February 2024. Liverpool. I’d left Mrs RM to “do the Liverpool culture” while I nabbed that quick tick at the Red Lion. She headed from the Baltic Market at Cains to the towering Anglican Cathedral, where I tried to catch her up now. When I finished the Beer Guide Mrs RM made it clear she’d… Continue reading A CULTURAL INTERLUDE
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TOP 100 PUBS – THE RED LION, LIVERPOOL
February 2024. Liverpool. Mrs RM failed to strike a pose in front of the Abbey Road mural (“I didn’t see it“), and sauntered off to tick the cathedrals, I said I’d catch her up after my tick. She’s used to it by now. Only one central new Guide entry in Pool, but that’s par for… Continue reading TOP 100 PUBS – THE RED LION, LIVERPOOL
A TOTTER THROUGH TOXTETH
Greetings from snowy, sleety, Sheffield. I’m stuck inside with only Mrs RM and last night’s leftover curry for company, so expect manic blogging. February 2024. Liverpool. Sunday morning brought clear skies and a clear route from the Potteries to Liverpool, where our £25 Toxteth Travelodge (with FREE parking) awaited. A day earlier it was a… Continue reading A TOTTER THROUGH TOXTETH
HALF A DOZEN PUBS IN EVERY GBG COUNTY. No. 43 – WEST SUSSEX
Hmmm. Not a great “county” (half-county ?) in any sense, but one I’ve seen a lot of lately, having only really started on Worthing around 2016. Worthing isn’t Brighton, or Hastings, but it’s “better than Bexhill”, and it can have that slogan for free. Finding five representative pubs to kick us off was tougher than… Continue reading HALF A DOZEN PUBS IN EVERY GBG COUNTY. No. 43 – WEST SUSSEX
GREAT PUBS REVISITED No. 5 – THE COACHMAKERS ARMS, HANLEY
February 2024. Hanley. Stoke-on-Trent. Before I get to the last pub of the night, I need to confess that when the driver of the Number 4 back to Hanley asked to see my day bus ticket I flashed him my receipt by mistake. I take full responsibility. Back in the “capital of the Potteries“, nowt… Continue reading GREAT PUBS REVISITED No. 5 – THE COACHMAKERS ARMS, HANLEY
MARKET SQUARE HEROES
February 2024. Newcastle-under-Lyme. A pattern is emerging for my town visits; see the street art, tick the GBG newbie, revisit a “great” pub, take a chance on a pub that you’ve never even noticed before. And so, with 12 minutes to kill before my next No. 4 back to Hanley (not because I walked too… Continue reading MARKET SQUARE HEROES
GREAT PUBS REVISITED No. 4 – THE BOAT AND HORSES, NEWCASTLE-UNDER-LYME
When I did that half-a-dozen from Staffs post last week the Boat & Horses in Newcastle (t’other one) was a name that popped as the 6th pub, notably from Pub Curmudgeon. I’d actually fancied a revisit to the Hopinn for a guaranteed Bass, but my complete amnesia on the Boat & Horses from a visit… Continue reading GREAT PUBS REVISITED No. 4 – THE BOAT AND HORSES, NEWCASTLE-UNDER-LYME
TAKE THE FIRST BUS TO NEWCASTLE (UNDER LYME)
February 2024. Newcastle-Under-Lyme. We arrived in Hanley, capital of That Stoke, and after only three (3) attempts managed to park outside the Premier Inn. Missing the car park is a family tradition. In November 2014 I walked from that hotel to Newcastle-u-L, as the kids call it, as the last leg of a step challenge.… Continue reading TAKE THE FIRST BUS TO NEWCASTLE (UNDER LYME)
ONE BEER IS PLENTY, OFTEN MORE THAN ENOUGH
February 2024. Leek. An hour till Benks, my second Leek Guide debutant opened (hopefully), time to walk the bounds and take pictures of leaks in Leek. and recall the “Dick Southworth Cheese Incident” in the Wilkes Head, whose sign surely needs a trip to the Repair Workshop. Mrs RM needed a trip to the Repair… Continue reading ONE BEER IS PLENTY, OFTEN MORE THAN ENOUGH
LEEK MAKES A LATE PITCH TO BE ENGLAND’S TOP BASS TOWN
Don’t worry, Uttoxeter, it’s got a way to go yet. January 2024. Leek. But a couple of Guide newbies promised Bass. Oddly, despite a dozen visits over two dozen years, I had no recollection of either Benks or Cobblers, the latter just yards from the oatcake van and the Titanic pub. Isn’t golden light pouring… Continue reading LEEK MAKES A LATE PITCH TO BE ENGLAND’S TOP BASS TOWN
