The oddest thing. I seem to have lost a few photos from a couple of weeks ago in Hereford. Perhaps they’ll turn up in 2021 and I’ll wonder what they are. Not to worry. I still have the photo of Duncan on his bike admiring the Cathedral while completing the Guide in 1977; As you’ll… Continue reading HEREFORD : NO BULL
Tag: Wye Valley
OLD BOYOS IN THE OLDEST PUB IN WALES
Yes, Ushers. You don’t see that heading a post much these days, d’ya ?* A hefty walk along Offa’s Dyke, for once not too muddy, takes you towards the Skirrid Inn, supposedly even older than the debate about baps v cobs. Rather like the Royal Standard in Bucks or the Fighting Cocks, this is… Continue reading OLD BOYOS IN THE OLDEST PUB IN WALES
TOP 100 PUBS – BARRELS, HEREFORD
Yes, No.288 in my Top 100 series. So sue me. A third visit here in ten years, and heaving every time. Given what I wrote last time about how quiet Hereford was on Thursday night, that probably says it all. To be honest, it was never a good idea to finish at Barrels, after two… Continue reading TOP 100 PUBS – BARRELS, HEREFORD
T’OTHER BARNSLEY
Doyen of countless Good Pub Guides, Times Supplements and Pashmina Yearly editions over many decades, the Village Pub finally graces the only book that matters to tickers. So at last I get a trip to the other Barnsley. It’s pleasant, without being an essential stop for those touring the honeypots of north Swindon. The Barnsley… Continue reading T’OTHER BARNSLEY
BEERS OVER THE RIVER WYE
One of our great scenic areas, though we share it with the Welsh, is the Wye Valley. Beloved of Guardian readers and real people alike, it seems surprisingly down-to-earth, with amusement parks at Symonds Yat and relatively unpretentious pubs on both sides of the border (e.g. the Boat at Penallt, which I really ought to… Continue reading BEERS OVER THE RIVER WYE
STOURPORT – JEWEL ON THE SEVERN
Stourport is one of Worcestershire’s oddities, a “fun” town by the Severn without the Georgian elegance of nearby Bewdley. It’s more of an inland Felixstowe than a Southwold, but just as worthy of a visit. When we first visited the town from our Clows Top B&B 20 years ago, that giant permanent funfair looked out of place in… Continue reading STOURPORT – JEWEL ON THE SEVERN
WEDNESBURY – GREAT SCRATCHINGS
I completed the current year’s Beer Guide entries in Wednesbury, possibly the least-well known of the Black Country towns, though with the same beautiful accent to the fore. This is the evidence of completion. Note that Simon Everitt uses yellow Stabilo Boss markers, which is just as well as I bought up the global stock of… Continue reading WEDNESBURY – GREAT SCRATCHINGS
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