Showing posts with label Pub. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pub. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

New Adventure Golf course at The Railway Inn in Westerfield

The Railway Inn in Westerfield, near Ipswich, Suffolk is home to a new Adventure Golf course.


The Railway Inn in Westerfield, near Ipswich, Suffolk is home to a new Adventure Golf course

The course is planned to open on Friday 29th March.

Check out The Railway Inn's website and Facebook Page for more information on the 9-hole outdoor pub beer garden adventure golf course.


It'll be a new course for us to check out on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour when we're back in Ipswich.

Friday, March 22, 2024

Container Golf at Ffolkes

A visit to the Container Golf course at the Ffolkes Pub and Hotel in King's Lynn, Norfolk.


Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

My brother Christopher, a charter member of the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, and his family recently stayed at the Ffolkes Pub and Hotel in King's Lynn, Norfolk. While there they played the 9-hole Container Golf course.

Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

Check out the Ffolkes website for more information on the Container Golf adventure golf course.


Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

We've now visited a combined total of 1,091 courses on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Container Golf at Ffolkes in King's Lynn. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, March 2024

Saturday, February 24, 2024

Crazy Golf at The Friars Head at Akebar

The Friars Head pub at Akebar in Wensleydale, North Yorkshire has a free-to-play Crazy Golf course.


The Friars Head pub at Akebar in Wensleydale, North Yorkshire has a free-to-play Crazy Golf course

The Friars Head pub at Akebar is reopening on the 1st March and there's a free-to-play Crazy Golf course at the venue.

It'll be a new course for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Check out The Friars Head website for more information.

Sunday, February 18, 2024

Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon

A look at Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon, USA.


Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon. Photo by Kevin Moseley, September 2023

A big thank you to my friend - and minigolf team-mate and rival - Kevin Moseley for sending over these photos from his visit to the Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon, USA.

Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon. Photo by Kevin Moseley, September 2023

It looks like a fun place to play.

Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon. Photo by Kevin Moseley, September 2023

I like the look of the Birdie Shuffle Putt game too. I've not played that before.

Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon. Photo by Kevin Moseley, September 2023

Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon. Photo by Kevin Moseley, September 2023

It's brilliant seeing different courses around the world. Oregon is still on my to visit list and hopefully I'll get a game on the mini golf at shuffle putt at Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in the future.

Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon. Photo by Kevin Moseley, September 2023

Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon. Photo by Kevin Moseley, September 2023

Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon. Photo by Kevin Moseley, September 2023

Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon. Photo by Kevin Moseley, September 2023

Check out the Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf website for more information.


Birdie Time Pub and Mini Golf in Portland, Oregon. Photo by Kevin Moseley, September 2023

Saturday, April 01, 2023

Pubs of Stockport during the coronavirus pandemic

A look at Stopfordian Pubs.

Three years ago today we photographed The Kings Tap on Station Road in Cheadle Hulme. It became the first of 265 pubs, bars and clubs we visited in the borough between April and the 4th of July when the first lockdown ended.

Pub number 1 - The Kings Tap on Station Road in Cheadle Hulme. A lovely Art Deco building. We'd never seen it shuttered before the lockdown
Pub number 1 - The Kings Tap on Station Road in Cheadle Hulme. A lovely Art Deco building. We'd never seen it shuttered before the lockdown

We visited each of the pubs while on our daily outdoor exercise between Wednesday 1st April and before pubs were allowed to reopen with social distancing measures on Saturday 4th July.

It gave us something to do during the lockdowns and it was interesting to see the variety of architecture, different signage, parts of the town we haven't been to for a long time and other parts of the area we've never been to. I documented the pubs on Instagram using the #StopfordianPubs tag.

At the 265th pub on our lockdown 'pub crawl'. Not a drop was drunk on our daily walks in April, May, June and July
At the 265th pub on our lockdown 'pub crawl'. Not a drop was drunk on our daily walks in April, May, June and July

Saturday, June 11, 2022

Making it a Blockbusters NQ night

Drinking in a video store.


