A few dry days after Scotland, interrupted by an urgent need to see how my home town was coping with Dryanuary. Quite well it seems. But first a business trip to what must surely a future Cambridge micro pub. You might think the Regal couldn’t match Lloyds for artistic merit, but there is something hypnotically… Continue reading CAMBRIDGE SAYS “DO ONE, DRYANUARY”
CASK FAILS & SCOTTISH BREAKFAST IN CLOVENFORDS
Those of you who are good at maths will have noticed that 3 pints were drunk in Spoons in Galashiels, which is both an endorsement of that fine establishment and an admission that careful planning can go awry. Mrs RM was beyond delighted to find that the giant Galashiels Tesco was open all day on… Continue reading CASK FAILS & SCOTTISH BREAKFAST IN CLOVENFORDS
GALA FAIRY QUEEN (OF THE SPOONS)
An uneventful trip into Scotland culminated in the Wetherspoons at Galashiels , as it must. I’d suggested a detour to the “Born in the Borders” brewery so Mrs RM could stock up on bottles of Game Bird, but she was focused on the posh supper in Melrose I’d promised her. First we checked out her… Continue reading GALA FAIRY QUEEN (OF THE SPOONS)
OVER THE WALL TO HUMSHAUGH
Apart from visiting all the current Beer Guide entries, I’d like to be able to place on the map any UK village you care to mention. I’d never heard of Humshaugh. Sounds northern though, doesn’t it ? It’s very smart, the sort of village that Essex hides away from the world but Surrey sticks… Continue reading OVER THE WALL TO HUMSHAUGH
OUTSIDE LOOS & BOILED CABBAGE IN ACOMB
Looking at the map now, I could have walked to Acomb. But where’s the fun in that, when you can enjoy Mrs RM’s exemplary driving*. We parked up, and Mrs RM saw her next car after the Picasso conks out. I thought Acomb (pronounced “Yeckam”, of course) was familiar, but there’s one near York… Continue reading OUTSIDE LOOS & BOILED CABBAGE IN ACOMB
HEXED IN HEXHAM
I should give these little posts a special name. How about “Little Posts” ? Next up is Hexham, which I probably said enough about last time I was up here. It hasn’t changed. Except for a new Guide entry and a Starbucks (or WiFi stop, as we call them down south). Mrs RM stayed in… Continue reading HEXED IN HEXHAM
MISTAKEN FOR FILM CREW IN MATFEN
OK, I’ll accept “Mistaken for film crew” isn’t quite as exciting as “Locked in Victoria Park” or “Gatecrashing craft weddings in Dulwich“, which were highlights a year ago. But this is Northumberland, not trendy London. Things are more sedate up here. We arrived just after opening, greeted by the entire pub staff staring at us.… Continue reading MISTAKEN FOR FILM CREW IN MATFEN
CYCLIST STAMINA IN STAMFORDHAM
Quite a lot of posts from Northumberland now, courtesy of Mrs RM’s faultless driving and the fact you can at least rely on pubs to be open on Sundays. First stop Stamfordham, in the wilderness between posh Ponteland and posher Corbridge, and a couple of miles from Hadrian’s Wall (which one day I’ll walk). The… Continue reading CYCLIST STAMINA IN STAMFORDHAM
IMPOSSIBLE JIGSAWS IN DURHAM MICRO PUBS
The big news in Durham is the closure of Bella Pasta, or whatever it was called this year. This was the poshest place we’d ever been to when we first visited the city in ’96, memorable for the £12.99 chocolate fondue and the view of the castle. The “Closed” signs were a hammer blow… Continue reading IMPOSSIBLE JIGSAWS IN DURHAM MICRO PUBS
THE LAMBTON WORM
An overnight stop in Chester-le-Street, chosen only because every hotel with running water in Durham itself cost over £100, and Mrs RM wasn’t prepared to sleep in the car. I do like the town, though the Beer Guide pickings are meagre, and if I ever get up here for cricket at the Riverside I’ll give… Continue reading THE LAMBTON WORM
