Thursday, April 02, 2026

Pie Chart

We spotted this funny 'Pie Chart' at Moss Bakery in Hunstanton, Norfolk.

I’m a Champion Miniature Golfer on a tour of the UK’s minigolf and crazy golf courses. Guinness World Record Holder for 'Most miniature golf courses visited'. Coeliac living a gluten free life. Mediocre polymath. Train nerd. Retro gamer. Urban explorer. Always feeling nostalgic about something.

Putting Green and Crazy Golf course in Hunstanton

A look at the Putting Green and Crazy Golf course in Hunstanton, Norfolk.

We spent a couple of hours in the seaside town of Hunstanton on our recent trip to Norwich and Norfolk to visit family and friends. While there we swung by North Promenade for a look at the miniature golf courses.

Sign for the Putting Green and Crazy Golf course in Hunstanton

Photos of the Putting Green and Crazy Golf course in Hunstanton.

Putting Green and Crazy Golf in Hunstanton

The 9-hole Crazy Golf course at the Victorian Pavilion on the seafront in Hunstanton became the 1,116th course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since 2006.

The last time we visited Hunstanton was in 2011. Back then there was a different crazy golf course on the other side of the path. This new crazy golf course also takes up the lower part of what was a two-tier grass putting green.

Sign showing prices for the Putting Green and Crazy Golf course in Hunstanton

Videos of the miniature golf courses.

Videos:

Richard Gottfried

Wednesday, April 01, 2026

Toys R Us at TGJones in Norwich

There's a Toys R Us at TGJones in Norwich city centre.

You can find a Toys R Us concession at TGJones in Norwich, Norfolk. It differs to many of the other new Toys R Us shops I've seen since the return of the brand by having a shopfront of its own next door to the TGJones (formerly WHSmith) that it is housed within.

The end of WHSmith, and the start of TGJones.

The start of July 2025 marked the end of WHSmith on the British high street after 233 years. Following the sale of the business to Hobbycraft owner Modella Capital earlier this year WHSmith shops have been undergoing a rebrand to the new name of TGJones.

WHSmith on the high street, and travel stores.

There were around 500 high street WHSmith shops, and another 580 travel stores in the UK. The WHSmith shops at railway stations, service stations and airports etc. are not affected by the rebrand as they were not part of the sale.

Toys R Us at TGJones and WHSmith.

As well being inside the rebranded TGJones shops, the relaunched Toys R Us brand can be found in sections of some travel hub WHSmith stores.

Toys R Us at Hobbycraft.

You can also find Toys R Us concessions at Hobbycraft stores.

Toys R Us in 2026.

Toys R Us returned to the UK shopping scene with an online presence in 2022 and with concessions opening inside some WH Smith shops in 2023. There are currently 146 Toys R Us stores open nationwide.

Working at Toys R Us.

My first job while at university in the year 2000 was as one of Geoffrey's helpers at the Luton Toys R Us store. I worked on the video game and electronics section.

The old Toys R Us.

At its peak there were 105 Toys R Us stores in the UK. It's been very interesting to find that there are still remnants of the brand on some retail parks in the UK and we've visited several of these closed, abandoned, derelict and demolished Toys R Us locations on our travels.

Former Toys R Us locations we've visited on our travels:

Find out more.

Visit the Toys R Us and TGJones websites for more information.

Green Day Cafe Mini Golf course at Westminster Park in Chester

Last week I asked 'Where in the world was this mini golf course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour?'.

The answer was the Green Day Cafe Mini Golf course at Westminster Park in Chester, Cheshire, England.

Emily visited the course in March 2025.

Find out more.

Visit the Green Day Cafe Mini Golf website for more information.

Richard Gottfried

Crazy Golf in Hunstanton, Norfolk

A look at the Crazy Golf course on North Promenade in Hunstanton, Norfolk.

The 9-hole Crazy Golf course at the Victorian Pavilion on the seafront in Hunstanton became the 1,116th course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since 2006 when we visited the seaside town on Sunday 29th March 2026.

Photos of the 9-hole crazy golf course in Hunstanton.

Hole 1

Hole 2

Hole 3

Hole 4

Hole 5

Hole 6

Hole 7

Hole 8

Hole 9

Videos of the Hunstanton crazy golf course.

