“Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans“, as Yoko Ono once said. So I spend my time planning trips to the Isle of Wight, wherever that is, and dreaming of making inroads into East Devon, but end up driving up and down the A68 past the mining towns of Durham.… Continue reading THE A68 – CRISPS, CASK AND CHOMSKY
MY GRANDFATHER’S CLOCK IN KOREAN.
A few exciting reports from my mega-ticking excursion to Scotland last week, starting with Piercebridge, which you may remember from last year, or from Roger Protz’s excellent book on the A1 pubs. Piercebridge popped back in my mind as we drove up the (newly re-opened) B6275 towards the Scottish borders on Monday night. Largely because… Continue reading MY GRANDFATHER’S CLOCK IN KOREAN.
MARCH ’18 STOCKTAKE & APRIL PREVIEW
Not sure where March went, and I’ve a series of Scottish posts still to bring you, including two really great pubs among the NBSS 1 dross, so my highlights package is more C4 than Sky today. And it’s being typed in a Tonbridge Premier Inn by the light from my I-Phone torch while drunk, so… Continue reading MARCH ’18 STOCKTAKE & APRIL PREVIEW
MAKING SENSE OF THE NEW NATIONAL BEER SCORING SYSTEM
Back home from Hackney on Sunday at midnight, then straight off to Scotland, or Alba as the locals call it. Mrs RM gets it easy, she really does. All she does is enjoy my flawless driving while taking conference calls, and then get shouted out by Scots with IT problems for five days while I… Continue reading MAKING SENSE OF THE NEW NATIONAL BEER SCORING SYSTEM
MARE STREET. MARTHA. MILTON. MOTH
To Hull and back again, and thence on to Hackney for the Martha gig at Moth Club. Words that will mean little to most of you. I’ve written about Martha and Moth before, and it was helpful of my favourite Durham punksters to arrange a gig in London on super off-peak rail day, or Sunday… Continue reading MARE STREET. MARTHA. MILTON. MOTH
IPA THROUGH A STRAW IN “PROPER” HULL
On the journey up to Hull I was listening to the new Tracey Thorn album on repeat. Despite having proper song structures and intelligible lyrics, it’s my record of the month (a new and shortlived feature, no doubt), with the sort of confessional detail normally only seen on a BRAPA trip to Runcorn. Tracey,… Continue reading IPA THROUGH A STRAW IN “PROPER” HULL
A NEW BEVERLEY BEAUTY
In an alternative universe, Withernsea would be the Southwold of the Yorkshire coast, rather than its Fleetwood or Skegness. And Beverley would be the scummy bit of Hull. But it isn’t. Like Ely, it’s gone over recent decades from charming rural backwater with large church to posh commuter town and tourist honeypot. On each visit… Continue reading A NEW BEVERLEY BEAUTY
A FISH TEA IN WITHERNSEA
You might think it rather telling that my “featured image” (above) for Withernsea is a visualisation of what the Prom might look like one day; I couldn’t possibly comment. My massive master GBG spreadsheet tells me this is my first ever pub in “Withered“, as its friends probably call it. But I’ve clearly been here… Continue reading A FISH TEA IN WITHERNSEA
MORE MELROSE
Some tired WiFi up here in the Borders to complement the exhausted beer, so I can’t share my Withernsea post tonight, you’ll be saddened to hear. So a very short post from Melrose, the Waitrose of the Borders, (where Galashiels is Heron Foods). It looked pretty stunning tonight at the end of my day walking… Continue reading MORE MELROSE
PUB CRICKET ON THE SPURN APPROACH
Just for my favourite (occasional) Bass custodian at the Petersgate Tap, here’s east Yorkshire’s contribution to pub cricket. The Coach and Horses in Welwick is about as far as you can venture without risk of being washed away when Spurn Head is lost forever on October 26th (visit now !). The sign is worth a… Continue reading PUB CRICKET ON THE SPURN APPROACH
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