Blockbusters NQ in Manchester

We finally made it to Blockbusters NQ in Manchester last Thursday.

Blockbusters NQ in Manchester
Not a video store

It was nice to have a drink in a 'video shop' speakeasy.

Blockbusters NQ in Manchester
It was nice to be on the INSIDE of a new bar for a change!

We first heard about the nostalgia-inducing video rental shop bar last November and have been looking forward to stepping inside since we first saw it.

Blockbusters NQ in Manchester
BE KIND
REWIND

The theming is really well done and the bar had a chilled atmosphere. It's worth a visit.

Blockbusters NQ in Manchester
An eclectic selection

Blockbusters NQ in Manchester
You can never have enough copies of True Lies. I prefer the Laserdisc edition myself

Most of the videos are retail ones rather than ex-rental tapes, but there are some big box treats to find lurking on the shelves.

Blockbusters NQ in Manchester
A look at the cocktail menu and one of the big box ex-rental Blockbuster Video tapes I found on the shelves

Blockbusters NQ in Manchester
The Chase is the best bit of Midnight Express

Blockbusters NQ in Manchester
This big box ex-rental tape is from a Video Box Office store.Video Box Office was the Business to Business part of ChoicesUK and launched in the UK in 1985 when the brand offered video rental services via third-party convenience stores. As the popularity of physical media rentals declined in the late noughties 59 ChoicesUK shops were taken over and rebranded as Blockbuster stores! We found an old Video Box Office presence inside a Happy Shopper in Ilkeston, Derby in 2020

Blockbusters NQ in Manchester
PLEASE REWIND

Check out the Blockbusters NQ website for more information and opening times.


Blockbuster Video

We're big fans of video, videos stores, retail history and retro stuff and have been visiting and documenting the last remaining traces of the Blockbuster brand in the UK over the last few years. We've seen a number of the brand's shopfronts, signs and QuikDrop boxes. As well as some other video shops.


Blockbuster Video at Fallowfield Retail Park in Manchester, June 2020
Blockbuster Video at Fallowfield Retail Park in Manchester, June 2020

Blockbuster Video Stores

The first Blockbuster Video store opened in Dallas, Texas, USA in 1985.

At its peak in 2004 there were more than 9,000 stores around the world. 500+ of which were in the UK.

Blockbuster ceased operations in the UK in December 2013. At the start of that year there were 528 Blockbuster locations in the UK. The number dwindled until October when only 264 shops remained. The remaining stores closed on the 16th December.

There is now just one Blockbuster Video store left open. It's in Bend, Oregon, USA.

However, the UK's high streets, shopping precincts, malls and retail parks still hold traces of the brand. And we've been to most of them!

We've now visited 28 former Blockbuster Video stores since we found the remains of the Fallowfield shop.

Thursday, May 26, 2022

Mini Golf at the Farm House Pub in Ixia, Rhodes, Greece

A look at the Mini Golf course at the Farm House Pub in Ixia, Rhodes, Greece.


Mini Golf at the Farm House Pub in Ixia, Rhodes, Greece. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, May 2022


My brother and his family recently spotted the Mini Golf course at the Farm House Pub in Ixia, Rhodes, Greece.

Mini Golf at the Farm House Pub in Ixia, Rhodes, Greece. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, May 2022

The layout became the 1,031st visited on our overall Crazy World of Minigolf Tour!
 
Mini Golf at the Farm House Pub in Ixia, Rhodes, Greece. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, May 2022

Friday, May 06, 2022

Crazy Golf at The Lion by Olivers in Brinsley, Nottinghamshire

There's a new pub Crazy Golf course at The Lion by Olivers in Brinsley, Nottinghamshire.


There's a new pub Crazy Golf course at The Lion by Olivers in Brinsley, Nottinghamhire

Check out The Lion by Olivers website and social media for further details on the 9-hole Crazy Golf course.


It's another new course for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

While the course is outdoors, the pub adds UV lighting so players can putt in the dark. It sounds ace.

Thursday, December 23, 2021

15 years ago today

A look back at the 10th course played on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.


