September 2025. Sale. My new GBG pub in Sale was unexpectedly closed (“hope to be open by 4”, they said), so an hour to get to the soul of Sale. If there was a local TIC, they could have that for a pint of Holt. We decided to loiter for an hour, despite a less… Continue reading GETTING TO THE SOUL OF SALE
Author: retiredmartin
Retired NHS, doing long walks around UK and the world to record the great bits. Focused on Good Beer Guide pubs and live music.
LOUNGE-ING AROUND
September 2025. Sale. What a joyous thing the Beer Guide is for alternative UK tourism. BRAPA in Rochdale tonight, and me in Sale a fortnight ago. I thought I was struggling keeping the blog up-to-date till I saw Simon is still in August. All I wanted was a rare new tick in Sale, and some… Continue reading LOUNGE-ING AROUND
A DEE-DAR IN ROTHERHAM
September 2025. Bramley, Rotherham. Last year was the most exciting in the history of Rotherham, since the Chuckle Brothers met me at their Harperbury TV show set in 1998. Four (4) new GBG entries, all worthy, but only the posh golf club survives the churn. But the Autumn of GBG26 brings me back to Bramley,… Continue reading A DEE-DAR IN ROTHERHAM
PSALTER LANE
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 ’25 STOCKTAKE + OCTOBER PREVIEW
A few hours early for the contractually obligated monthly highlights post, let’s hope it’s not tempting fate and something really significant happens this afternoon. September was a month of returns. Biggest of all, Russ returned to the comments page after a traumatic period out, and how we’d missed him (and not just to correct the… Continue reading SEPTEMBER ’25 STOCKTAKE + OCTOBER PREVIEW
FIRST TICK IN THE NEW GBG. ITCHY PIG (2), SHEFFIELD
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
THE SUN SETS IN WATERBEACH
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
ELY GOES “CRAFT AND BURGERS”
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”
TOP 100 PUBS – THE MASONS ARMS, TEDDINGTON
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
TOPING IN 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
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