One of the last buses out of dodge

Stockport bus station closes at the end of today, Sunday 29th August 2021.

Work will then begin on a new bus station as well as other developments in this area.

We saw this old orange Manchester bus on its Stockport Bus Station Special Farewell Tour in the town centre yesterday.

An old orange Manchester SELNEC bus on a Farewell to Stockport Bus Station Tour

Videos of the area before the closure

A view of Stockport bus station - as well as the Hat Museum and Viaduct. Filmed the day before the bus station closed.

A view of Stockport bus station - as well as the Stockport Plaza, Wellington Road South (A6), the Hat Museum, Viaduct and Merseyway shopping centre. Filmed the day before the bus station closed.

Social distancing and Covid-19 signs

Have you seen any particularly good, bad, or downright ugly social distancing signage during the pandemic?

I think the signs at Stockport bus station are nice and clear.

It's going to be interesting to see how social distancing signs change and develop over time and as more places reopen.

Recording the signs

I've been snapping signs I see during my daily outdoor exercise and logging them on Instagram.

Social distancing minigolf

The first social distancing signs at a miniature golf course we've seen in person were at Bruntwood Park's Pitch & Putt course last month.

The SEGA Bus

Hopping aboard the SEGA Mega Drive Mini Bus in Manchester.

Last week I heard that the SEGA Bus was hitting the road again!

The SEGA Game Bus on Market Street in Manchester

My brothers and I went on one (a lot) when it stopped off at Barry Island Holiday Camp in the early 90s.

It was such a fun thing to do and I remember we played challenge games of Sonic the Hedgehog for prizes as well as receiving goody bags for visiting. Once we left the bus we immediately joined the queue to get on board for another game of Sonic on the Mega Drive.

The 2019 SEGA Game Bus

The version of the double decker bus that called in to Manchester on it's week-long tour housed a number of the new SEGA Mega Drive Mini consoles and allowed players to have a go on the system's 42 games. I played Road Rash II, Darius and Street Fighter II: Special Champion Edition.

Playing Darius on the SEGA Mega Drive Mini

I hope it isn't another 28 years before I go on another SEGA Bus. The year 2047 is AGES away.

New indoor Adventure Golf course in Edinburgh

There's a new Volcano Falls indoor Adventure Golf course in Edinburgh.

While on holiday in Edinburgh Emily spotted this bit of bus advertising about the new Volcano Falls indoor Adventure Golf course that has opened at Fountain Park in Edinburgh.

As part of the launch activity the course ran a Spot the Bus promotion

We've played the Volcano Falls course at Xscape in Castleford on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

A new bus shelter in Stockport

My mate and minigolf rival Steve 'Le Velle' Lovell recently tagged me in a Stockport bus stop-related post on the Angry People in Local Newspapers Facebook page and asked if there was "any chance you could do a Ham and Egger piece on this...".

Well, yes. Yes there is.

I recognised the spot where the bus stop shelter should be straight away. It's on Edgeley Road, near St Lesmo Road, and we play pétanque just up the road from it at Alexandra Park in Edgeley.

On a recent drive up the road I noticed that JCDecaux have replaced the shelter.

The new bus shelter on Edgeley Road in Stockport

All's well that ends well.

A while back I noticed a sign on a lamppost that said the area used to have a tram line running through it

Related blog posts:
- Stockport
- Bus
- Steve Lovell

London, an Old Routemaster Bus, Crazy Golf and Bar Billiards

A blog post about a Bus on a Minigolf course. And Bar Billiards!

Reading the excellent website about London - Londonist - I spotted a story about new uses for old buses - "Recycled Routemasters: New Uses For Old Busses". One of the photos showed an old Routemaster Bus on the 9-hole Crazy Golf course at Rocks Lane Multi Sports Centre in Chiswick, London.

I visited this course in April 2011 when it became the 214th played on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

The old Bus at Rocks Lane Multi Sports Centre in Turnham Green, Chiswick

Re-reading my blog post I noticed that the second hole at the course is called 'Bar Billiards'! This dog-leg right-hand hole doesn't look like any Bar Billiards table I've seen before, or played recently, but more like a right-angled Pool/Billiards table!

The 'Bar Billiards' second hole

Blog Links:

- Minigolf and Crazy Golf in and around London

- The Crazy World of Minigolf Tour List

- Crazy Golf in Chiswick, London

- Bar Billiards Blog Posts

- On The Buses Event - 40th Anniversary of the First On The Buses film

- Revisit and Replay of the Windmill Theatre Indoor Adventure Golf Course in Great Yarmouth

Links:

- Londonist

- Londonist - "Recycled Routemasters: New Uses For Old Busses"

- Rocks Lane Multi Sports Centre

Course Played #36 Margate (Palm Bay Café) Cliftonville - Crazy Golf on Grass - Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

On the 14th September 2007 while travelling back to Margate from Broadstairs we spotted what appeared to be Crazy Golf obstacles on a Grass Putting area in Cliftonville, Margate, Kent.

And at the Palm Bay Café we did indeed find a quite unique Minigolf layout.


























Links to other course visits on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.