Our previous visit to Hunstanton.

Videos:

Richard Gottfried

Guess the Mini Golf course location...

Where in the world was this mini golf course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour?

Richard Gottfried

Tuesday, March 31, 2026

Crazy Golf on North Promenade in Hunstanton, Norfolk

Revisiting Hunstanton, Norfolk on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Crazy Golf course at the Victorian Pavilion in Hunstanton, Norfolk

The 9-hole Crazy Golf course at the Victorian Pavilion on the seafront in Hunstanton became the 1,116th course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since 2006.

Videos:

Richard Gottfried

Video shop speakeasies in the UK

A look at video shop-themed speakeasies in the UK.

The nostalgia for video shops and the culture they provided back in the day has been translated to some speakeasies, bars and other venues incorporating a video shop theme.

RBT Video in Wakefield - a video shop speakeasy

You can't rent any of these films on VHS at RBT Video

These include:

Bunga 90 in Covent Garden, London - the venue sees you step through a video shop frontage to enter a venue full of retro games, karaoke and more.
Pixel Busters in Stoke-on-Trent - an arcade and social gaming venue hidden behind a video store.
RBT Video in Wakefield - take a look at the blog post from our visit.
Vice & Co in Lincoln - here's a blog post from our visit.
Rewind NQ in Manchester's Northern Quarter - check out my blog post 'Drinking in a 'video shop'.

Do you know of any other video shop-themed speakeasies in the UK? Do let me know in the comments.

If you fancy actually renting a video there are still several video shops operating in the UK. Check out this blog post taking a look at video and movie rental shops in the UK.

What do you call 'minigolf'?

A look at different names for the game of miniature golf.

There are a number of different names for the game of miniature golf and on our crazy golfing adventures we've found more than 100 synonyms for it!

While there are some design standards for courses, most would be regarded as 'fantasy' courses where the end result is limited only by imagination, building regulations and budgets.

Here's a look at the common names for the game of putting:

Minigolf (also Mini Golf, Mini-Golf, Miniature Golf) – Minigolf is a catch-all name for the game and can be used to describe every type of course no matter its make-up or design.

Some Pitch & Putt and Par-3 Golf courses also describe themselves as Minigolf / Miniature Golf.

Adventure Golf – Adventure Golf is a relatively new name for the game and mostly describes a course with theming such as pirates, jungles, dinosaurs and space.

Crazy Golf – Crazy Golf is a name most commonly used in the UK. It is seldom, if ever, used overseas except in tourist spots popular with UK natives.

An equivalent name in the USA would be Goofy Golf.

At The Original Crazy Golf course in Skegness, Lincolnshire, England back in 2015

Mini-putt – Mini-putt courses are similar in appearance to Putt-Putt courses however they have distinct standardised hole designs and are particular to Canada.

"Mini-putt" is the Québécois term for the game of minigolf, thanks largely to the popularity of the Quebec cable sports show 'Défi mini-putt' in the 1970s and 80s.

Pitch & Putt – Sometimes Pitch & Putt courses will use the name Miniature Golf or Minigolf.

Putt-Putt – Putt-Putt is a trademark and denotes specific patented types of miniature golf courses. Most courses can be found in the USA, with some still in operation in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

Putt-Putt is sometimes incorrectly used as a catch-all / interchangeable name with Minigolf to describe a course or the game.

Putting – Grass Putting courses and Putting Greens are a type of minigolf and are often found at the seaside or in parks and gardens.

Indoor Minigolf Sevilla in Sevilla, Spain

A look at Indoor Minigolf Sevilla in Seville, Spain.

Our friend Gareth Holmes was recently in Spain and spotted Minigolf Sevilla on a walk round the city.

Indoor Minigolf Sevilla in Seville, Spain - Photo by Gareth Holmes, March 2026

Find out more.

Visit the Minigolf Sevilla website for more information on the 18-hole indoor UV minigolf course.

Richard Gottfried

Monday, March 30, 2026

Crazy Golf at the Victorian Pavilion in Hunstanton, Norfolk

A revisit to Hunstanton, Norfolk on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

The 9-hole Crazy Golf course at the Victorian Pavilion on the seafront in Hunstanton became the 1,116th course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since 2006.