August 2026. Wombwell. Greater Barnsley. “You’re weird” says Mrs RM, which I’m taking as a compliment. A week after that foreign holiday in Wales, I’d barely left Sheffield. At Dad’s care home this afternoon, the lovely staff note my absence from Waterbeach for a couple of weeks* and I feel guilty. By Thursday, my brain… Continue reading A WOMBWELL WOBBLE
Tag: Pubs
TICKING THE TICKERS IN CARDIFF
August 2026. Cardiff. Well, it was a decent display of pyrotechnics at the Charity Shield, but another damp squib of a City performance against the Gooners, and NO, I didn’t stay for the presentation. But at least I stayed for the final whistle, and still found myself half a mile from the Principality within 15… Continue reading TICKING THE TICKERS IN CARDIFF
ROSS OR (D)ROSS ?
August 2026. Ross-on-Wye. Surely you’ve caught up on the blog after subjecting us to a torrent of posts, Retired Martin ? Er, no. Last weekend saw a third big trip of the week (nothing compared to the real ticker who cross continents on a daily basis) as we headed down to Cardiff for the traditional… Continue reading ROSS OR (D)ROSS ?
A SAWTRY REDEMPTION
August 2026. Sawtry. Near Huntingdon. This was the view from our motel window last Saturday, near the lowest pub in the country*. Redwings Lodge, on the B1043 (Ermine Street) alongside the A1(M) at Sawtry, was the only place (well) under a hundred quid we could stay near Dad last Saturday night. This weekend is actually… Continue reading A SAWTRY REDEMPTION
TOP 100 PUBS – BROAD CHARE, NEWCASTLE
July 2026. Newcastle. Not even lunchtime as I leave the Free Trade for the walk through Ouseburn back into Toon. Actually, it’s a rare walk along a dried up river (I never knew that watercourse was actually called the Ouseburn till today), my first look at this Newcastle cultural highlight since a Julia Jacklin gig… Continue reading TOP 100 PUBS – BROAD CHARE, NEWCASTLE
“Back to Crammy”
July 2026. Cramlington. Northumberland. When you say “Northumberland” these days you think Harry Potter, posh Cambridgeshire families at the beach, and a small island covered in bird muck. But there’s an awful lot of old mining towns before you get there, I can tell you. I spent ages getting ChatGPT to work out the best… Continue reading “Back to Crammy”
A ROTHERHAM DAY
July 2026. Rotherham. Visiting Dad yesterday a long-term aquaintance said to me “You must enjoy sitting around relaxing at home“. I was speechless. I’m aware some folk do like spending time at home, but 4 years after completing the Beer Guide I’m still not one of them. More than a day in Sheffield and I… Continue reading A ROTHERHAM DAY
TOO HOT FOR PUB GARDENS, TOO HOT FOR CASK ?
July 2026. Sheffield. It’s that time of year again, when local newspapers, even the subscription ones without clickbait, send reporters out to find your city’s top beer gardens, and invite comments from folk who like to reminisce about “The Good Old Days“. I subscribe to Sheffield’s Tribune, which has good if often grim journalism, and… Continue reading TOO HOT FOR PUB GARDENS, TOO HOT FOR CASK ?
LITTLE MESTERS
June 2026. Sheffield. From the Park Hill flats we followed the path of the tram toward town, with the UK’s scruffiest tourist sign at the Park Square roundabout. Much of central Sheffield has been modernised beyond recognition in recent years; heck, we’ve even got a Pret a Manger* ! There’s a big building site where… Continue reading LITTLE MESTERS
STANDING AT THE BAR
May 2026. North Yorkshire. There’s been a lot of Yorkshire on this blog this year. I won’t apologise; Yorkshiremen never apologise (I assume, having listeded to Geoffrey Boycott on Test Match Special all those years). Am I a Yorkshireman yet ? This year’s “pub just outside Northallerton” is one of those that will split opinion,… Continue reading STANDING AT THE BAR
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