King Pins opening in Leeds

A new King Pins tenpin bowling & entertainment centre is opening in Leeds later this year.

The new King Pins location at the White Rose Shopping Centre in Leeds will have Crazy Pool as one of the games on offer when it opens.

The venue will also have tenpin bowling, darts, shuffleboard, ice-free curling and more.

Check out the King Pins website for more information.

KitKat x Blockbuster pop-up in Soho, London

KitKat has created a Blockbuster Video pop-up shop in Soho, London! It's there from today (9th April) until Saturday (12th April).

The pop-up video shop is part of a nostalgia inspired campaign to launch KitKat's new sharing bars.

The shop will be located on Greek Street in Soho, London from Wednesday 9th to Saturday 12th April.

Check out the Nestlé website for more information about the KitKat / Blockbuster pop-up.

From the photos I've seen on social media, the KitKat/Blockbuster 'video shop' looks very cool.

Nostalgia and lost brands

We've spent the last few years reminiscing about 'the good old days'. 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.

During the pandemic our interest in lost brands and retail history was piqued and over the last five years we've been to several former Blockbuster Video stores around the UK, as well as finding some other old and some still open video shops on our travels.

At its peak in 2004 there were more than 9,000 Blockbuster Video stores around the world. 500+ of which were in England, Scotland and Wales. Interestingly in Northern Ireland the Xtra-Vision brand was used by the owners in-line with the Republic of Ireland.

The last Blockbuster Video shop ceased trading in the UK in December 2013 and there is now only one Blockbuster Video store in the world - it's in Bend, Oregon, USA.

Indoor Mini Golf at Linvilla Orchards in Media, Pennsylvania

There's an indoor Mini Golf course at Linvilla Orchards in Media, Pennsylvania, USA.

As big fans of minigolf, and curators of the Crazy Golf Museum, it's always interesting seeing minigolf/museum crossovers.

Called Linvilla Orchards Fore! The Planet, the 18-hole mini golf course is an interactive and playful museum exhibit created by the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia.

Linvilla Orchards is a 300-acre family farm dedicated to agriculture, entertainment and education.

Visit the Linvilla Orchards website for more information.

Queen of Hearts Crazy Cues at Fairytale Farm in Chipping Norton

Fairytale Farm in Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire has a new activity for visitors to play - Queen of Hearts Crazy Cues.

The game is a cross between Crazy Golf and Snooker.

The Crazy Cues course is part of the farm's new area inspired by Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

The Crazy Cues attraction has been designed so that each of the 12-holes can be accessible to all players.

Looking at the Crazy Cues tables it appears they are Pit-Pat tables! A game not often seen in the UK, and to my knowledge there is only one other Pit-Pat layout in the country (at Watermouth Family Theme Park and Castle in Devon - where it is known as Crazy Snooker).

The Crazy Cues course is a new one for us to check out on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Visit the Fairytale Farm website for more information.

New Adventure Golf at Beacon Park in Lichfield

Plans for a new Adventure Golf course to replace the old minigolf course at Beacon Park in Lichfield, Staffordshire have been approved.

The new outdoor Adventure Golf course at Beacon Park in Lichfield, Staffordshire is being created as part of improvement works to the facilities at the park.

The plans for the new Adventure Golf course at Beacon Park were put forward by Lichfield District Council and Microsports, with the course planned to be developed by RL Golf Construction Ltd.

The Adventure Golf course at Beacon Park will be a new one for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

We've been to Beacon Park before. Back in September 2017 we played the Eternit-style Miniature Golf course at the park. That layout became the 461st played and 775th visited on our travels.

Crazy Golf at Beacon Park in Lichfield (September 2017)

Crazy Golf at Beacon Park in Lichfield (September 2017)

Mini-Golf at the Stettler Town and Country Museum in Alberta, Canada

There's a mini-golf course at the Stettler Town and Country Museum in Alberta, Canada.

As big fans of minigolf, and curators of the Crazy Golf Museum, it's always interesting seeing minigolf/museum crossovers.

The outdoor mini-golf course at the Stettler Town and Country Museum opened in 2024 and is dedicated to the town's former mayor Dick Richards.

Find out more on the Stettler Town and Country Museum website.

The Adventure Golf course in Dawlish is being removed

The Safari Adventure Golf course near the seafront in Dawlish, Devon is being removed as part of work by South West Water to improve water quality in the area!

Following the work and complete removal of the layout a new course will replace it.

Miniature Golf has been played on the site at York Gardens in Dawlish.

The Safari Adventure Golf course opened in 2018 and itself replaced a Swedish Felt Mini Golf course that had been in the location since the 1990s.

I've got a number of old postcards dating from the 1930's and 40's through to the 70's and 80's that show a grass Putting course on the spot. When we visited in 2015 we were pleased to see a couple of postcards showing the Swedish Felt course on sale in the town and I bought a stack of them from the Tourist Information Centre to post out to friends.

The Mini Golf course on our visit in 2015. The 'Dawlish' sign has been prominent on the course for many years. In older photos of the course the word was spelled out in plants

We haven't been back to Dawlish since, so haven't had a round on the Safari Adventure Golf course, and it is unlikely we will get a chance before its removed this summer. It'll be interesting to see what the next course looks like...

