May 2025, Derby. Well the itinerary had gone to pot, but our #PubManHeroes from Leicester, Frome, Sheffield (x 2), Stafford and Worcester (x 2) were at least walking in a straight line, reminiscent of a scene from the Wicker Man. But where was our leader ? Life After Football presumably checking out Bunk and Brooklyn’s… Continue reading THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY” No. 8 – YE OLDE DOLPHIN
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THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 7 – THE WOODLARK
May 2025 Derby. And so, to a (third) unscheduled stop on our Derby crawl, and my own highlight of any Derby trip. The Woodlark isn’t a Guide regular, I only discovered it in 2018, but it’s where you’ll want to go to see what pubs were like 40 years ago, an era of Football Specials,… Continue reading THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 7 – THE WOODLARK
THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 6 – THE MAYPOLE
May 2025. Derby. Well, where to start ? Life After Football had curated a top quality pub crawl, all your old Derby favourites on a circulat route minimising walking. But I’d reckoned you couldn’t skip the Woodlark, in and out of the Guide after I described it as “perfect”, a pub performing the same function… Continue reading THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 6 – THE MAYPOLE
THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 5 – THE FIVE LAMPS
May 2025. Derby. Pub No. 4 for most of our Magnificent Seven, or was it Eight ?, but a 5th for Will and I as we tracked Stafford Paul down to the sprawling but still cosy Five Lamps. Paul should know that social media disapproves of this new “trend” of solo drinking, so fortunately we… Continue reading THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 5 – THE FIVE LAMPS
THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 4 – FURNACE
May 2025. Derby. I’d already dragged Will off the approved route, but with barely 15 minutes in the Exeter we felt confident that a sprint to the backstreet Furnace would allow us to catch up with reprimand and suspension of Old Codger privileges. But the sight of Stafford Paul sprinting towards the Five Lamps suggested… Continue reading THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 4 – FURNACE
THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 3 – EXETER ARMS
May 2025. Derby. An ambitious agenda; a half of Doom Bar if you can guess how many pubs we actually did. I didn’t actually spot any Doom Bar in Derby, and fully intend to write to CAMRA to ask them to campaign to protect that historic beer. Nope, it was Bass after Bass on Friday,… Continue reading THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 3 – EXETER ARMS
THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 2 – THE SMITHFIELD
May 2025. Derby. The BIG unofficial Derby pub crawl went off-course immediately on leaving the Brunswick, our group deciding that no, they couldn’t wait 13 minutes for the Alex to open, so over the Derwent, looking all pastoral and romantic, until Paul brings my attention to the abandoned shopping trolleys on the left. This crawl,… Continue reading THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 2 – THE SMITHFIELD
THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 1 – THE BRUNSWICK INN
May 2025. Derby. Well, disappointment for my readers hoping for dumplings, feminist pop and stained glass, but joy for those who like short posts focusing only on pubs. In dystopian 2025 there are two distinct types of permitted activity involving the visiting of a number of public houses for the purpose of consuming beer and… Continue reading THE BIG DERBY “CURATED PUB SURVEY”. No. 1 – THE BRUNSWICK INN
MAY ’25 STOCKTAKE + JUNE PREVIEW
A quick summary of a low-key month where the highlight was another country tick pin as we ventured into the Caucasus. A dozen bars in Georgia, and thirty-eight different pubs (a very different beast) spread across the usual North-West to South-East route. A culinary month, from the artisanal salads of Reddish, to the robust dumplings… Continue reading MAY ’25 STOCKTAKE + JUNE PREVIEW
ROOSTERS AND CHICKEN WINGS
May 2025. Sheffield. And so we leave Georgia, the capital’s airport so comfortable we arrived there over 3 hours early and still nearly missed Last Call. Great name for a bar; but with Staropramen at a tenner I gave it a miss. Back home in Sheffield I lasted almost a day before sneaking out up… Continue reading ROOSTERS AND CHICKEN WINGS
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