To the bridge ! First stop here for a decade, and it was good to see the Friday evening daytrippers out in decent numbers, drawn by free parking and Holdens Bitter. Not quite the honeypot of Bewdley or Bilston, but there’s little better than a stroll over the Iron Bridge. And back again. Takes,… Continue reading BLACK SHEEP ON THE IRON BRIDGE
Tag: Black Sheep
LORD HAWES HAWES
Just had 5 pints and a curry in Seaham. Don’t expect miracles. Let’s start this Hawes thing. My spreadsheet insists I’ve been to Hawes before. Grief, it’s the home of Wallace and Gromit, craft cheese makers extraordinaire. 2 new Guide pubs, and a chance to assess whether folk are rushing back to pubs. They were,… Continue reading LORD HAWES HAWES
THE HALF MOON – FIGHTING BACK
I’m sorry this post pops out long after the lovely Ali has brought her cover versions of Fairport Convention classics to the Half Moon. You can still catch Dean Friedman, though. Pub Number 8 was a lung-busting five minutes out of town, and only inserted in the itnerary at my insistence. It was the Pub… Continue reading THE HALF MOON – FIGHTING BACK
“Hiya John”
Onto my last East Yorkshire GBG tick for the year, and a lovely sight on Page 525 it makes. Eight new entries, 20% of the total, and one new classic with the Board Inn joining the Dog & Duck, Nellies, Whalebone, New Adelphi Club & the Jemmy Hirst in my Top 100 pubs. Not bad.… Continue reading “Hiya John”
RICHMOND REVELATIONS
No. not that Richmond. I need trauma counselling after a trip there. This is the real one, home (well, close) to a recent CAMRA Pub of the Year and generally considered one of our great towns. Now, that is a beautiful bit of Ordnance Survey, but I’d never quite got it, till last week.… Continue reading RICHMOND REVELATIONS
MY FIRST GBG PUB IN N11
You think you’ve had a bad day. I’ve just had a row with my barber about the pointlessness of Christmas Day. While he was cutting my hair*. Just glad I didn’t tell him there’s no Father Christmas (sorry, Pauline). Anyway, more London pubs for you in places you’ve never heard of and will never… Continue reading MY FIRST GBG PUB IN N11
ONE BEER IS ALL YOU NEED
I nearly forgot the Peacock at Tanfield Village, which is surprising given the cars I had to dodge on the half hour walk from the WMC to the posh bit of Tanfield and the care I spent setting up the photo above. A great green walk past industrial estates, sewage works and Shaft (dis), which… Continue reading ONE BEER IS ALL YOU NEED
“THE SMALLEST PUB IN BRITAIN”
There really was no earthly reason to finish my Southport night at the Lakeside Inn, but at sunset the lake looked magical. I’ve included Bog Hole and The Bog Breast on the OS map for the enjoyment of Russ, who this blog is missing a lot. There was no reason to visit the Inn. I’ve… Continue reading “THE SMALLEST PUB IN BRITAIN”
BLACK SHEEP WINS BATTLE OF CUTTHORPE
Chesterfield is one of our great pub towns, but the hills to the west have been strangely bereft of GBG pubs over the years. The Gate is your archetypal traditional rural pub, and a pleasure to have in the Guide. Just when you’re thinking GBG status is all about sticking a homebrew pump on the… Continue reading BLACK SHEEP WINS BATTLE OF CUTTHORPE
A SLIEMA WANDERER
Duncan will know all about the strange allure of foreign football team names from your youth. Jeunesse D’esche, Nancy, Grasshopper, Shepshed Charterhouse… I’d always wanted to visit the home of Sliema Wanderers, the biggest team in Malta back in the ’70s, and now home to most of the island’s “beer scene” according to local expert… Continue reading A SLIEMA WANDERER
