Happy Summerween!

Today is Summerween.

A Summerween Jack-o-Melon

Summerween is celebrated annually on the second to last Friday of the month of June.

The quirky event is also on the 22nd June. So you get two bites of the cherry (or should that be watermelon) to celebrate it.

Typically it's a very rainy and grey day here in Cheadle Hulme. Let's hope we get some sunny summer weather on Monday.

I'm a big fan of Halloween. It'll be an interesting one this year for sure!

Social distancing at Whitby's Arnold Palmer Crazy Golf course

The Arnold Palmer Crazy Golf course in Whitby has reopened with social distancing measures in place.

The 9-hole Arnold Palmer Putting Course on North Terrace of the West Cliff in Whitby is a brilliant layout.

Playing hole 1 in August 2015

The course was the 545th visited overall on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour and we're looking forward to returning to play there again in the future.

It's the sort of course I could play on all day long.

Toys R Us at the Central Retail Park in Manchester

A look at the old Toys R Us store at the Central Retail Park on Great Ancoats Street in Manchester.

While looking through my photos during lockdown and prompted by my recent look at the old Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh I found these views of the old Toys R Us store at the former Central Retail Park on Great Ancoats Street in Manchester.

The old Toys R Us unit at Central Retail Park in Manchester

The snaps were taken in February and March last year following the demise of the brand and the closure of the retail park.

How the store looked in early February 2019 

The demolition work had really begun when we passed by a month and a half later

A look at the entrance to the store in March 2019

Geoffrey was the last to leave the Ancoats store

Working at Toys R Us

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

Shopping at Toys R Us

It was a real shame to see the brand go under. It was always a treat when me and my brothers would visit to buy games for our SEGA Master System in the 1990s. I've still got those games, some have the Toys R Us stickers on.

A nice piece of ephemera

Other lost brands

Our travels around the country have seen us spot the remnants of a number of old and defunct brands, including Woolworths in Stoke-on-Trent, Tandy in Hitchin, RadioShack in Lytham Saint Annes, Kwik Save in Barrow-in-Furness and Blockbuster Video in Fallowfield, Manchester.

Do you have a favourite 'lost shop' from years gone by? Maybe the remains of an old brand are still visible on a building near where you live or work? Do let me know.

Social distancing at Strokes Adventure Golf course in Margate

Strokes Adventure Golf in Margate, Kent has reopened with social distancing measures in place.

Find out more about the 18-hole outdoor adventure golf course on the Strokes Adventure Golf website and Facebook Page.

I enjoy seeing the Strokes Adventure Golf daily weather updates on social media.

View this post on Instagram

. . . . #minigolf #⛳ #golf #thanet #visitkent #visitengland #weatherforecast #crazygolf #margate #minigolf #weekend #thursday #lovemargate #southeast #kent #broadstairs #weather #canterbury #amateurphotography

A post shared by Minigolf Margate, Westbrook (@strokesadventuregolf) on Jun 18, 2020 at 12:03am PDT

We've got many happy memories of playing the tricky and well designed course at Strokes over the years and look forward to playing there again in the future.

Strokes Adventure Golf in Margate was the 34th course played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

NO GOLF at Higher Bebington Recreation Ground on the Wirral

In July 2017 we went looking for a Crazy Golf course at Higher Bebington Recreation Ground on the Wirral. We found it, but unfortunately it was abandoned.

There was an interesting NO GOLF sign on one of the trees at the park.

The Education and Cultural Services Department regret that you can't play golf at Higher Bebington Recreation Ground if you've been cut in half

The Crazy Golf course at Higher Bebington Recreation Ground was one of a number of abandoned and derelict miniature golf courses we've found on our travels.

Hardcore Mini Golf

A look at the new Hardcore Mini Golf show.

Taking a nod from the Holey Moley TV series and reminding me of the classic Extreme Dodgeball show Hardcore Mini Golf is a new online minigolf tournament series taking place in the USA.

Hardcore Mini Golf has certainly put its own twist on competitive minigolf and the show features a cast of colourful characters.

The Hardcore Mini Golf tournament sees 16-players battle it out over four rounds on the Peter Pan Mini-Golf course in Austin, Texas.

Check out the trailer and episode one in the videos below.

Visit the Rooster Teeth and Hardcore Mini Golf websites for more information.

Social distancing since 2009

Looking back through our photo archive I noticed this interesting sign on a minigolf course we played back in May 2009.

A precursor to social distancing.

WHEN PUTTING MAKE SURE NOBODY IS NEAR YOU

The 9-hole Swedish Felt Mini Golf course was at Blake End Craft Centre, near Braintree, Essex. It was the 95th course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. We've now been to 948 since September 2006.

The Flintstones Crazy Golf

Caption this photo of me playing The Flintstones Crazy Golf course in Weymouth...

The Flintstones Crazy Golf course in Bowleaze Cove, Weymouth. October 2009

The Flintstones Crazy Golf course at Bowleaze Cove in Weymouth was the 77th visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour back in October 2008. I replayed it in 2009.

It's now a lost course.

Social distancing at Hastings Adventure Golf

The three miniature golf courses at Hastings Adventure Golf have reopened with social distancing measures in place.

Visit the Hastings Adventure Golf website for more information.

We've played at Hastings Adventure Golf a lot over the years and look forward to having a few more rounds there in the future.

