Lost shops - Debenhams

Debenhams recently became the latest retail casualty as the brand ceased trading on the high street in May 2021 after 243 years of operation. More than 100 bricks & mortar stores closed and Debenhams will continue as an online-only brand as it is now owned by online retailer Boohoo.

Debenhams in Stockport

The lights were still on in December 2020

A view of the store during lockdown in April 2021

In the store in April 2021

In January 2021

Debenhams in Nuneaton

In May 2021

Debenhams in Manchester

Debenhams on Market Street in Manchester one day after the store's closure

Covid-19 signs

Covid-19 signage in January 2021

A Covid-19 sign in August 2020

What next for the former shops?

As with other collapsed chains it'll be interesting to see who moves in to the former Debenhams shops and how long the last traces of the brand will linger on the high street.

There are already plans for one former store to become an indoor entertainment venue. Gravity Active Entertainment will be opening a new centre in Wandsworth, London. The four-floor site will be home to a crazy golf course, bar & restaurant, pool, tenpin bowling, darts, high ropes, go-karting and more.

The retailtainment and minigolf boom

Miniature Golf is a big part of the retailtainment boom, with courses opening as standalone entertainment activities, or as part of large shoppingtainment leisure offerings in malls, high streets and retail parks.

Some of these retailtainment activities are permanent, while others are pop-ups catering to a mix of audiences, from children and families, to adults looking for competitive socialising fun.

Minigolf has really grown in popularity in the last decade and has moved from only being a traditional outdoor seaside summer activity to become a year-round game that can be played indoors, outdoors and at pretty much any time of the day.

A number of high streets, retail parks and shopping malls are now home to minigolf courses, with more new venues planned to open.

Minigolf is also a popular addition to boost footfall, create awareness and attract people to a location. Businesses also use portable and temporary minigolf layouts for product launches and promotions.

Other lost shops

We've seen traces, remnants and signage of a number of lost shop brands on our travels including Blockbuster Video, Toys R Us, Woolworths, British Home Stores, Kwik Save, Tandy, RadioShack, Grainger Games, Carphone Warehouse and JJB Sports.

A sneak peek of Aces Minigolf Gloucester

Check out the Aces Minigolf Gloucester Facebook Page for some sneak peeks of the course design and the progress of the build.

We're really looking forward to playing the new course when it opens at Dobbies Garden Centre in Gloucester next month.

More information can be found on the Aces Minigolf Gloucester Facebook Page.

International Coeliac Day

Today is International Coeliac Day.

About Coeliac Disease

Coeliac Disease (Celiac in the US and Canada) is a lifelong autoimmune disease caused by intolerance to gluten and the only treatment is to adhere to a strict lifelong gluten free diet.

In the UK it's estimated that 1 in 100 people have the condition.

Living a gluten free life

Having suffered from a range of symptoms for around ten years I finally received a positive diagnosis of Coeliac Disease following some 'interesting' and in-depth tests and procedures in 2008. It came as a relief to finally have a name for the mysterious cause of my illnesses and ailments, but at the time I was only given a brief summary and told that I'd have to "cut down on bread and beer". It was only later when I met with a Gastroenterologist and a dietitian that I found out that the only treatment for people with Coeliac Disease is a strict, life-long gluten free diet.

Coeliac Awareness

The month of May is Celiac Awareness Month and this week has been Coeliac UK Awareness Week.

Crazy Golf at Run About in Farnborough

There's a new Crazy Golf course at the Run About soft play centre in Farnborough, Hampshire.

The new crazy golf course opens at Run About in Farnborough on Monday 17th May.

Visit the Run About website for more information.

Toys R Us in Stockton-on-Tees

A visit to the old Toys R Us store at Teesside Retail Park in Stockton-on-Tees.

We recently took a look at the former Toys R Us in Stockton-on-Tees.

It's a very nice example of a closed store, with lots of the original signage still visible.

I worked in the Gipsy Lane Toys R Us store in Luton, Bedfordshire back in the year 2000.

Toys R Us closed in the UK in April 2018. It's fun to see that there are still remnants of the brand on some retail parks in the UK. 

Check out my blog posts below about other former Toys R Us stores:

• Enfield Retail Park in Enfield
• Central Retail Park in Manchester
• Gemini Retail Park in Warrington
• Interchange Retail Park at Copdock Mill, Ipswich
• Festival retail park in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent
• Deepdale shopping centre in Preston
• Wyvern Retail Park in Derby
• Riverside Retail Park in Nottingham

Crazy Golf on Southsea Beach

There are plans for a new Crazy Golf course on Southsea Beach.

A new Crazy Golf course is planned to open at Southsea Beach in Hampshire.

The minigolf layout has been proposed by South Parade Pier and would be located on the shingle beach to the west of the pier.

Visit the South Parade Pier website for more information.

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour began in Southsea back in 2006 and we've played a number of miniature golf courses there over the years. One of those courses was a 12-hole Swedish Felt layout on South Parade Pier in 2010. That course can now be played on Southend Pier!

It'll be nice to get back down to visit again in the future.

Crazy Golf at Brimstage Maize Maze

There's a Crazy Golf course at Brimstage Maize Maze in Brimstage, Wirral.

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

Visit the Brimstage Maize Maze website and Facebook Page for more information.

Mini-Golf at Between the Bridges in London

London's South Bank will be home to a mini-golf course this summer.

A mini-golf course will be part of the new Between the Bridges food, drink, music and entertainment pop-up on the South Bank in London this summer.

The mini-golf activity will be provided by Plonk Golf.

Visit the Between the Bridges website for more information.

Gator Adventure Golf at the Escape Entertainment centre in Chorley

A visit to the Gator Adventure Golf course at Escape Entertainment in Chorley.

