Not only do I rely on folk in Crewe, Stockport and Newbury to spell-check my posts, I rather expect anyone to point out the absence of a March stocktake. I was rather thrown by BRAPA summing up before month-end, a heinous crime. So fashionably late, we have; 40 new GBG pubs across 18 GBG counties,… Continue reading MARCH ’17 STOCKTAKE
DON’T BICKER OVER A DUFF HALF
Retired Martins’s first rule of blogging is “There is no post, however slight, that cannot be redeemed by a photo of a cat“. So here (s)he is, perched on a wall near the Red Lion in Bicker in the heart of nowhere, Lincs. In my former life as scum NHS management, I actually stayed in… Continue reading DON’T BICKER OVER A DUFF HALF
CROMWELL FINALLY GETS HIS SPOONS IN ST. IVES
You may struggle to believe this, but Huntingdonshire, not least among the historic counties of England, has had more Wetherspoon openings in the last 3 years than micropubs. Read into that what you like. Following hot on the heels of the county town, St Ives (not that one) got its Spoons today. A Tuesday opening gives… Continue reading CROMWELL FINALLY GETS HIS SPOONS IN ST. IVES
JIMMY, JIMMY
A short break from the real world of Thimbleby and Willoughby Waterleys as I return to the fictional town of Cambridge, where Punk IPA costs us £6 and our new cutting-edge Station Tap is run by Youngs. We also have year-round sunshine here, which means retired folk like me can watch cricket at Fenners AND… Continue reading JIMMY, JIMMY
TOP 100 PUBS – THE NOTTINGHAM HOUSE, CLEETHORPES
As I said at the start of this blog, its main purpose is to lets Mrs RM know where I am when she can’t be bothered to look at the calendar. And to reach an uneasy peace on the use of possessive apostrophes, of course. But I would also be thrilled if I could persuade a few… Continue reading TOP 100 PUBS – THE NOTTINGHAM HOUSE, CLEETHORPES
CLEETHORPES PART 2 – BOOGIE NIGHTS
It was a struggle to leave the No.2 Refreshment Rooms, so being chased out of the ladies loos was probably a blessing in disguise. I can’t imagine what goes on in the ladies in the No.1 Pub, a wearying 20 seconds Stomp away (see what I did there Dave ?). The No.1 wasn’t great when… Continue reading CLEETHORPES PART 2 – BOOGIE NIGHTS
CLEETHORPES – A THRILLER (PART 1)
I’d been waiting a long time for a reason to return to Cleethorpes, a town I’d never been to when the sun came out. In sympathy to local sensibilities, I’m going to try to refrain from mentioning G*****y in this post; it’s bad enough to have your town marketed under a “Greater Grimsby” banner by… Continue reading CLEETHORPES – A THRILLER (PART 1)
IMMINGHAM – THE NEW FALMOUTH ?
As you’ll note from the areas not coloured in on my Philip Navigator, I haven’t been everywhere in the UK yet. It’s only a year since I first went to Cambourne, a place I’d always written off before my revelatory trip introduced me to its graceful Methodist architecture and Portuguese patisseries. You should be prepared to be surprised… Continue reading IMMINGHAM – THE NEW FALMOUTH ?
NOW, EVEN HORNSEA GETS CRAFT
The insidious invasion by micropubs continues apace, knocking perfectly good locals serving Jennings Bitter out of the Guide as it goes. It was inevitable that small towns that had lost their “York National Bank ” or “Everitt the Butcher” would end up giving a recently retired couple the chance to serve beer like this, to a room… Continue reading NOW, EVEN HORNSEA GETS CRAFT
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