20th March 2023. I’m making terribly slow progress towards completing GBG23 (IF I’m actually doing it), which I know will disappoint those of you who had a tenner on me at 18/1 to repeat my GBG22 triumph (what happened to the film starring Emma Stone by the way ?). In truth I’m waiting for the… Continue reading I AM OLDSWINFORD’S ONLY BEER TOURIST
MORE MONKEY BUSINESS IN HILLSBOROUGH
19th March 2023. An odd day. Up at 6am in Waterbeach, finish off the cold crispy beef, drive back to Sheffield, train to Nottingham with James, who then drove me straight back in his first car. The route James took from the Car Shop is the blue screechy one below. People who take at least… Continue reading MORE MONKEY BUSINESS IN HILLSBOROUGH
Retired Martin’s Honest Norwich Reappraisal Part IV – “You can taste the black treacle in this”
17th March 2023. The three (3) new Beer Guide entries in the bag, Norwich had delivered a better performance than expected, and now it was time to head “home” to That Waterbeach, the craft capital of the Fens. But the walk back to the station would only take 20 minutes if I didn’t stop at… Continue reading Retired Martin’s Honest Norwich Reappraisal Part IV – “You can taste the black treacle in this”
Retired Martin’s Honest Norwich Reappraisal Part III – A little piece of Norwich Over The Water that is forever York
17th March 2023. Two down in Norwich, one to go. I must have done this walk from station up Magdalene Street a couple of dozen times, even stayed in the Maid’s Head for £35 once; perhaps I should have slowed down to appreciate the merits of the market, and the “baroque” (per Pevsner) splendour of… Continue reading Retired Martin’s Honest Norwich Reappraisal Part III – A little piece of Norwich Over The Water that is forever York
Retired Martin’s Honest Norwich Reappraisal Part II – It’s all gone a bit Pat Benatar in the Walnut Tree Shades
17th March 2023. 5.30pm, Friday evening, central Norwich. My train back to the Fens left in two hours. Plenty of time to complete the trio of new Guide ticks, AND nip in Primark to buy a new pair of jeans (pic only available to Supremely Patronised readers). Google tells me I spent 7 minutes in… Continue reading Retired Martin’s Honest Norwich Reappraisal Part II – It’s all gone a bit Pat Benatar in the Walnut Tree Shades
Retired Martin’s Honest Norwich Reappraisal Part I
17th March 2023. I’ve been spending 3 days a week down with my parents, giving Dad guided tours of Fenland urbanisation projects and garden centres. On the upside, I get to see my parents and am guaranteed crispy beef and Singapore rice (plus a NEW dish !); on the downside it limits my chances to… Continue reading Retired Martin’s Honest Norwich Reappraisal Part I
INSPECTING THE 1926 ACCOUNT BOOKS AT ST THOMAS, BURTON-LE-COGGLES
16th March 2023. Enough of pubs, let’s focus on Grade II listed Anglican churches on quaintly named Lincolnshire villages. More importantly, let’s liven up the relentless 2:20 hours journey from Sheffield to Waterbeach with a stop in a place I’ve never stopped before. Quite why I’d never been to tiny Burton-le-Coggles before last Thursday is… Continue reading INSPECTING THE 1926 ACCOUNT BOOKS AT ST THOMAS, BURTON-LE-COGGLES
A Giant Garlic Naan and Cookie Dough Ice Cream Porter
15th March 2023. One of the real joys of the blog is meeting up with fellow enthusiasts of travel, pubs and calorific excess (as part of a rigid dietary plan). Since completing the Guide (did you hear ?) I’ve rarely said “No*” to any invitation to a meet-up, particularly with blogging legend Blackpool Jane. And… Continue reading A Giant Garlic Naan and Cookie Dough Ice Cream Porter
TURN A DIFFERENT CORNER AND I NEVER WOULD HAVE GONE TO THE KELHAM ISLAND TAVERN FOR THAT IMPERIAL STOUT
13th March 2023. I was just heading down to central Sheffield for my 10,000 steps when who should I meet but Sheffield Hatter, still dancing in the streets after Luton’s smash-and-grab win at Bramall Lane on his way to the supermarket. “Fancy a pint, Will ?” I probably said. Never ask a Lutonian a question… Continue reading TURN A DIFFERENT CORNER AND I NEVER WOULD HAVE GONE TO THE KELHAM ISLAND TAVERN FOR THAT IMPERIAL STOUT
DON’T AVOID, MYTHOLMROYD
11th March 2023. When you’re setting out on your Good Beer Guide ticking career, you can confidently expect to find half a dozen new Guide entries in an afternoon. But, as BRAPA well knows, the deeper the you go the harder to extract are those ticks. And so I approach the penultimate West Yorkshire entry… Continue reading DON’T AVOID, MYTHOLMROYD