September 2025. Sheffield. From the Itchy Pig (2) I took a walk through Sheffield’s genteel southern suburbs, along Psalter Lane with its solid housing, “Do not take the bowel” sign and “help yourself” apples. The next pub on the half marathon is opposite the Salvation Army citadel, a Thornbridge flagship of sorts. Packed at evenings… Continue reading PSALTER LANE

September 2025. Sheffield. Back home in Sheffield, for a couple of days at least, the question is “How much time do I waste on this new GBG, then ?“. Once you’ve done it once (did I ever mention ?) there’s no real need to do it again, unless you have the unlimited funds to fly… Continue reading FIRST TICK IN THE NEW GBG. ITCHY PIG (2), SHEFFIELD

September 2025. Waterbeach. That last trip home before the new GBG was also the last weekend for Landlady Helen at the Sun, which has featured more in this blog since I left for The North than when I lived there. Helen and Theresa had to deal with the tragic blow of losing Andrew in 2023,… Continue reading THE SUN SETS IN WATERBEACH

September 2025. Ely. The weekly drives down to Waterbeach (and frequently) Tunbridge Wells to visit elderly parents (and house) have been getting increasingly wearisome; mentally as much as physically. So I took the slow train home via Nottingham, £20 single with a couple of hours to kill in Ely. Ely (pop. 20k) looks more modern… Continue reading ELY GOES “CRAFT AND BURGERS”

September 2025. Teddington. Every £25.50 trip to London needs a new GBG tick and a classic or two, plus a Spoons if I haven’t done it before. Teddington doesn’t have a Spoons, which either adds or takes £100k off average house prices. But it has a string of attractive looking pubs, and a corner pub… Continue reading TOP 100 PUBS – THE MASONS ARMS, TEDDINGTON

September 2025. Teddington. London. By Friday the trains were running from Cambridge to London again, and I could finally finish the capital’s GBG entries, just before the new Guide (ugh) landed at RM Towers. Teddington is exactly the sort of place a tickers dreams of finishing a Guide chapter. You get a change of trains… Continue reading TOPING IN TEDDINGTON

September 2025. Cambridge. Not quite sure why I was spending this Thursday afternoon in Cambridge, between visits to Dad’s care home. Possibly the cancellation of the London train, or the tip-off about Bass at the Free Press, or more likely I needed a personal visit to the ornate Lloyds Bank on Gonville Place. Acting as… Continue reading OOH, NICE GLASS ! THE MILL, CAMBRIDGE

September 2025. Cambridge. Cambridge has gone Bass crazy. The Kingston started the trend, and now there’s a check-in at a Greene King flagship. I mean, it’s not their biggest public house, but the Free Press is where I learnt to love Greene King IPA, before CAMRA folk decided it was rubbish (shortly after declaring it… Continue reading BASS AT THE FREE PRESS

September 2025. Cambridge. You know where Cambridge is by now. Unless you’re in Boston (US). On our mammoth Atherstone curated pub exploration crawl yesterday it was suggested we plan a day in Cambridge, and for the first time since leaving my home town for The North I can contemplate that. I was delighted to see… Continue reading FINALLY! THE KINGSTON ARMS GETS THE BASS RIGHT