retiredmartin

September 2024. Barnsley.

Barnsley always seems unusually compact, it’s typical ration of half a dozen GBG pubs barely 10 minutes apart,

but it’s easy to forget this is a small town of 71,422, albeit with a vast hinterland stretching into the Peak. “Hinterland” is one of those words I don’t really know the meaning of, but it sounds nice.

The trad pubs are in the Old Town, the “CAMRA” pubs are in the new bit, a fantastic new micro in Heaven and Ale, the Old No. 7, and Jolly Boys tap, the one with the mini-Ploughmans.

Jolly’s is, perhaps irritatingly, is directly across from my final (perhaps) South Yorkshire tick.

But since Spiral City wasn’t open that day I can’t feel “pre-emptive regret“, the worst sort of regret, the one you feel when you forget to tick a Wetherspoons that then appears in the next Guide.

A sort of Art Deco classiness about Spiral City, reminiscent of the bars (notably Record Cafe) at the top of Bradford’s North Parade.

A fantastic mixed crowd; Old Boys on Stancil, couples on cocktails, young lads on vegan craft.

Yes, a rather local cask selection, and isn’t that great to see in a world dominated by requests for weird guest ales.

A great soundtrack at the bar prompted a conversation about the merits of Julin Baker and ny doubts Boygenius album, which started to make sense over a cool crisp pint of Barnsley (NBSS 4).

A lovely, inclusive atmosphere, and I’d have stayed for a second pint,

but I had a nagging concern whether I’d legitimately finished South Yorkshire properly, and you know how important it is to complete the GBG properly.