Video Express in Swansea

Emily spotted the old Video Express video shop in Swansea on her recent trip to the city.

What a blockbuster find!

It's always interesting finding lost video shops and old retail signs on our travels.

There are still traces of other former video shops to be found on the streets of the UK. Most of those are old Blockbuster Video stores. But there are remnants of independent video shops to be seen if you're lucky.

• Video Rentals at The Village Top Shop in Thorpe Hesley, Rotherham
• Shahenshah Videos in Luton
• Deane Video Centre in Bolton
• Video Box Office at the Happy Shopper Wayfairer Discount Store in Ilkeston
• Video Future in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent
• The Movie Box in Manchester
• Jubilee Films video in Ashton-under-Lyne
  

Blockbuster Video stores we've visited to date:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Other video shops we've been to include B.V.C. - Bolton Video Centre in Little Lever, Bolton and 20th Century Flicks in Bristol - and both were still trading!

Who You Gonna Call?

This Ghostbuster?

Emily spotted this 'Ghostbusters' van on her recent trip to Swansea!

We've seen a few Ghostbusters vehicles on our travels, including Ecto-1a in Urmston, a Ghostbusters car in Scarborough, and Ecto-1 at The Light cinema in Stockport and at the Totally Stockport Comic Con.

Little Chef at Tot Hill

A look at the former Little Chef restaurant at Haughley Park Services in Stowmarket, Suffolk.

We drove past the old Little Chef on what was once the A14 while on a trip to Suffolk last week.

We used to pass by the roadside restaurant a fair bit on our visits to Ipswich back in the noughties, that was until the A14 at Haughley Park Services was bypassed in 2008.

This Little Chef restaurant soldiered on until it was closed in September 2012.

It's an interesting piece of roadside history.

We felt very nostalgic during the pandemic and spent time seeing what old brands from our childhood we could still find while out and about on our rather limited travels. We've been to quite a lot of Blockbuster Video stores, Happy Shopper shops, Toys R Us locations, Grainger Games shops, and Woolworths locations over the last couple of years!

Related blog posts:

• Little Chef

New Putt Putt Noodle Crazy Golf in Poole, Dorset

There are plans for a new indoor crazy golf venue to open at the Dolphin shopping centre in Poole, Dorset.

The plans come from the team at Putt Putt Noodle who have a three-course venue in Norwich.

Drift Park Crazy Golf in Rhyl, Wales

A revisit to the Drift Park Crazy Golf course in Rhyl, North Wales.

We took a look at the Crazy Golf course at Drift Park in Rhyl yesterday.

The course was the 145th played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour back in 2009.

We last visited Rhyl in December last year.

Mini Golf at Clubhouse Meadowhall

A new indoor entertainment venue is opening at Meadowhall in Sheffield.

Clubhouse Meadowhall will be home to mini golf, tenpin bowling and more when it opens at the shopping centre.

Visit the Clubhouse website for more information.

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

Mini Golf at the Palace Fun Centre in Rhyl, Wales

A revisit to the Palace Fun Centre Mini Golf course in Rhyl, North Wales.

We swung by the indoor Mini Golf course at the Palace Fun Centre in Rhyl on our day trip to the seaside resort yesterday.

We last visited the town in December last year.

I played the course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour in June 2019.

Lost Shops - Grainger Games in Warrington

Spotting an old Grainger Games shop in Warrington.

We saw this former Grainger Games shop at the Golden Square shopping centre in Warrington, Cheshire today.

We've also seen former Grainger Games stores in Stretford, Salford, Hyde, Ashton-Under-Lyne and Bradford.

Interestingly some of them still had a few bits of stock inside!

The shop unit in Warrington will soon be home to Funky Figures. It's nice to see they've kept all of the former Grainger Games shelving inside to give it a nostalgic hit.

The company was founded in 1996 and ceased operations on the 28th March 2018.

As a brand with shops in the North of England and Scotland I only became a regular shopper at Grainger Games when I moved to Stockport in 2016. I picked up some nice old games for my SEGA Master System there.

New indoor Adventure Golf in Stourbridge

A new indoor Adventure Golf course could be opening in Stourbridge.

