October 2025. Barnby Moor. North Notts.
“Barnby Moor ? Wherezat ?”.
Well, if you’d read Roger Protz’s marvellous book on the Great North Road (£7 + postage) you’d know all about (Ye) Olde Bell in the posh bit of Bassetlaw (the bit that’s not Worksop, Retford or central Donny).
One of the grandest staging points on the London to Edinburgh route, used by top pub men including Bing “mine’s a pint of murk” Crosby and Oliver “just a shandy, please, Bing” Reed, and a stop on the Monte Carlo rally.
But a Good Beer Guide entry ? None of us saw that one coming, and that’s what make GBG ticking the modern day equivalent of that Monte Carlo rally, I guess.
In the last month I’ve been to plain pubs, Art Deco pubs, shop conversions and now an historic coaching inn with an odd line in postal hours.
You need to walk past several interception points where you feel you might be asked “Can I HELP you Sir”, if you’ve ever nipped in the Feathers in Ludlow for a **** you’ll know what I mean, but it’s all cheery and normal till you get to the bar (mainly high tables) and the Landlord splutters out.
All the early season chat on the tickers WhatsApp group had been about the price of a pint in Ye Olde Bell, though after my trip to London yesterday £6.90 doesn’t seem that bad.
Despite the problems with the pull (“At least it’s a Northern head !” I say, ever the wag), the Tim Taylor is superb, only drifting at the last moment from a 4 to a 3.5.
It nearly gets that half point deduction back in the Hall of Mirrors loo with with its own mission statement.
Us old NHS staff love a good mission statement.
The soundtrack (Tom Petty, Chris Isaak) is stuck in 1991, and competes with the works bants of two women on laptops who can’t quite turn a hotel bar into a boozer.
But the restaurant….
….blimey. I almost joined the three bears for honey sandwiches.
But then I remembered the advice on black bears from that Romanian bear sanctuary guide, and played dead.
retiredmartin 
The bears were waiting for porridge.
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“Who’d ever heard of Ranby, Tiln, Scrooby or Hodsock before today ?”
I’m right there with ya on that.
“One of the grandest staging points on the London to Edinburgh route, used by top pub men including Bing “mine’s a pint of murk” Crosby and Oliver “just a shandy, please, Bing” Reed, and a stop on the Monte Carlo rally.”
You almost had me there; until you mentioned Oliver Reed having a shandy (hah!).
Also, I don’t think the Monte Carlo rally comes that far north.
(looks at pic below)
Crikey! Did the Brit racers gather at Ye Olde Bell before heading to the rally?
” and now an historic coaching inn with an odd line in postal hours.”
Agreed. No idea why they needed to add the zero to each time.
“though after my trip to London yesterday £6.90 doesn’t seem that bad.”
It’s all a matter of perception, innit?
“in the Hall of Mirrors loo with with its own mission statement.”
Your photo below is very Art Deco.
“Us old NHS staff love a good mission statement.”
Heh.
“I almost joined the three bears for honey sandwiches.”
What!
(looks down at pic below)
Ah.
“”But then I remembered the advice on black bears from that Romanian bear sanctuary guide, and played dead.”
(slow golf clap)
Cheers
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That article in the book definitely says Monte Carlo ! We’ve had the Tour de France in Yorkshire, so who knows ?
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I’ll add it to my ‘list of things to do before I die’ and try to suss out just what the heck that was all about!
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I was on the GNR yesterday.
Gino Washington and the Brightside Diners doesn’t quite have that ring, does it?
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Have you been in that Brightside Diner ?
I was in yesterday, nice halfway stop.
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Not yet, Martin.
Is it made of real stone? If so then it would have been sympatico to have used the reclaimed material from the Ram Jam, but that’s perhaps expecting too much…
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I recommend a stop, if only for a coffee and the loos.
Looks real to me
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I haven’t retread the appropriate blog, but I thought it was play dead for brown bears and carry a big gun for black ones. The tricky bit is finding out which ones are brown and which black.
Just ask nicely?
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Yes, asking nicely is ALWAYS the best solution.
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Interesting postbox – Saturday used to be classed as a weekday then? Or perhaps no post was ever collected on a Saturday.
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Lana, Those private boxes – and I remember the one in Beatties of Wolverhampton – had times similar to, though often fewer than, the familiar street postboxes.
You will probably remember postal deliveries around breakfast time which gave most of the daytime for sending a reply from the nearest postbox before the last collection during late afternoon. Now though, no longer a public service, the post takes a day longer with delivery around mid morning AFTER the nearest postbox has been cleared only at 9am.
Despite mechanical handing greatly reducing staffing it’s not as if it’s any cheaper now. Fifty years ago Second Class was 6½p which is equivalent to 51p now but, though regulated, it’s 87p which is 70% more. Fifty years ago First Class was 8½p which is equivalent to 65p now but, unregulated, it’s £1.70 which is an astonishing 162% more.
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It really is dire the way it has all gone, with POs closing too. I used to love getting post before heading off to work as I had a lot of worldwide penpals.
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