And I can tell you as one of them, completing Beds is MUCH tougher. 13th-15th January 2023. A long weekend in Waterbeach, with 3 days to crack Bedfordshire’s four GBG newbies*. Thrilling. Despite nearly catching up on the blog (take that, BRAPA !), I’m giving you four pubs in one today. Because Beds is Boring.… Continue reading MORE PEOPLE HAVE STOOD ON THE MOON THAN HAVE TICKED BEDFORDSHIRE
Tag: Bedfordshire
OPENING HOURS TENSION IN LITTLE STAUGHTON. WHEREVER THAT IS.
With all respect to Duncan and Malt and the other tickers, I suspect no-one has greater knowledge of Bedfordshire pubs than Simon or myself. BRAPA basically lived in the county after being determined to do the GBG alphabetically, and his great treatise on Wells Bombardier in Duloe was what got him a First in the… Continue reading OPENING HOURS TENSION IN LITTLE STAUGHTON. WHEREVER THAT IS.
PUTTING BEDS TO BED
Great excitement in Slip End, home of my last GBG tick for Bedfordshire, a county whose seething resentment at its absence from my Top 10 was evident on my visit. Yes, a new grass cutting contract for this small village known locally as “that place just off the M1 you can’t actually get to“. A… Continue reading PUTTING BEDS TO BED
THE SHEFFORD COLLECTION
More local-ish ramblings for you before the GBG drop on the 29th. No inference should be drawn about anything, EVER. Shefford is famous for two things. Firstly, in 2015 BRAPA visited during his Bedfordshire Reign of Terror, and this report on his embryonic blog is delightfully descriptive of a chance meeting with Everton title winner… Continue reading THE SHEFFORD COLLECTION
LAUGHING ALL THE WAY TO BIGGLESWADE
More saving pubs outside the GBG, this time aided by trusted Covid data expert and J20 connoisseur James. With my Mum on the mend (thanks for your kind words) but under watch I’ve committed to stay in “the county“. Let’s not argue about boundaries, folks. I was JUST over the Beds border when the ambulance… Continue reading LAUGHING ALL THE WAY TO BIGGLESWADE
THE GBG PILGRIM’S PROGRESS TO PAVENHAM
“Oh deep joy, another Bedfordshire pub” said no-one ever. But this was my last one (see lovely pinked page 36 above) from a meagre four newbies, none of which will have BRAPA wishing he’d returned to Beds this year. But Pavenham has it’s merits. A few miles north of the county town, in the… Continue reading THE GBG PILGRIM’S PROGRESS TO PAVENHAM
OOH TO BE AH, GBG TICKER
Due to public demand I’m using the extra hour to bring you a bonus post from the home of ’80s musical giants Kajagoogoo. They lost their googoo for a while in the mid-80s. Don’t we all. There’s a tribute to the boys in Leighton Buzzard town centre, but really it’s the stunning pub stock that… Continue reading OOH TO BE AH, GBG TICKER
STOTFOLD – STILL CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS
Sometimes I have to go to a plain pub with plain people in a plain village and give you nothing except the joy of knowing that I’m one tiny step closer to completing the Guide. But the real point of ticking is discovering or re-discovering the gems of the UK. Like Stotfold in beautiful Bedfordshire*.… Continue reading STOTFOLD – STILL CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS
THE BALD BUZZARD LIFTS LEIGHTON EVEN HIGHER
I doubt anyone took notice when I rated Leighton Buzzard my pub town of 2015. Nothing in Bedfordshire can be that good ? As BRAPA has discovered, the county has some gems, and any pub you fall asleep in is clearly worthy of merit. You’ll notice I visited a month after Simon but managed to hold my drink. Just… Continue reading THE BALD BUZZARD LIFTS LEIGHTON EVEN HIGHER
ESCAPING HENLOW HEALTH FARM
Bedfordshire isn’t a hotbed of craft, or cask beer. But it does have at least three classic drinkers pubs. The fact that two of them serve immaculate Draught Bass is totally coincidental. I’ll be revisiting Bedford’s Wellington, and Leighton Buzzard’s Black Lion in the near future. The Buzzard pub crawl may well rival Nuneaton and… Continue reading ESCAPING HENLOW HEALTH FARM