There are plans for a new indoor Adventure Golf course to be created at the industrial estate at Mill Race Lane in Stourbridge in the West Midlands.

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

Adventure Golf at Shibden Park in Halifax

There are plans for a new Adventure Golf course at Shibden Park in Halifax.

A 12-hole woodland-themed Adventure Golf is planned to be created at Shibden Park in Halifax, West Yorkshire.

It'll be another new course for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, but not a new location.

We've visited the Pitch & Putt course at Shibden Park, along with the incredibly unique 4-hole abandoned Crazy Golf course there!

Scrap Yard Golf at Worcester Bowl

A look at the indoor crazy golf course at Worcester Bowl.

A new course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Find out more about the Scrap Yard Golf course on the Worcester Bowl website.

Mulligans Crazy Golf in Worcester

A look at the new Mulligans Crazy Golf course in Worcester.

The location is home to two indoor crazy golf courses.

We've played a number of Mr Mulligans courses on our travels and the new Worcester course was swung by on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour recently.

Check out the Mr Mulligans website for more information.

Boom Battle Bar opening at Stevenage Leisure Park

A new Boom Battle Bar is opening at Stevenage Leisure Park in Stevenage, Hertfordshire.

The venue will be home to crazy golf, axe throwing, shuffleboard and more. It's due to open in December.

Visit the Boom Battle Bar website for more information.

Golf Fang crazy golf opening in Cardiff

A new Golf Fang indoor crazy golf venue is opening in Cardiff, Wales in 2023.

Visit the Golf Fang website for more information.

Blockbuster on Netflix

There's a new Blockbuster Video comedy out on Netflix! Will you be watching it?

The new show is about the last (operating) Blockbuster Video store in the world. This is a sign we snapped at our old local (abandoned) Blockbuster Video store in Manchester

Check out my blog posts about Blockbuster.

Mini Golf at Hotel Pinija in Croatia

A look at a Miniature Golf course at Hotel Pinija in Petrčane, Croatia.

My brother, and charter member of the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, has sent me a few more snaps of the Miniature Golf course at Hotel Pinija in Petrčane, Croatia. It's one of two layouts at the hotel.

Our combined total of course visits now stands at 1,046 since September 2006.

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.

Par 59 minigolf in Bristol

The new Par 59 minigolf bar venue is opening in Bristol in December.

The second of Gareth Bale's Par 59 venues is scheduled to open in Bristol on Friday 9th December. The indoor minigolf course in the city follows the first Par 59 location in Cardiff.

Check out the Par 59 website for more information.

New Adventure Golf at Furzton Lake in Milton Keynes

A new dinosaur-themed Adventure Golf course has opened at Furzton Lake in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire.

The adventure golf course is an 18-hole layout and is called Dinosaur Valley.

Visit the Dinosaur Valley booking website and Facebook Page for more information. 

New Adventure Golf at Regent Park Golf Club in Bolton

There are plans for a new Adventure Golf course to be created at Regent Park Golf Club in Bolton.

The Adventure Golf course would be built by City Golf and is proposed to have a jungle-theme.

Guess the minigolf course

Where in the world would you find this crazy golf course?

A mini mystery...

Minigolf at Riverside Park in Llangollen, Wales

A revisit to the Minigolf course at Riverside Park in Llangollen, Wales on Saturday 15th October 2022.

Minigolf at Riverside Park in Llangollen

We played the course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour on the 21st August 2009.

37 years of Blockbuster Video

Not entirely gone, and not entirely forgotten.

This was the sign at the Blockbuster Video store in Nuneaton, Warwickshire when it was uncovered for a short period of time in 2021

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

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

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

There has been a boom in nostalgia for the brand - which back in the day was seen as something of a category killer that saw off many smaller operators.

Blockbuster in the UK

The remains of the Blockbuster Video Express store in Billingham, Teesside in 2020

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 are still clearly visible remnants of the brand on the high street and on retail parks. And we've been to most of them on our travels!