The last new course we played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour was Gator Adventure Golf at the Escape Entertainment centre in Chorley, Lancashire last August!

The 18-hole indoor layout was the 955th course we've been to since September 2006.

Visit the Gator Adventure Golf website for more information, opening times and prices.

Toys R Us store in Enfield, London

A look at the old Toys R Us store in Enfield, London.

A big thank you to my cousin Elaine for sending me some photos of the former Toys R Us store in Enfield.

Toys R Us closed in the UK in April 2018. Luckily you can still find signs of the brand on some retail parks in the UK. I worked in the Gipsy Lane store in Luton, Bedfordshire back in the year 2000.

Check out the posts below to see other former Toys R Us stores in the UK:

• Wyvern Retail Park in Derby
• Festival retail park in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent
• Interchange Retail Park at Copdock Mill, Ipswich
• Central Retail Park in Manchester
• Riverside Retail Park in Nottingham
• Deepdale shopping centre in Preston
• Gemini Retail Park in Warrington

New Lane7 venue opening in Glasgow

A new Lane7 venue is planned to open at the St Enoch Centre in Glasgow.

The new location at the St Enoch Shopping Centre will include mini golf, ping pong, ten-pin bowling and more.

Visit the Lane7 website for more information.

We've played minigolf at Lane7 in Newcastle upon Tyne on a couple of occasions.

The old Blockbuster Video store in Nuneaton

A look at the old Blockbuster Video store in Nuneaton, Warwickshire.

The old sign at the former Blockbuster Video store on Regent Street in Nuneaton was uncovered when the last tenant of the building moved out.

Blockbuster visits

With our interest piqued by our discovery of the abandoned Blockbuster Video store in Fallowfield in 2019 we've now visited a number of former Blockbuster locations, including:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Colne, Lancashire
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Mini Golf at Sunderland Bowl

A new miniature golf course is opening at Sunderland Bowl.

The Sunderland Bowl tenpin bowling centre is opening a new indoor minigolf course.

As well as tenpin bowling and minigolf there will also be darts and shuffleboard at the venue.

Visit the Sunderland Bowl website for more information.

The layout will be another new course for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Tenpin bowling and miniature golf

With the boom in the popularity of minigolf and the growth in new courses, a number of tenpin bowling centres have added minigolf, crazy golf and adventure golf courses.

Traditionally the two leisure activities have been quite separate and distinct, with people choosing to do either one or other and most operators running either a minigolf course or tenpin bowling centre.

We're fans of both games and we've been to quite a few places on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour that have both entertainment options.

New Globalls crazy golf venue opening in Brighton

Globalls at Brighton Marina is planning a move with a new and larger venue opening nearby later this year.

The existing Globalls indoor minigolf location will remain open until the new unit is ready.

The new Globalls UV glow-in-the-dark location will be home to two indoor crazy golf courses as well as other games and a UV cocktail bar.

Visit the Globalls website for more information.

It's been quite a few years since we've been to Brighton so we haven't managed to play at Globalls yet.

Our friend Stephen Skinner did swing by Globalls in 2019 and sent over some snaps of the colourful courses.

The Minigolf Nations Cup 2008

We made our Great Britain team debuts at the 2008 Nations Cup of Minigolf in Tampere, Finland thirteen years ago today!

Our Great Britain Minigolf team, sponsored by UrbanCrazy, finished the tournament in 13th place. In the individual rankings I finished in 51st place and Emily was 53rd.

In action at the Minigolf Nations Cup in Tampere, Finland

The 2008 Great Britain squad - Jouni Valkjarvi (coach), John 'Big Top Ted' McIver, Marion 'Mation' Homer, Sean 'Freebird' Homer, Tim 'Ace Man' Davies, Steve 'F1' Gow, Emily 'Lemony' Gottfried, Andy 'Sarge' Booth, 'Squire' Richard Gottfried

We've also played for the Great Britain national team in World Minigolf Sport Federation and European Minigolf Sport Federation tournaments in Stockholm, Sweden and Hastings, England.

The Beton Concrete Mini Golf course at the Manse RG Club in Tampere was the 50th played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. The Eternit Miniature Golf course was the 51st and the Swedish Felt Minigolf course there was the 52nd played. We've now been to 958 courses since 2006.

Hollywood Adventure Golf in Great Yarmouth

Spotting an advert for the Windmill Theatre Crazy Golf course in Great Yarmouth.

My brother and charter member of the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour Christopher Gottfried recently spotted this advert for the Windmill Theatre Crazy Golf in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk.

We've both played the indoor minigolf course, but haven't yet had a game against each other there.

When our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour began in 2006 the course at the Windmill Theatre was one of only two indoor miniature golf courses in the UK. There are now more than 100 indoor courses!

Visit the Hollywood Adventure Golf course website for more information.

Happy National Miniature Golf Day!

Today is National Miniature Golf Day.

National Miniature Golf Day is always marked on the second Saturday in May.

Miniature Golf Day

Each year there are two 'minigolf days', the second of which is Miniature Golf Day. It is always on the 21st September. This year that will be a Tuesday.

National Miniature Golf Day Eve

Tomorrow is the BIG day!

There are two annual minigolf 'days' dedicated to celebrating the game each year. First up is National Miniature Golf Day. It is always marked on the second Saturday in May. This year the date is Saturday 8th May.

The world's first miniature golf course

The first miniature golf course in the world opened in St Andrews, Scotland in 1867. The Himalayas Putting Course is still open and is a marvellous place to have a round.   

New miniature golf course in Chorley

There are plans for a new 12-hole miniature golf course to open at Duxbury Park in Chorley, Lancashire.

Visit the Glendale Golf website for more information on the Duxbury Park golf centre.

Chorley is fairly close to us so it'll be interesting to swing by for a game on the new layout when it opens.