November 2024. Bath. Bath is gorgeous, a bit underrated I reckon, though I can’t really vouch for the gig and curry scene, and the lovely little craft bar that Stafford Paul had enjoyed so much in 2018 hasn’t lasted. But Paul set off at a fair lick as we reached the Paragon, a row of… Continue reading THE FOUR PINT JUG OF BASS IN THE STAR – BATH 4/7

November 2024. Bath. Back in the previous millennium, before the invention of the civilising influence that is The Internet, CAMRA produced a series of books (on actual paper) to help folk plan Big Days Out. One of those was a guided to Pub Crawls around UK towns which allowed you to take in the sights… Continue reading THE SALAMANDER – A BATH GEM ? BATH 3/7

November 2024. Bath. Seven short posts for seven pubs (great film title) for you, unless I add an eighth for the cheese and wine hotel at our Z hotel. That cheese (brie) had still been on my face the time I’d first gone in the Raven, which is the UK pub with the most complex… Continue reading SPILT BEER IN THE RAVEN. BATH 2/7

November 2024. Bath. I woke up this morning in a windowless hotel room to terrible news. I’m sure you heard it too. The bad guy has won, the next 4 years will be torment. But enough of City’s defeat in Lisbon and the End of the Pep era, and celebrate the fact we can still… Continue reading THE OLD GREEN TREE. BATH 1/7

November 2024. Derby. Back in Derby I found myself with 24 minutes ’till the train home and a 26 minute walk to the station. Now, I’m no Dick Southworth but do the math, that’s plenty of time for a pub. Derby has lost a bit of lustre as a pub town these last 15 years… Continue reading BASS IN DERBY PART II

November 2024 – Little Eaton. Derbyshire. NOT to be confused with Long Eaton, though you probably will, with disastrous consequences. Little Eaton is your first village north of Derby, and I could have walked it, except I knew that I’d then end up in the re-opened Sam Smiths (ANOTHER one !) at Darley Abbey 3… Continue reading SHINY, SHINY, DERBYS BEHIND ME

November 2024. Derby. Arriving back in Sheffield from 3 weeks in Waterbeach the only thing I wanted to do on Saturday was get out. Yes, yes, six GBG ticks is fun, but only one was needed to complete Derbyshire and, joy of joys, it’s a brewery tap in an industrial estate. Half an hour on… Continue reading IT’LL BE ALRIGHT WHEN IT SETTLES. BASS IN DERBY PART I.

October 2024. Tottenham. Sheffield. One of many things I’m grateful to Dad for is the real life education he gave me as a shy young lad. 4am trips into east London in a van packed with flowers, tomato picking in steamy greenhouses to earn pocket money, and visits to exotic football grounds in Luton, Leicester… Continue reading IN SEARCH OF BEAVERTOWN, BUT SETTLING FOR ORVAL

October 2024. Waterbeach. “Shall we get Chinese ?’ says Mum in Addenbrookes car park. Mum had her priorities right, 10 minutes after an honourable discharge after two tough weeks in hospital. The second thing she did was phone Mrs RM’s parents to thank them for the giant chair with remote control they rescued from their… Continue reading WINNING THE BEST TEAM NAME AT SUN QUIZ NIGHT