July 2023. Formby, Merseyside.
This post is brought to you from Fanny’s Croft car park.
Well, Liverpool looked gorgeous on Monday night, as good as I’ve seen it. It’s amazing what a bit of blue sky can do for a place.
Goodness knows what I was doing in a nondescript Spoons when I could have been dragging Mrs RM round the Edwardian streets and revisiting Guide pubs.
Instead, she retired to her windowless Z hotel with another glass of white and sent me off to Sefton to tick a micropub.
Now there’s nothing wrong with Formby; the dunes are gorgeous even if the pubs aren’t in Waterloo‘s league (Northern Premier).
But you’re not lazing in sand dunes at 8pm, you’re phoning a micropub to ask if they’re really open on Monday night.
“mmm, what time were you thinking of getting here ?” asks the Tin Shed.
“I’m on my way !”
“Was it youse who called ?” asks the barmaid, simultaneously kicking the till shut with a back heel.
Very impressive, and the Kaleidoscope from Strawberry Gardens is GBG standard, though even as I warm to yet another identikit small Merseyside shop conversion it never quite rises above a 3.
Poretti (not Moretti) rules here.
But as a pub, it’s perfect. I feel so confident in the character of locals I leave my phone on the table as I go to the loo. On Merseyside!!!
A young lady is giving an Old Boy at the bar strength building exercise tips.
“You don’t want to be in pain Tim !”
Truly, it’s the concern of the young for the old, even after we’ve ruined their future, that makes me think that things will be OK.
Despite the frankly alarming stickers at Formby station.
retiredmartin 
When do you ever see something other than blue skies! Righteous one!
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Especially being in the west, when winds revert to off the sea in July and August. Usually.
I spent last Christmas in Freshfield so eagerly await the next episode of Martin’s travails…
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“if the pubs aren’t in Waterloo’s league (Northern Premier).”
I was amazed to learn yesterday, via a Facebook post with an aerial photo of Everton’s new ground under construction taken from a plane carrying Wythenshawe Town fans to an away match, that the Isle of Man now play in the North West Counties League Premier Division (I think the last Wythenshawe GBG pub was the Park in Northern Moor in the early nineties).
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Very few small towns have pubs in the same league as Waterloo. We often stay at The Royal, then have a pint at the small, but excellent JDW then pub crawl around the micros (except the Trap & Hatch of course, because it’s crap), eat at Tapas Tapas and finish off with a couple just around the corner at The Volley
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Had a Formby pub crawl planned recently but weather defeated us. Still on the list.
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Certainly a decent walk taking in Freshfield pubs but I’d get distracted by the dunes and then Waterloo on the way back.
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especially with a nice sunset ?
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Cheaper rent and overheads mean these will be the new locals and arguably last men staining….looks top notch
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Lower costs to run, easier to staff (rarely any food), often ticking over so beer OK. Not my favoured pub type but it works well.
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