Santa's Rest Stop in Cheadle Village

Spotting Santa taking a break in Cheadle Village, Stockport.

We spotted this fun piece of seasonal window art at Marine Bathrooms on the High Street in Cheadle Village earlier this week! Very festive.

Link:

• Marine Bathrooms

Related blog posts:

• Santa Claus
• Father Christmas
• Toilets
• Cheadle

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury, Greater Manchester

There's Crazy Golf at HUKD Golf in Bury.

We were in Bury earlier this week and although we didn't have time for a game this time we did swing by the HUKD Golf location in the town centre.

HUKD Golf in Bury is home to two indoor 9-hole crazy golf courses. One is sports-themed, while the other is circus-themed.

Our friend Pete Campbell played at the venue last year and sent us snaps for this guest blog post.

HUKD Golf sports-themed crazy golf course in Bury

Find out more.

Check out the HUKD Golf website for more information.

Link:

• HUKD Golf

Related blog posts:

• HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury, Greater Manchester
• Bury

Live, Laugh, Loft Social in Stockport

Loft Social - a new competitive socialising venue - is open in Stockport town centre.

We spotted this new sign for the venue today

Loft Social is home to indoor archery, curling, deck shuffle and pétanque, and can be found on the 3rd Floor of The Courts (above Sports Direct near the market place).

Playing Pétanque.

We're big fans of Pétanque so it's interesting to know there's a place to play in Stockport.

Find out more.

Check out Loft Social's Facebook Page for more information.

Related blog posts:

• Loft Social
• Stockport
• Petanque
• Competitive Socialising

Competitive socialising spots in Manchester

A look at places to play a range of competitive socialising games and activities in Manchester city centre.

Looking for fun places to play some games in Manchester, then read on...

While minigolf is the main game we play, we're big fans of a wide-range of what are now termed 'competitive socialising' activities.

And luckily for us, Manchester city centre has a brilliant variety of different places to play.

The landscape of competitive socialising venues is constantly changing, with locations opening, closing, and being refurbished, while others expand or change the activities available entirely.

That said, please do check with the venue in advance to make sure they are open and have the game(s) you want to play before travelling!

Places to play some fun games in Manchester city centre.

Below is a list of places to play a range of different games in Manchester city centre.

Minigolf, Crazy Golf, Adventure Golf:

• Junkyard Golf, First Street
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Putters Tech-Infused Mini Golf at Urban Playground, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Golf at Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• Treetop Adventure Golf, The Printworks

Crazy Pool:

• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre

Arcade Games:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• NQ64, Peter Street
• NQ64, Northern Quarter
• Pixel Bar Manchester, Thomas Street

Axe Throwing:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks

Beer Pong / Prosecco Pong:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Lane7, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate

Cricket / Batting Cages:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Sixes Social Cricket, Corn Exchange

Escape Rooms:

• Breakout Manchester, Church Street
• Breakout Manchester, Newton Street
• Escape Hunt Manchester, Corn Exchange
• Lucardo Escape Rooms, Great Ancoats Street

'Game Shows':

• Challenge Point, Newton Street
• The Crystal Maze, Lower Byrom Street
• The Cube at Urban Playground, Arndale Centre

Golf / Virtual Golf:

• Pitch Golf (opening in Quarter 4 of 2025)

Ice Free Curling:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate

Interactive / Tech / AR Darts:

• Black Cat Club, Brown Street
• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Flight Club, King Street
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Twenty Twenty Two, Little Lever Street
• The Gas Works Brewbar, Jack Rosenthal Street

Ping Pong / Table Tennis:

• Pong & Puck, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• The Brotherhood Of Pursuits And Pastimes, Mount Street
• Twenty Twenty Two, Little Lever Street

Shooting Galleries:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Point Bank, Deansgate

Shuffleboard:

• 7Sins, Northern Quarter
• Black Cat Club, Brown Street
• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Electric Shuffle, Deansgate
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Pong & Puck, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• The Bierkeller Manchester, The Printworks
• The Gas Works Brewbar, Jack Rosenthal Street

Ten Pin Bowling / Duck Pin Bowling:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Lane7, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Tenpin, The Printworks

Virtual Reality (VR) / Gaming:

• DNA VR Manchester, Brown Street
• Immersive Gamebox, Arndale Centre

All-round venues:

These places offer a range of different games and activities, these are also listed above in the specific activities.

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• Trax Social, The Printworks
• Urban Playground, Arndale Centre

Something missing?

Have we missed any places to play in Manchester city centre? Do let us know.

Your favourite games and places?

