“Are we in Preston yet ?” said the excited boy to his mum as the train passed Garstang, which really deserves its own stop now it’s got a new Guide entry. It was understandable that the young lad was in a state of frenzy as we pulled into the City of Dreams, even in the… Continue reading WARMING UP IN PROUD PRESTON
Tag: Pedigree
WARE NOT KEEN-WA TO SERVE ME PEDI
Moaning done, it’s back to the new Beer Guide, and a bit of a curate’s egg* in Ware. You know Ware, one of east Hertfordshire’s gems. Like Baldock, Ware has been bypassed into a quiet life providing sustenance for retired gentlefolk visiting garden centres and parents who want their children to speak Latin. Great parish… Continue reading WARE NOT KEEN-WA TO SERVE ME PEDI
TOP 10 BASIC PUBS – THE STAMFORD & WARRINGTON HOTEL, COALVILLE
Well, I can wait no longer for BeerMat to claim the scoop. Here’s the evidence that Coalville has one of the world’s great basic pubs. And it may be on that silly National Heritage Inventory, but you’ve never heard of it (prove me wrong). I very nearly didn’t make it to meet BeerMat there at… Continue reading TOP 10 BASIC PUBS – THE STAMFORD & WARRINGTON HOTEL, COALVILLE
BRING ME SUNSHINE
The night before the ferry to the Isle of Man, and a chance to finish my most northern Lancashire ticks, leaving just the scary ones near Matthew Lawrenson to do. Onto Morecambe, one of our most ridiculed of resorts. Ridiculed by people who’ve never been, just like Stockport. You can get a room along the… Continue reading BRING ME SUNSHINE
IT’S A TUFF(NELL PARK) LIFE
Would you Adam and Eve it. Two pints of Pedigree in two days, and in Cambridgeshire and North That London, not Derby. Is this a comeback for Marston’s second finest ? This one came, rather unexpectedly, after I’d been summoned by youngest son Matt to meet him at Boston Music Rooms in Tuffnell Park. Apparently,… Continue reading IT’S A TUFF(NELL PARK) LIFE
STILL LIFE IN PEDIGREE
The Bass love-in continues apace, I’m pleased to see, but I’d hate to see Pedigree written off prematurely. Perhaps even more than Bass, it needs care, and a bit of time. So I’m going to plug good pints of Pedi wherever I find them. Even outside Derby and Staffs, which sounds like sacrilege. As the… Continue reading STILL LIFE IN PEDIGREE
SOLIHULL PART II – HALTIN’ IN OLTON
I suspect I won’t be getting the honorarium as east Brum’s Tourism Ambassador (that’s Ian Clarkson’s gig anyway), but I do have some highlights from Hours 3-4 of my walk that at least keep Solihull above Maidenhead on my UK Town League Ladders (I’m using the ones from 1980 Shoot ! for this purpose). My… Continue reading SOLIHULL PART II – HALTIN’ IN OLTON
CAMBOURNE – NEW TOWN, OLD PROBLEMS
Well, not technically a town yet, but (Cambridge’s) Cambourne has that feel already. Best known for hosting the only Morrisons for miles (and therefore having the best cakes), it’s a curates egg of a place. 10,000 people, 1 chippy, 1 Indian restaurant, 1 supermarket, 1 large church and 1 “pub”. And no train station… Continue reading CAMBOURNE – NEW TOWN, OLD PROBLEMS
OXFORD CHEQUERS – A PURE PEDIGREE
Pub No.2 for the Taylors and the Tim was the Chequers, one of only a few real Oxford classics (in my humble opinion). Look, it even says “Historic Pub” on the door ! With cobbled courtyard, breweriana and proper pub sign, the Chequers was an instant highlight (again). Mrs RM was reminded of the… Continue reading OXFORD CHEQUERS – A PURE PEDIGREE
STRAIGHT OR HANDLE ? SPARKLED OR FLAT ?
Yes, life’s big questions. Apart from “Was that referee at Stamford Bridge last night really Delia Smith in disguise“. Today I say “Thank you, Derby CAMRA” for picking GBG pubs on the basis of beer quality, and giving us the White Swan in Littleover. a village-cum-suburb that BeerMat brings us regular reports from. It looks… Continue reading STRAIGHT OR HANDLE ? SPARKLED OR FLAT ?
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