A visit to The Floodgate in Digbeth, Birmingham

Checking out The Floodgate, a new experiential entertainment venue in Digbeth.

Last Wednesday I headed down to Birmingham to check out the new indoor entertainment venue at the Custard Factory in Digbeth.

The Floodgate is home to three activities - indoor baseball batting cages, curling and Pit-Pat table golf.

As a BIG fan of all things minigolf-related my main interest was the Pit-Pat table golf.

Pit-Pat is similar to crazy golf in that you have to play over, up, through and around different obstacles on each of the tables. The main difference though is that you use a cue rather than a club.

After checking out the baseball cages in the main bar area I walked through a corridor to find the curling rink.

The baseball batting cage

Curling

A little further down the corridor was a sign for Pit-Pat and then to the left was a doorway into the Pit-Pat course.

The Pit-Pat layout is split into three, with most of the tables in one large retro graffiti art covered room. The tables have been UV painted and so there's a nice glow-in-the dark look to it.

Table 12 can be found all on its own in a very cool black & white room. The mono look is a very nice contrast to the UV sections.

Tables 13 to 18 then follow, with more graffiti art on the walls and some tricky obstacles including a bridge, ramp & net, pipes and a loop-di-loop to tackle.

It was brilliant to be the first person to play the UK's first and only indoor UV Pit-Pat Table Golf course. I had five rounds at The Floodgate, scoring 47, 51, 37, 34 and 36. I was very happy with my rounds in the 30s and the 34 was very sweet as I shot four aces.

I'd previously played Pit-Pat at the UK's only previous course back in 2014. Sadly that course in Littlehampton became a lost course a couple of years ago.

As I was leaving to catch my train back home the Pit-Pat area began to fill up with more players taking to the tables.

This is a nice obstacle and hole to play into

It was nice to see people enjoying the batting cages and curling too, along with the street food and well stocked bar.

Table 18

Check out The Floodgate website for more information, opening times and prices.

The Floodgate is housed in this old building built in 1938

Laser Tag in Birmingham

Spotting a Laser Tag centre in Birmingham.

On my recent trip to Birmingham I stumbled upon the Laser Tag centre at Teamworks Karting in Digbeth.

Great to know there's one there. I really need to have another game of laser tag soon.

Check out the Teamworks Karting website for more information.

Along with my sixth sense in finding minigolf courses I seem to also be able to sniff out a laser tag arena wherever I go.

Putting Course at the Macdonald Elmers Court Hotel and Resort in Lymington

A look at the Putting Course at the Macdonald Elmers Court Hotel in Lymington, Hampshire.

While we were down in Lymington to play the New Forest Adventure Golf course at Lymington Golf Centre in May we popped over the road to the Macdonald Elmers Court Hotel and Resort as our friend and minigolf rival Ollie Florence had told us there was a Putting Course there.

A nice view

Adventure Golf at Lion Farm, Oldbury

A new Adventure Golf course is one of the activities planned for the new Lion Farm, Oldbury development.

There are plans for a new retail and entertainment complex at Lion Farm, Oldbury in the West Midlands.

The site will be home to an 18-hole prehistoric-themed Adventure Golf course. Other activities include indoor climbing, VR paragliding, an aerial adventure high rope course, soft play, laser tag arena, escape rooms and a SEGA game zone.

More information can be found on the Lion Farm, Oldbury website.

Crazy Golf at The Olde Watermill Shopping Village in Barton-Le-Clay

A look at the Crazy Golf course at The Olde Watermill Shopping Village in Barton-Le-Clay, Bedfordshire.

My friend and sometimes minigolf opponent Simon 'Practice' Hall was recently at The Olde Watermill Shopping Village in Barton-Le-Clay, Bedfordshire and spotted a poster for a Crazy Golf course there.

He sent over this snap of the layout.

We used to visit The Olde Watermill Shopping Village when we lived in nearby Luton. Typical that there's a course there now we've moved away.

Visit The Olde Watermill Shopping Village website for more information.

Pitch and Putt at Ravenmeadow Golf Centre in Worcester

We visited the Ravenmeadow Golf Centre in Worcester last May to play the Jungle Safari Adventure Golf course there.

There's also a nice looking Pitch and Putt course at the venue.

We didn't have time for a game on the Pitch and Putt as well as we were en route to Southampton.

Putting Green at The Range in Manchester

Last year we attended the The Range's first birthday party in Spinningfields, Manchester.

What a chandelier!

Time certainly flies!

Sadly we couldn't play the indoor Putting Green at the event.

Bowling minigolf hole at Puttshack

A tenpin bowling-themed hole at Puttshack super tech mini golf at White City.