What's your favourite game and place to play? Let us know in the comments.

Beyond Manchester city centre.

Moving out from the city centre you'll find several more places to play games in the borough of Manchester, such as the Parrs Wood Entertainment Centre where you can find tenpin bowling, indoor minigolf, laser tag, escape rooms and more. And over at The Trafford Centre and Trafford Palazzo - and some of their neighbours - you can find a lot of fun things to see, do and play too.

Our home town of Stockport is also increasing in the number of competitive socialising places to play a range of games.

And when you take into account all of the competitive socialising venues in Manchester's metropolitan boroughs of Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, and Wigan you have got an incredible choice of places to play!

Loft Social in Stockport

There's a new competitive socialising venue in Stockport town centre.

Loft Social is home to indoor Archery, Curling, Deck Shuffle and Pétanque.

Loft Social can be found on the 3rd Floor of The Courts (above Sports Direct near the market place).

Find out more.

Check out Loft Social's Facebook Page for more information.

Playing Pétanque.

We're big fans of Pétanque so it's interesting to know there's a place to play in Stockport.

Related blog posts:

• Stockport
• Petanque
• Competitive Socialising

Crazy Golf at Stamford Park in Stalybridge

The Crazy Golf course at Stamford Park in Stalybridge, Tameside, Greater Manchester has reopened.

The abandoned Crazy Golf course at Stamford Park in Stalybridge, Tameside, Greater Manchester has reopened following a refurbishment.

Visiting the Stamford Park Crazy Golf course in Stalybridge.

We visited the Stamford Park Crazy Golf course in Stalybridge in February 2018. It became the 797th visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

As the course looked in February 2018

We're now up to 1,099 course visits since September 2006.

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

We'll have to swing by for a look at the refurbished course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Find out more.

You can find out more about the refurbished Crazy Golf course at Stamford Park in Stalybridge on the Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council's website.

Related blog posts:

• The abandoned Crazy Golf course at Stamford Park in Stalybridge
• Greater Manchester

Video:

• The abandoned Crazy Golf course in Stamford Park, Stalybridge

Bird Brain Bakery - A gluten free bakery in Hazel Grove, Stockport

There's a gluten free bakery in Hazel Grove, Stockport.

Bird Brain Bakery is a gluten free bakery in Hazel Grove, Stockport.

All of the bakes at Bird Brain Bakery are organic, gluten free and plant-based, with products made using unrefined sugars.

Find out more.

You can find out more on the Bird Brain Bakery Facebook Page.

Mini Golf at The Rock Shopping Centre in Bury

There's a pop-up mini golf course at The Rock Shopping Centre in Bury this August.

The Rock Shopping Centre in Bury, Greater Manchester is celebrating its 15th birthday this year, and to mark the occasion the shopping centre has a pop-up funfair set-up with a range of free-to-play games - one of which is mini golf.

Find out more.

Check out The Rock Shopping Centre website and Facebook Page for more information.

Crazy Pool at Cuetopia Stockport in Cale Green

Cuetopia Stockport is now open.

There's a new indoor entertainment venue in Stockport, and it has a Crazy Pool layout.

We spotted the signs for Cuetopia Stockport while walking in the nearby Cale Green area of Stockport today - the venue is home to a Crazy Pool course!

Crazy Pool is a cross between the cue sport of Pool and the putting game of Crazy Golf, with wacky and tricky obstacles placed upon the baize. Rather than using a putter, players use a pool/snooker cue to get the ball passed the obstacles and into the cup/hole/pocket.

Some of the 'Pool', 'Snooker' or 'Billiard' table layouts we've seen in these cue-sport and minigolf crossovers have been quite irregular to say the least.

Cuetopia Stockport is also home to an arcade, pinball, regular pool tables, and a bar. The venue is open Monday to Saturday, with details of the opening times on the Cuetopia Stockport website.

Find out more.

Check out Cuetopia Stockport's website, Facebook Page and Instagram for more information.

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

The Crazy Pool at Cuetopia Stockport will be a new course for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

It's also less than a mile away from us, so is technically our new nearest 'crazy golf' course!

Mini Golf in Manchester

A look at Mini Golf courses in Manchester & Greater Manchester.

Mini Golf (also known as Crazy Golf and Adventure Golf) is an incredibly popular leisure and sporting activity for all ages, and we're seeing an exciting boom in new courses opening up across the UK.

While minigolf was traditionally a seaside summer pastime in the UK, the last decade or so has seen its growth into more urban settings, with many venues now catering to a late night audience. It can be the perfect activity for groups of friends, families, and young and old alike. The game continues to evolve and captivate players all year round.