We visited the 10th course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour on this day in 2006. On a bitterly cold 23rd December 2006 Emily, Christopher and I headed along to the Horse and Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire to have a game on their beer garden Crazy Golf course.

And what a course it was - we'd not seen anything like it before. And we haven't seen anything quite like it since!

Crazy Golf at the Horse and Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire - December 2006
Crazy Golf at the Horse and Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire - December 2006

We revisited the course in April 2011 and while it was a bit drier, it was still a very mossy layout.

Crazy Golf at the Horse and Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire - April 2011
Crazy Golf at the Horse and Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire - April 2011

Little did we know back then that our interest in crazy golf would become an obsession and that we'd visit 982 courses in the last 15 years.

Sunday, November 21, 2021

Blockbusters NQ in Manchester

A new video shop-themed bar is opening in Manchester's Northern Quarter.


BLOCKBUSTERS NQ - a video shop-themed bar in Manchester's Northern Quarter
A new sight to see on Oldham Street

We were excited to hear that a new video store-themed bar is opening up in the Northern Quarter in Manchester city centre.

So we had to go along for a look.

Blockbusters NQ can be found on Oldham Street and according to the signs on the windows it is COMING SOON.

BLOCKBUSTERS NQ - a video shop-themed bar in Manchester's Northern Quarter
BLOCKBUSTERS NQ - COMING SOON

We're looking forward to checking it out when it opens.

BLOCKBUSTERS NQ - a video shop-themed bar in Manchester's Northern Quarter
The walls and counter of the bar look brilliant already - we can't wait to see what it'll look like when the installation is completed

Blockbuster Video

We're big fans of video, videos stores, retail history and retro stuff and have been visiting and documenting the last remaining traces of the Blockbuster brand in the UK over the last few years. We've seen a number of the brand's shopfronts, signs and QuikDrop boxes. As well as some other video shops.

The first of the old Blockbuster locations we found was also in Manchester, just up the road from us at Fallowfield Retail Park.

Speakeasies

Blockbusters NQ looks like a cool and nostalgic speakeasy and while we were taking a look at the store the signs were getting some interest from passers-by.

It'll be a fun new speakeasy for us to visit when it opens.

BLOCKBUSTERS NQ - a video shop-themed bar in Manchester's Northern Quarter
It'll be great to see what the full signage will look like

Find out more

Give the Blockbusters NQ Instagram account a follow for more information on the bar.

Wednesday, August 04, 2021

Camden Town Brewery's Brewmaster's Open

A look back at The Brewmaster's Open miniature golf competition at the Camden Town Brewery in London.


The Brewmaster's Open miniature golf competition at the Camden Town Brewery in London
Ready to tee-off

We competed in The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery nine years ago today. It was part of 2012's brilliant summer of sport in the capital.

The Brewmaster's Open miniature golf competition at the Camden Town Brewery in London
Some superb crazy golf beer mat scorecards

It's still one of the best settings for a pop-up minigolf course we've seen on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

The Brewmaster's Open miniature golf competition at the Camden Town Brewery in London
What a course!

The layout was the 302nd played on our travels.

The Brewmaster's Open miniature golf competition at the Camden Town Brewery in London
In action as tournament winner Alan Norman looks on

The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery was a marvellous event played on a portable 5-hole minigolf course from UrbanCrazy. More than 200 players competed in the tournament. And I made it onto the podium!

The Brewmaster's Open miniature golf competition at the Camden Town Brewery in London
The scores

Friday, April 16, 2021

Crazy Golf at the Horse & Groom pub in Ningwood on the Isle of Wight

A look at the Crazy Golf course at the Horse & Groom pub in Ningwood on the Isle of Wight.


Horse and Groom pub Crazy Golf in Ningwood on the Isle of Wight. Photo by Matt Dodd, July 2020

My friend and minigolf rival Matt Dodd found this Crazy Golf course at the Horse & Groom Pub in Ningwood on the Isle of Wight last summer.