Blockbuster Video stores we've visited

Check out the posts about other former Blockbuster Video stores we've been to in:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

A ghost sign at the old Blockbuster Video Express store in Shanklin on the Isle of Wight in 2021

Lost brands

Emily and I have spent a lot of the last few years reminiscing about 'the good old days' before the coronavirus pandemic hit the planet. One of our areas of interest is in old retail brands - we're both marketers by profession and two of my first jobs in the 1990's and the year 2000 were at Tandy and Toys R Us, while Emily's first job was at a Happy Shopper shop. It's been fascinating to find remnants of these brands - and a number of other lost, dead and defunct brands - on the high street and at retail parks around the UK.

A Dull Men's Club Event

A report from the COVID-delayed party for Anorak of the Year 2021.

The Sun Trevor pub in Llangollen

We attended the first Dull Men's Club in-person event since before the coronavirus pandemic at the COVID-delayed party for the Anorak of the Year Award 2021 at The Sun Trevor pub in Llangollen, Wales on Saturday afternoon.

The Dull Men's Club Calendar for 2022

It was marvellous to meet up with fellow dullsters, including old friends as well as meeting some new characters.

Leland Carlson (Assistant Vice President) and Freddie (Apprentice Dullster) present at the Anorak of the Year awards

In recent years the Dull Men's Club has presented an 'Anorak of the Year' award. For 2018 it was presented to Kevin Beresford from Redditch, founder of the Roundabout Appreciation Society. For 2019 to Archie Workman, a drainspotter in Cumbria.

Because of the pandemic no award was given for 2020, instead we won The Dull Men's Club Self-Isolators of the Year Award.

The latest recipient of the Anorak of the Year Award was Rachel Williamson from Rhyl who is a Yarnbomber.

It's always a pleasure getting together at a Dull Men's Club event and the gatherings are anything but boring. Hearing updates from people on their pursuits, interests, hobbies and collections is fun and interesting, and the events always spark conversation and areas of mutual interest - Miniature Golf Day and Telegraph Pole Appreciation Day are both on the 21st September each year for example.

Milk Bottle collector Steve Wheeler has 27,000 milk bottles. Here he holds two new additions to his collection and museum after they were donated by a local farmer

There were a wide-range of dullsters at the event, including milk bottle collectors, park bench appreciators, hill measurers, yarnbombers, roundabout spotters, car park photographers, telegraph pole appreciators, brick collectors, paint inspectors and more.

The Dull Men's Club isn't all about watching paint dry

Find out more on the Dull Men's Club website.

A look at an old Happy Shopper shop in Burton-on-Trent

Visiting a Happy Shopper shop in Burton-on-Trent.

We recently drove home via Burton upon Trent to take a look at a Happy Shopper shop. We're lucky we did as the shop was in the process of being gutted as it's now closed. The business has moved to a new premises over the road, where some of the old branded shelving is now in use.

Video Store Day 2022

Today is Video Store Day.

Do you still have a video store near you?

International Independent Video Store Day is observed on the third Saturday of October each year.

It's always interesting finding lost shops and old signs on my travels and I recently drove past this former video rental shop at The Village Top Shop in Thorpe Hesley, Rotherham!

Video Rentals at The Village Top Shop in Thorpe Hesley, Rotherham

There are still traces of other former video shops to be found on the streets of the UK. Most of those are old Blockbuster Video stores. But there are remnants of independent video shops to be seen if you're lucky.

• Shahenshah Videos in Luton
• Deane Video Centre in Bolton
• Video Box Office at the Happy Shopper Wayfairer Discount Store in Ilkeston
• Video Future in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent
• The Movie Box in Manchester
• Jubilee Films video in Ashton-under-Lyne
  

Blockbuster Video stores we've visited to date:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Other video shops we've been to include B.V.C. - Bolton Video Centre in Little Lever, Bolton and 20th Century Flicks in Bristol - and both were still trading!

On Video Store Day in 2020 we were fortunate enough to stumble upon a video rental shop in Little Lever, Bolton

Globetrotters Crazy Golf at County Mall Shopping Centre in Crawley

Globetrotters Crazy Golf is opening at the County Mall Shopping Centre in Crawley, West Sussex this winter.

The Globetrotters pop-up Crazy Golf course is heading indoors to the County Mall Shopping Centre in Crawley, West Sussex and will be open from Friday 18th November.

Check out the Globetrotters Crazy Golf website for more information.