Where to play Mini Golf  in and around Manchester.

If you're looking for mini golf, crazy golf and adventure golf courses to play in Manchester and Greater Manchester there are a variety of courses to visit, ranging from traditional crazy golf to indoor minigolf to new adventure golf layouts.

The city centre itself has seen an increase in courses over the last few years.

Here's a list of the Mini Golf courses we know of in Manchester city centre:

• Crazy Golf at Challenge Point Manchester - indoor crazy golf.
• Junkyard Golf at First Street - three indoor crazy golf courses.
• Mini Golf at King Pins at the Manchester Arndale - indoor mini golf.
• Putters Crazy Golf at the Urban Playground in the Manchester Arndale centre - indoor crazy golf.
• Roxy Ball Room on Deansgate - indoor crazy pool course (think of a cross between pool and crazy golf).
• Roxy Ball Room Arndale on Withy Grove - indoor crazy pool.
• Treetop Adventure Golf at The Printworks in Manchester - two indoor adventure golf courses.

Here's a list of the Mini Golf courses we know about in Greater Manchester:

• Buile Hill Park in Salford - a Pitch & Putt course.
• Dino Falls Adventure Golf at the Trafford Golf Centre - two outdoor adventure golf courses.
• Haigh Woodland Park, Wigan - an outdoor adventure golf course.
• Haigh Woodland Park, Wigan - an outdoor crazy golf course.
• HUKD Golf in Bury - indoor crazy golf.
• Jump Heaven Mini Golf Adventure in Hazel Grove, Stockport - an outdoor adventure golf course.
• Mini Golf at King Pins at the Trafford Palazzo - indoor mini golf.
• Paradise Island Adventure Golf at the Trafford Centre - two indoor adventure golf courses.
• Park Square, Cheadle Heath, Stockport - an outdoor Putting Green (for tenants only).
• Parr Fold Park in Walkden - a Pitch & Putt course.
• Pitch & Putt at Bruntwood Park in Cheadle, Stockport - an outdoor miniature golf course.
• Putt & Play (formerly Puttstars) at Rochdale Riverside - three indoor minigolf courses.
• Tenpin Parrs Wood - Prison Putt indoor adventure golf.
• The Lost Valley Adventure Golf at Amazonia, Market Place Shopping Centre, Bolton - an indoor adventure golf course.
• Victoria Park in Pendlebury, Swinton - an outdoor putting green.
• Woodheys Park in Sale - a Pitch & Putt course.

Minigolfing in Manchester on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

We've been travelling to play minigolf in Manchester on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since 2009 when I won the Mini Masters and Mini Open at the Trafford Golf Centre. I also won the Chrizy Golf Masters at Piccadilly Place in 2012.

We moved to Stockport in 2016 and have continued to compete in events. Emily won the Paradise Island Adventure Golf Open in 2019, while I won the tournament in 2018. I also won the DinoFalls Masters at the Trafford Golf Centre in 2018.

It's brilliant we've got so many places to play mini golf in and around Manchester.

Former Mini Golf courses in Manchester.

• Alexandra Park in Edgeley, Stockport - an outdoor crazy golf course.
• Championship Miniature Golf at the Trafford Golf Centre - an outdoor miniature golf course.
• Chrizy Golf at Piccadilly Place - pop-up Christmas-themed crazy golf course.
• Junkyard Golf at the Great Northern Warehouse and at Piccadilly Place - indoor crazy golf courses.
• Kearsley Golf Range - Pitch & Putt and Putting Greens.
• Mini Golf at Roxy Ball Room Deansgate - an indoor course that was 18-holes, then 12-holes before it was removed to make way for a new Crazy Pool course.
• Tea Party Mini Golf at Spinningfields, Manchester - a pop-up mini golf course.
• UV Crazy Golf at One Adventure in Droylsden - an indoor crazy golf course.
• Walkden Town Centre - pop-up crazy golf course.

Derelict and abandoned Mini Golf courses in Manchester.

• Stamford Park, Stamford Street, Stalybridge, Tameside - an outdoor crazy golf course.
• Wythenshawe Park, Wythenshawe - an outdoor crazy golf course.

Mini Golf courses in development in Greater Manchester.

• New Adventure Golf course at Bowlee Park Driving Range in Middleton, Rochdale.
• Mini Golf course at The Galleries in Wigan.

Do you know of other Mini Golf courses in Manchester?

Please do get in touch and let us know of any other mini golf, crazy golf, adventure golf, pitch & putt, or putting layouts we don't yet know about in the area.