A tenpin bowling hole at Puttshack

While playing at Puttshack mini golf in London we spotted tenpin bowling-themed holes on two of the four courses.

Down the lane and onto the green

We've seen quite a few tenpin bowling crossover holes on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Putting Green at Hintlesham Golf Club

A look at Putting Green at Hintlesham Golf Club in Suffolk.

Earlier this summer we attended the wedding of our niece Beth at Hintlesham Golf Club in Suffolk.

Sadly we didn't have time for a putt on the Putting Green at the venue.

Mr Mulligans Space Golf in Birmingham

A visit to Mr Mulligans Space Golf in Birmingham.

On Wednesday I was down in Birmingham and swung by Mr Mulligans Space Golf centre at Broadway Plaza.

The red planet

Mr Mulligans Space Golf in Birmingham is home to three 12-hole Adventure Golf courses - Asteroid, Supernova and Mars Base.

This was an interactive hole with a spinner on the screen deciding how you play your tee shot. Unfortunately the screens on the other two courses were broken

I played all three layouts, with the Mars Base the best of the bunch as it had the most interesting hole designs and looked out of this world.

The airlock into the Mars Base

A look at the Mars Base course

The colours on the Mars Base course were very nice

In the engine room

A reactor

There are now Mr Mulligans courses in Basildon, Birmingham, Bournemouth, Castleford, Cheltenham, Milton Keynes - outdoors and indoors, Newcastle, Nottingham, Sidcup, Stevenage, Tonbridge and Woking.

Aboard the Mars Base

What's a little fallout, huh? Have a nice day!

By hole 10 I had a nice healthy glow

The last Mr Mulligans course we played was the Space Golf venue in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne on Miniature Golf Day in 2018.

We've still got to visit the Mr Mulligans courses in Basildon, Bournemouth, Nottingham, Tonbridge, and the indoor course in Milton Keynes.

The courses at Mr Mulligans Space Golf in Birmingham were the 929th, 930th and 931st visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since September 2006.

Visit the Mr Mulligans website for more information, opening times and prices.

The Floodgate in Digbeth opens tonight

Good luck to the team at The Floodgate in Birmingham as the venue opens today.

The new entertainment spot is home to the UK's first indoor UV Pit-Pat Table Golf course.

Pit-Pat at The Floodgate

The 18 Pit-Pat tables are set in a graffiti art covered glow-in-the-dark area.

You can also play on the indoor baseball batting cages and a curling rink at the social sports venue.

Visit The Floodgate website for more information, opening times and prices.

Check out my videos from my visit on Wednesday for a taste of the Pit-Pat Table Golf course.

Putting Greens at Southampton City Golf Course

A look at a pair of Putting Greens in Southampton.

Earlier this year we had a great time visiting Southampton.

It was the first time we'd visited the town and surrounding area and we were surprised to find a lot of miniature golf courses, including Adventure Golf and Crazy Golf layouts we were previously unaware of.

While driving to check out a Crazy Golf course at the Outdoor Sports Centre we found these two Putting Greens at the very well maintained Southampton City Golf Course.

Gluten free at The Oxford Place in Leeds

We were recently back in Leeds and so had to have a meal at our favourite restaurant, The Oxford Place.

The food at The Oxford Place is superb. And 100% gluten free

The menu at The Oxford Place is 100% gluten free. Check out The Oxford Place website for more information.

Luckily we've got some more trips to Leeds planned this year and can't wait for our next meals there.

New Treetop Adventure Golf course in Glasgow

Plans have been submitted for a new Treetop Adventure Golf course to be built in Glasgow.

Mini golf, big adventures

It is hoped that the indoor adventure golf centre will open at St Enoch Centre in Glasgow city centre.

Treetop Adventure Golf in Cardiff

You can find Treetop Adventure Golf courses in Cardiff, Manchester and Leicester.

Treetop Adventure Golf in Manchester

Visit the Treetop Adventure Golf website for more information on the venues.

Treetop Adventure Golf in Leicester

We need to head back up to Glasgow on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour and visit the new courses that have opened since we last played in the city back in 2009!

Treetop Adventure Golf is one of the brands setting up in shopping centres around the UK.

Happy National Calzone Day!

Happy National Calzone Day 2019.

Where will you be getting your calzone from today?

Whether you call them calzone, or if you're like me refer to them as "trompone", I hope you have a wonderful day.

Mmmmm calzone.

Note: my trouser legs are not pictured

National Calzone Day is always celebrated on the 1st of November.

A$$ bins in Billericay

Having a look through my photo archive I spotted this photo of some bins in Billericay.

Take a close look for the missing letters.

It reminded me of the 'recycling drive' in Luton a few years ago.