interest…
    https://pubsinsheffield.wordpress.com
    Best wishes
    Mr C

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      1. Thank you. I enjoy photography and I wanted to take pub photos that showed them in their best light (and some after dark ones too!). I think I over committed myself with my blogs and the pub one ran out of steam. I may add to it again but the pandemic has sadly put a so many things on hold and there are more important issues in all our lives at present.
        At the same time I did the pubs I was also doing shop fronts… 🙂
        https://shopfrontsofsheffield.wordpress.com
        Thanks for your comment.
        Best wishes, Mr C

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    3. Pubs like that cost a fortune in heating, upkeep, rates – and even before the pandemic, people in places like Darnall and Attercliffe wouldn’t be going to local pubs for their nights out. It’s into town to parade around in their shirt-sleeves and underwear after having pre-loaded with supermarket wine and spirits to make sure they don’t behave too well once they’re there, then a taxi home at 4am which costs more than what they’ve spent on beer.

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      1. SH,
        I’m sure you’ve summed it up very well.
        And sadly most cities have half a dozen Darnalls and Attercliffes.

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  4. “… it actually looked in better nick than it did in 2011.”

    I know my photo is not very good, but the main reason the long-closed pub looks better – apart from the sunshine – is that it was boarded up in 2011. It looks fantastic now, but wait till someone comes around with some stones to break the windows.

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      1. And that barmaid on her mobile ‘phone while there’s customers waiting to be served.
        Yes, the rot set in long ago.

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  6. I remember seeing a sign for Rhodesia when I was last in Worksop.

    And when I lived in Chippenham (Wiltshire) I once cycled to New Zealand and back in an afternoon, but I was younger then. 🙂

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  7. “Some people dream of a rich and fulfilling life, enriched by career, family, a sense of civic duty and Chinese takeaways.”

    He said, looking in a mirror. 😉

    “I should have been in Nuuk last August on the first part of Mrs RM’s world tour, logging into an internet cafe to leave a comment on my own blog, but events, dear boy, events.”

    Ouch! Condolences. If it helps I was in Thule* for a day back in 1990. You’re not missing much. 😉

    * – or Qaanaaq as it is now called

    “So an unsung industrial suburb in east Sheffield will have to do*.”

    Looks down. (slow golf clap)

    “you pass two contrasting classics on Darnall Road.”

    That’s a bit like the Before and After shops. You know, one sells sexy lingerie and the other sells maternity clothes. 😉

    “Note also the font in the Young People’s Hall, design to enflame the passions of Matthew Lawrenson.”

    Yes. That would definitely p*ss him off.

    “A minute on, I stop, stunned.”

    Blimey. It even has a shaft of light shining on it.

    “But this was truly a “Wow” moment.”

    In deference to the almost religious awe of the moment, I shan’t make fun of the name, the Ball Inn. 😉

    “I carried on to Greenland, a welcoming place.”

    Blimey. More interesting than Nuuk, I’ll bet!

    “the highlight being these ruins from an unfinished gastropub in Phillimore Park;”

    Surely that’s where England’s version of Aristotle extolled upon the virtues of cask ale?

    “*And if you think that’s exciting, there’s a Rhodesia and a Wales down the A57.”

    Pfft. We all have stuff like that.

    Of course, over here, most of our ‘interesting’ ones are in Newfoundland… home of Dildo and Come By Chance. 😉

    Cheers

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  8. “Some people dream of a rich and fulfilling life, enriched by career, family, a sense of civic duty and Chinese takeaways” makes me realise that of those four I never gave any thought to having a career.
    Bit late now.

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