Planning to visit a Mini Golf course - check ahead of time.

Where possible please do check that the course is still there and open before travelling to it. The online presence of courses is improving, and the way businesses market themselves is always evolving, so it's becoming somewhat easier to find the opening and closing times of courses. That said, we've spent the last two decades attempting to play as many courses as possible, and even we've ended up finding courses to be derelict, abandoned or unplayable when we've arrived!

Mini Golf at King Pins at the Trafford Palazzo in Manchester

Playing Mini Golf at King Pins at the Trafford Palazzo.

Having a round of indoor Mini Golf at King Pins at the Trafford Palazzo.

We recently attended the King Pins Summer Mixer Networking event at King Pins at the Trafford Palazzo in Manchester where we were welcome to play a selection of games for free. After some competitive games of tenpin bowling and ice-free curling against our fellow guests, I rounded off the excellent event with a game of minigolf on the 9-hole indoor course.

The Mini Golf at King Pins at the Trafford Palazzo was the 585th course played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour and 1,072nd visited overall since 2006.

In my round I shot a score of 16, with three holes-in-one and one three.

On the tee, or oche, of the last hole

Games at King Pins in the Trafford Palazzo.

As well as the mini golf course, King Pins at the Trafford Palazzo is home to tenpin bowling, duck pin bowling, ice-free curling, karaoke, shuffleboard, American pool, and arcade games.

Visiting King Pins.

If you haven't yet been, I recommend a visit to King Pins for yourself. Even if you're not playing any games it's a chilled out spot to get a drink and relax for a while during a shopping trip at the Palazzo and Trafford Centre.

As well as the Trafford Palazzo venue in Manchester, you can find King Pins locations at the Arndale Centre in Manchester, Bristol and Glasgow. The new Leeds location opens on the 15th August, and a Belfast King Pins is opening soon!

Find out more.

Visit the King Pins website for more information.

Mini Golf at King Pins.

We've also played the indoor Mini Golf course at the King Pins venue in the Manchester Arndale Centre.

Crazy Pool at King Pins.

The new Leeds King Pins venue at the White Rose Centre will be home to a Crazy Pool course.

The new Belfast King Pins.

It'll be interesting to see what games are available at King Pins in Belfast when it opens later this year, and if it'll have mini golf, crazy pool, or something else...

Street Life event in Ashton-under-Lyne

A look at the Street Life event in Ashton-under-Lyne.

We attended the free Street Life event in Ashton-under-Lyne on Saturday and had a superb time.

It was the first time I've been INSIDE a DMC DeLorean!

The community event saw the town centre come alive with a real mix of pop culture events, activities and attractions!

There was a huge Star Wars AT-ST at the event!

I'm a BIG fan of pro-wrestling, but it was the first time I've seen a show live outdoors - and in the morning! 

Visit the Tameside Official website for more information.

Competitive socialising in Manchester

Competitive socialising, activity bars, entertainment, and leisure venues in Manchester.

A look at places to play a range of competitive socialising games and activities in Manchester city centre.

Looking for fun places to play some games in Manchester, then read on...

While minigolf is the main game we play, we're big fans of a wide-range of what are now termed 'competitive socialising' activities. And luckily for us, Manchester city centre has a brilliant variety of different places to play.

The landscape of competitive socialising venues is constantly changing, with locations opening, closing, and being refurbished, while others expand or change the activities available entirely. That said, please do check with the venue in advance to make sure they are open and have the game(s) you want to play before travelling!

Places to play some fun games in Manchester city centre.

Below is a list of places to play a range of different games in Manchester city centre (as at July 2025).

Minigolf, Crazy Golf, Adventure Golf:

• Junkyard Golf, First Street
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Putters Tech-Infused Mini Golf at Urban Playground, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Golf at Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• Treetop Adventure Golf, The Printworks

Crazy Pool:

• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre

Arcade Games:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• NQ64, Peter Street
• NQ64, Northern Quarter
• Pixel Bar Manchester, Thomas Street

Axe Throwing:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks

Beer Pong / Prosecco Pong:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Lane7, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate

Cricket / Batting Cages:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Sixes Social Cricket, Corn Exchange

Escape Rooms:

• Breakout Manchester, Church Street
• Breakout Manchester, Newton Street
• Escape Hunt Manchester, Corn Exchange
• Lucardo Escape Rooms, Great Ancoats Street

'Game Shows':

• Challenge Point, Newton Street
• The Crystal Maze, Lower Byrom Street
• The Cube at Urban Playground, Arndale Centre

Golf / Virtual Golf:

