Urban exploration - Guildhall Shopping Centre in Stafford

A look at the Guildhall Shopping Centre in Stafford, Staffordshire.

The Guildhall Shopping Centre in Stafford closed its doors in March 2024.

This is how it looked in November 2024.

The shopping centre had started to be closed down in April 2022, with sections and entrances being closed off.

Urban exploration - a former Kodak express camera shop in Stafford

A look at a former Kodak express camera shop in Stafford, Staffordshire.

Related blog posts:

• Liminal Space
• Stafford
• Retail

Stafford Cinema on Newport Road

A look at Stafford Cinema.

Stafford Cinema on Newport Road in Stafford, Staffordshire opened as an Odeon in 1936 and closed in 2021.

This is how the Art Deco building looked in November 2024.

The Woolworths ghost sign in Stafford

There's a Woolworths ghost sign on the former store location in Stafford.

The exterior of the former Woolworths shop in Stafford

I first saw the ghost sign on the old Woolies in May 2023.

The Woolworths ghost sign in Stafford

We've found a few ghost signs and remains of the Woolworths brand on our travels over the years.

Crazy Golf at The Empourium in Stafford

I made a flying visit to Stafford earlier this year and spotted The Empourium on Market Street.

The Empourium is home to a 9-hole Crazy Golf course.

Check out The Empourium's website for more information.

A Woolworths ghost sign in Stafford

Finding a Woolworths ghost sign in Stafford.

A Woolworths ghost sign in Stafford (May 2023)

While having a wander around Stafford earlier this year my eyes were drawn to this ghost sign on the front of a building on Princess Street in the town centre.

A Woolworths ghost sign in Stafford (May 2023)

The insides of the former Woolies

The old Woolworths shop location had been home to Sports Direct in more recent times

Other former Woolworths shops

It's fun seeing old & lost brands, ghost signs and retail relics. I took a look at the ghost signs on a former Woolworths store on Blackpool promenade in September 2021.

We saw a Woolworths ghost sign in Nuneaton in May 2022 too. That was a nice surprise!

Like the Blackpool store, the Nuneaton shop site had also most recently been a Poundland and a TJ Hughes.

We also saw these old Woolworths trolleys in use at Bolton Market last year!

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009. Every so often remnants of the brand become visible again.

We visited the Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent in September 2020. That store still had the signage in place and we'd originally spotted it while driving through the town the previous November.

We took a look at an old Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh in August 2011. That was a Big W Woolworths store at The Jewel retail park. It's long gone now.

You can however still see an old mosaic tile logo at the former Woolworths on Stamford Street Central in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester.

There's a nice Woolworths ghost sign on an Art Deco building on Abington Street in Northampton.

Interestingly, there's a playable Woolworths Pick n' Mix Crazy Golf hole at the Teezers Retro Golf course in Coventry!

New Adventure Golf in Wolverhampton

Jurassic Creek Adventure Golf now open at 3 Hammers Golf Complex.

A new 18-hole Adventure Golf course has opened at 3 Hammers Golf Complex.

The Jurassic Creek Adventure Golf venue is located between Wolverhampton and Stafford.

Find out more about the course on the Jurassic Creek Adventure Golf website.

The Empourium in Stafford

A new competitive socialising venue is opening in Stafford.

Stafford will soon be home to a new competitive socialising venue called The Empourium.

The Empourium will feature a number of indoor games, including crazy golf.

The venue will also have Darts, Pool, Shuffleboard, Beer Pong, Bowling and Table Tennis.

The Empourium is scheduled to open on Thursday 10th November.

Visit The Empourium's Facebook Page for more information.

It'll be another new location to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Crazy Golf at Fletchers Family Garden Centre in Eccleshall

A look at the Crazy Golf course at Fletchers Family Garden Centre in Eccleshall, Staffordshire.

We played the course a year ago.

Playing Crazy Golf at Fletchers Family Garden Centre

It was the 505th played and 863rd visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

There's a nice Miniature Railway at the garden centre too.

Riding the rails on the miniature railway at Fletchers Family Garden Centre

Visit the Fletchers Family Garden Centre website for more information.

Check out my blog post about Garden Centre minigolf courses.

A lost minigolf course in Stafford

Looking for the minigolf course at Wildwood Park in Stafford.

In September 2017 we visited Stafford to look for a miniature golf course at Wildwood Park.

There was no sign of it.

A nice bench sign combination

We did however find the Crazy Golf course at the nearby Rowley Park Stadium.

Crazy Golf at Fletchers Family Garden Centre in Eccleshall, Staffordshire

A visit to the Crazy Golf course at Fletchers Family Garden Centre in Eccleshall, Staffordshire.

On Thursday 18th April we visited Fletchers Family Golf Centre in Eccleshall, Staffordshire for a game on the Crazy Golf course there.

The Crazy Golf course at Fletchers Family Garden Centre was the 863rd we visited

The course had at one point been an 18-hole layout, but holes 4 to 7 were nowhere to be seen. It looks like they were removed and the area flattened. The scorecard still shows 18-holes, but the numbered holes leap from hole 3 to hole 8.

A look at the Crazy Golf course

The Crazy Golf has the look of a continental European Beton style concrete course to it, albeit with a felt surface and some additional Crazy Golf obstacle elements to it.

Hole 9 - which is now the 4th hole on the course

We had a fun round on the tricky layout and the result was a one-shot victory to me with a score of 47 to Emily's 48.

A nice tee-shot from Emily

Not the where you want to be on this type of hole!

Playing hole 11

Emily with a tricky second shot on hole 11

How do you get your ball ON TOP OF a loop-di-loop!?

Playing hole 13

Emily on hole 13

The longest hole on the course

Emily on hole 16

The Crazy Golf course at Fletchers Family Garden Centre in Eccleshall was the 505th played and 863rd we've visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Playing the hole 17

Photos of the Crazy Golf course:

Hole 1

Hole 2

Hole 3

Hole 3

Hole 3

Where holes 4, 5, 6 and 7 were

Hole 8 - now the 4th playable hole

Hole 8

Hole 8

Hole 8 - now the 4th

Hole 9

Hole 9

Hole 9

Hole 9

Hole 10 - the hardest hole on the course

Hole 10

Hole 10

Hole 11

Hole 11

Hole 11

Hole 11

Hole 12

Hole 12

Hole 13

Hole 13

Hole 14

Hole 14

Hole 15

Hole 15

Hole 15

Hole 15

Hole 16

Hole 16

Hole 16

Hole 17

Hole 17

Hole 18 - the only hole we managed to get a hole-in-one on

Hole 18

As a bonus we also got to have a ride on the Hilcote Miniature Railway at Fletchers Family Garden Centre. The excellent little railway is located next to the Crazy Golf course. We were really impressed with the layout.

Both the Crazy Golf and the Miniature Railway were £1.50 each, a bargain. We saw some pigs, ducks, Shetland ponies, rheas and a chicken during the journey.



Check out the Fletchers Family Garden Centre website for more information.

Fletchers Family Garden Centre is well worth a visit

Link:
- Fletchers Family Garden Centre

Related blog posts:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Staffordshire
- Crazy Golf
- Miniature Railway