Horse and Groom pub Crazy Golf in Ningwood on the Isle of Wight. Photo by Matt Dodd, July 2020

Visit the Horse & Groom pub's website for more information.


I'm looking forward to my next visit to the Isle of Wight and a game on the unique pub crazy golf course.

Tuesday, November 10, 2020

The Arden Arms in Bredbury, Stockport

Erratum - we missed a pub on our lockdown pub crawl of Stockport Borough.

We visited 265 pubs, bars and clubs during the national lockdown between April and July of this year. Some of those places were long established, others were new venues, a few were getting ready to open for the first time in 2020, while a number of others were lost pubs.

One of the pubs we missed during the first lockdown was the Arden Arms at Bredbury!

The Arden Arms in Bredbury, Stockport
The Arden Arms in Bredbury

We knew there was an Arden Arms in the town centre (pub #51), but as the Bredbury location is right on the border with Denton in Tameside it completely slipped off our radar.

The Arden Arms in Bredbury, Stockport
The sign of pub #266 on our travels 

We rectified the matter on Saturday though as we took our day's outdoor exercise at Hulmes Wood and walked back across the border into Stockport to snap the Arden Arms.

The Arden Arms in Bredbury, Stockport
Approaching Stockport from Tameside

The Arden Arms in Bredbury, Stockport
Right on the border

The Arden Arms in Bredbury, Stockport
Looking back towards Tameside

Related blog posts:

Tuesday, October 06, 2020

Pubs of Stockport

Check out the interview in The Viaduct magazine about our mission to visit every pub, club and bar in Stockport during lockdown this year.

The Kings Tap in Cheadle Hulme
The first pub we visited - The Kings Tap in Cheadle Hulme

The Crown Inn in Stockport town centre
Pub number 73 - The Crown Inn in Stockport town centre with the viaduct behind it

The Nursery Inn in Heaton Norris
Pub number 265 - The Nursery Inn in Heaton Norris

Tuesday, September 08, 2020

Crazy Golf at The Beaver Inn, Appledore, Devon

There's a Crazy Golf course at The Beaver Inn, Appledore, Devon.


Many thanks to my friend and minigolf rival Alan 'Storming' Norman for sending over these photos of the Crazy Golf course at The Beaver Inn in Appledore, Devon.

Crazy Golf at The Beaver Inn, Appledore, Devon. Photo by Alan Norman, September 2020

It looks like a very nice layout and one we've added to our To Play list when we're next down that way on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.


It's always fun finding minigolf courses in pub beer gardens.

Visit The Beaver Inn website for more information.


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Tuesday, August 04, 2020

The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London

A look back at The Brewmaster's Open minigolf tournament at the Camden Town Brewery in London.


The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London

We competed in The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery eight years ago today. It was part of the brilliant summer of sport in the capital.

The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London
Ready to compete

It was a superb event played on a portable 5-hole minigolf course from UrbanCrazy set up in a brewery! More than 200 players competed in the tournament.

The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London
Playing hole 1

The scorecards were some of the best I've ever seen.

Scorecard from The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London
Beermat scorecards!

It was a marvellous day out.

Minigolfers at The Brewmaster's Open tournament at the Camden Town Brewery
Taking a 'refreshment break' at the Camden Town Brewery during The Brewmaster's Open tournament

Christopher Gottfried playing in The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London as Emily and Simon Hall look on
Christopher Gottfried playing in The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London as Emily and Simon Hall look on
  
The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London
Hole 1

The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London
Inside the brewery miniature golf course

The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London
Alan Norman teeing-off the competition

Alan 'Stormin' Norman won The Brewmaster's Open with his round of 8. I finished in tied 2nd place alongside Seth Thomas.

The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London
The podium - me, Alan Norman and Seth Thomas

The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London
The leaderboard

We also played our own three-round tournament, you can read about it in my blog post Mini Golf at the Camden Town Brewery in London.

The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London
In action

Check out the Camden Town Brewery website.

Camden Town Brewery in London

Visit UrbanCrazy's website for more info on portable putting courses.

Crazy Golf at the Camden Town Brewery in London

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