• Pitch Golf (opening in Quarter 4 of 2025)

Ice Free Curling:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate

Interactive / Tech / AR Darts:

• Black Cat Club, Brown Street
• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Flight Club, King Street
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Twenty Twenty Two, Little Lever Street
• The Gas Works Brewbar, Jack Rosenthal Street

Ping Pong / Table Tennis:

• Pong & Puck, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• The Brotherhood Of Pursuits And Pastimes, Mount Street
• Twenty Twenty Two, Little Lever Street

Shooting Galleries:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Point Bank, Deansgate

Shuffleboard:

• 7Sins, Northern Quarter
• Black Cat Club, Brown Street
• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Electric Shuffle, Deansgate
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Pong & Puck, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• The Bierkeller Manchester, The Printworks
• The Gas Works Brewbar, Jack Rosenthal Street

Ten Pin Bowling / Duck Pin Bowling:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Lane7, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Tenpin, The Printworks

Virtual Reality (VR) / Gaming:

• DNA VR Manchester, Brown Street
• Immersive Gamebox, Arndale Centre

All-round venues:

These places offer a range of different games and activities, these are also listed above in the specific activities.

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• Trax Social, The Printworks
• Urban Playground, Arndale Centre

Something missing?

Have we missed any places to play in Manchester city centre? Do let us know.

Your favourite games and places?

What's your favourite game and place to play? Let us know in the comments on this post.

Beyond Manchester city centre.

Moving out from the city centre you'll find several more places to play games in the borough of Manchester, such as the Parrs Wood Entertainment Centre (our nearest venue) where you can find tenpin bowling, indoor minigolf, laser tag, escape rooms and more.

And when you take into account all of the competitive socialising venues in Manchester's metropolitan boroughs of Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, and Wigan you have got an incredible choice of places to play!

Minigolf Darts Hole at King Pins at the Trafford Palazzo in Manchester

There's a darts-themed hole on the King Pins Mini Golf course at the Trafford Palazzo shopping and entertainment centre in Manchester.

Find out more about King Pins locations on the King Pins website.

The King Pins Mini Golf course at Trafford Palazzo became the 1,072nd visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

We played Mini Golf at King Pins at the Manchester Arndale last year.

The Royal Nawaab Stockport Pyramid

The Stockport Pyramid has reopened as a restaurant.

One of the first landmarks - among many fine buildings - we saw when we moved to Stockport in 2016 was the Stockport Pyramid.

Not many towns in the UK can lay claim to being home to a pyramid!

The Stockport Pyramid was home to the Co-operative Bank until 2018 and the building had been empty until it was purchased by Royal Nawaab with plans to turn the structure into a restaurant and banqueting venue. The venture has cost £15 million!

The building was originally planned to be the first of five pyramids in Stockport's own Valley of the Kings. That plan didn't come to fruition and the Stockport Pyramid sits on in the Kings Valley industrial and trading estate next to the M60.

Having seen videos of the inside of the Royal Nawaab it looks very impressive and we're looking forward to going inside for a look around the intriguing building one day.

A view of a side and the entrance

The Stockport Pyramid was completed in 1992 after five years work. Standing 36.6 metres (120 feet) in height, the Stockport Pyramid is somewhat smaller than Egypt's Great Pyramid of Giza, which stands 147 metres (481 feet) high. However, the striking structure has become a familiar sight to people in the town, those passing on the M60, or passengers on trains on the lines across the viaduct.

A view of the pyramid from the other side of the M60

The rear side of the pyramid viewed from the roundabout at Junction 1 of the M50

The view of the pyramid from the bottom of Hollywood Park

Views of the Stockport Pyramid as it was in August 2020

Visit the Royal Nawaab website for more information.

The Stockport Pyramid in 2020

A look at the Stockport Pyramid back in August 2020.

The Stockport Pyramid was home to the Co-operative Bank until 2018 and the building had been empty until it was purchased by Royal Nawaab with plans to turn the structure into a restaurant and banqueting venue. The venture has cost £15 million and is now open!

The building was originally planned to be the first of five pyramids in Stockport's own Valley of the Kings. That plan didn't come to fruition and the Stockport Pyramid sits on in the Kings Valley industrial and trading estate next to the M60.

The Stockport Pyramid was completed in 1992 after five years work. Standing 36.6 metres (120 feet) in height, the Stockport Pyramid is somewhat smaller than Egypt's Great Pyramid of Giza, which stands 147 metres (481 feet) high. However, the striking structure has become a familiar sight to people in the town, those passing on the M60, or passengers on trains on the lines across the viaduct.