Rocket Park Mini Golf at the New York Hall of Science

The New York Hall of Science has a mini golf course.

As big fans of minigolf, and curators of the Crazy Golf Museum, it's always interesting seeing minigolf/museum crossovers.

Rocket Park Mini Golf at the New York Hall of Science is a 9-hole outdoor course.

Visit the New York Hall of Science website for more information.

Mini Golf at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Missouri

There's an art-inspired mini golf course at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Missouri, USA.

As big fans of minigolf, and curators of the Crazy Golf Museum, it's always interesting seeing minigolf/museum crossovers.

Art Course is an artist designed outdoor 9-hole miniature golf course location in the Donald J. Hall Sculpture Park and each of the holes is a creative interpretation of a work in the museum's collection.

Check out the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art website for more information.

Our friends Tom & Robin at A Couple of Putts were involved in the creation of the course. You can find out more on their website.

Shipwreck Island Adventure Golf in Goodrington Sands

The minigolf course at Youngs Park in Goodrington Sands, Paignton, Devon has been refurbished and is now Shipwreck Island Adventure Golf.

We played the old version of the course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour trip around the South West coast back in 2015. It was the 600th course we visited in the UK.

Adventure Golf at Nairn Lochloy Holiday Park

Nairn Lochloy Holiday Park in Inverness, Scotland has a new Adventure Golf course.

A new Adventure Golf course has been created at the Parkdean Resorts Nairn Lochloy Holiday Park in Inverness, Scotland.

The course was created by the team at Easigrass Golf.

Check out the Parkdean Resorts Nairn Lochloy Holiday Park website for more information.

Big Rolo

They'd be massive Rolos!

Wonky Donkey Crazy Golf at Hall Hill Farm in Lanchester, Durham

There's a Crazy Golf course at Hall Hill Farm in Lanchester, Durham.

Hall Hill Farm in Lanchester, Durham has an outdoor minigolf course called Wonky Donkey Crazy Golf.

You can find out more about the 9-hole outdoor crazy golf course and the farm attraction on the Hall Hill Farm website.

Mini-Golf at Sciencenter in Ithica, New York

There's a Mini-Golf course at Sciencenter in Ithica, New York, USA.

As big fans of minigolf, and curators of the Crazy Golf Museum, it's always interesting seeing minigolf/museum crossovers.

The Mini-Golf course at Sciencenter is an 18-hole science-themed layout.

 

Visit the Sciencenter website for more information.

Shipwreck Rock Adventure Golf in Felpham, West Sussex

A new Adventure Golf course has opened at Blakes Road Sports Site in Felpham.

The 9-hole outdoor Shipwreck Rock Adventure Golf course can be found at Blakes Road in Felpham, West Sussex.

Check out the Tivoli Lifestyle website for more information.

It's another new course for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. Although not a new location, as we played the grass Putting course there back in 2011.

The Japanese Garden at Walkden Gardens in Sale

A walk through the Japanese Garden at Walkden Gardens in Sale, Greater Manchester in March 2025.

We had a pleasant wander through the Japanese Garden at Walkden Gardens in Sale recently.

Find out more about the gardens on the Walkden Gardens website.

Mattatuck Museum Mini Golf (2018)

Noting the Mattatuck Museum Mini Golf course back in 2018.

As big fans of minigolf, and curators of the Crazy Golf Museum, it's always interesting seeing minigolf/museum crossovers.

Back in 2018 the Mattatuck Museum in Waterbury, Connecticut, USA had a 9-hole mini golf installation from June to September.

The course was themed and decorated by the museum and fabricated by Oldham Studios.

Adventure Golf at Lizard Point Holiday Park

There's an Adventure Golf course at the Lizard Point Holiday Park in Helston, Cornwall.

Find out more on the Parkdean Resorts Lizard Point Holiday Park website.

Pizza Putt at the Children's Museum of Wilmington in Wilmington, North Carolina

There's an annual fundraiser involving minigolf at the Children's Museum of Wilmington in Wilmington, North Carolina, USA.

As big fans of minigolf, and curators of the Crazy Golf Museum, it's always interesting seeing minigolf/museum crossovers.

This year the Children's Museum of Wilmington held its first annual fundraiser with a Pizza Putt event.

The event was held on the 7th February and saw visitors enjoy unlimited pizza, minigolf and craft beer.

The success of the inaugural event has meant that it will be an annual tradition, with the next edition scheduled for the 6th February 2026.

Find out more about the event on the Children's Museum of Wilmington website.

Cranbrook on the Green at Cranbrook Art Museum in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

Information about Cranbrook on the Green at Cranbrook Art Museum in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, USA.

As big fans of minigolf, and curators of the Crazy Golf Museum, it's always interesting seeing minigolf/museum crossovers.

Each summer Cranbrook Art Museum in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan hosts Cranbrook on the Green, a pop-up artist-designed mini-golf course.

This year the course is open from the 3rd May until the 28th September.

Check out the Cranbrook Art Museum website for more information.

Our friends Tom & Robin at A Couple of Putts were involved in the creation of the course. You can find out more on their website.