The World Crazy Golf Championships were due to take place at Hastings Adventure Golf earlier this month. This was me playing hole 2 in front of a crowd at the 2014 World Championships

The 18-hole Crazy Golf course at Hastings Adventure Golf in East Sussex turned 45 years old this year, having opened on Saturday 21st March 1975.

Hole 7 of the Crazy Golf course at Hastings Adventure Golf. One of my all-time favourite courses

Woolworths in Brunstane, Edinburgh

A look at an old Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh.

The abandoned Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh in August 2011

My recent revisit to the old Blockbuster Video store in Fallowfield, Manchester reminded me of the old Woolworths shopfront we saw in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent last November. That in turn prompted me to look in our archives for the photos I took of the abandoned Big W Woolworths store at The Jewel retail park next to the railway station in Brunstane, Edinburgh, Scotland from 2011.

A closer look at the old entrance

Brunstane railway station on the left is dwarfed by the old abandoned Woolworths store on the right

The building is now home to The Range.

The last Woolworths

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009 so we were amazed to see the sign was still up at the Stoke-on-Trent store last year.

Ghost signs

We see a lot of ghost signs on shops and building on our travels. Many of these are from decades ago and they help tell the story of an area.

Unfortunately in the coming months and years we are likely to see a number of other brands disappear.

In addition to these Woolworths shops and the Blockbuster Video store we've seen the remnants of retail brands from recent years including Tandy in Hitchen, RadioShack in Lytham Saint Annes and Kwik Save in Barrow-in-Furness.

Do you have a favourite brand from years gone by? Are the remains of an old brand still visible on a building where you live or work? Do let me know.

Woolworths Pick n' Mix

Interestingly there's a Woolworths-themed miniature golf hole at Teezers Retro Golf course in Coventry, we played that course in April last year.

A loop-di-loop obstable on a Pick n' Mix minigolf hole

Social distancing minigolf

Minigolf in the time of coronavirus and social distancing.

We're interested in seeing examples of Covid-19 social distancing at minigolf courses around the world - from signage to scorecards we'd like to see them and share them.

If you're a course owner, minigolf club or player please do get in touch with your examples.

Social distancing at minigolf courses

It'll be interesting to see the changes to how minigolf is played as lockdown restrictions ease and it becomes safer to get out and about a bit more.

I've been writing about social distancing and the impact of coronavirus on minigolf and competitive socialising venues. You can see more of my posts at 'The Coronavirus (Ham & Egger) Files'.

Social distancing Pitch & Putt

We don't have any adventure, crazy or mini golf courses in Stockport, but we do have a Pitch & Putt miniature golf course at Bruntwood Park in Cheadle Hulme. We saw the social distancing measures in place there while out on our daily exercise recently.

Happy birthday to the Golfbaren minigolf courses in Sweden

Golfbaren Kristineberg and Golfbaren Aspudden celebrated their birthdays this week.

Golfbaren Kristineberg opened seven years ago yesterday, while Golfbaren Aspudden opened on the same day three years ago.

We visited Golfbaren Kristineberg and Golfbaren Aspudden during our long weekend in Stockholm to help celebrate Swing By Golfbaren's first birthday in February 2018.

At Golfbaren Aspudden

Golfbaren Kristineberg was the 803rd course we visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. Golfbaren Aspudden in Hägersten was the 804th.

Golfbaren Kristineberg is right next to the railway station

A snow covered Golfbaren Aspudden

Swing by Golfbaren was the landmark 800th course we visited.

Swing by Golfbaren indoor miniature golf course and speakeasy

The Golfbaren courses are owned by our friend, minigolf rival and legend of the game Hans Olofsson. As well as Golfbaren Kristineberg and Golfbaren Aspudden you can also play outdoors at the new Golfbaren Jungfrusund course.

Visit the Golfbaren website for more information.

Our trip to Sweden in 2018 was the second time we'd been there to play minigolf. The first was in June 2011 when we were in Stockholm playing for Great Britain in the WMF Nations Cup tournament.

Check out the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour Newsletter archive and sign-up to receive future editions

NO GOLF at Appley Park in Ryde on the Isle of Wight

We couldn't find the Pitch & Putt course listed on the signpost either.

Pitch & Putt and NO GOLF signs in Appley Park

Tuesday minigolf mystery - guess the course location

Tuesday minigolf mystery.

Where in the world would you have found this minigolf course?

Play Lee Carvallo's Putting Challenge from The Simpsons

You can now play Lee Carvallo's Putting Challenge from The Simpsons!

I know which club I'm choosing

I love The Simpsons and I love Putting so I was very very very happy to hear that Lee Carvallo's Putting Challenge from the show has been made into a playable game!

Many thanks to my friend and minigolf rival Martyn Williams from the Welsh Minigolf Club for sending the link to me.

Play Lee Carvallo's Putting Challenge online

The playable version of the game was made by Aaron Demeter. Follow him on Twitter too.

It's certainly cheered me up on this Minigolf Monday and is a bright spot in an otherwise incredibly gloomy year.

Happy Putting.

The remains of Blockbuster Video in Manchester

A return look at the remnants of the Blockbuster Video store in Fallowfield, Manchester.

I spotted the remains of a Blockbuster Video store while driving to Manchester last October. I returned for a look at the Fallowfield Retail Park location during my lockdown daily outdoor exercise time yesterday.

Some more of the inside of the store has become visible since my first visit. You can now see the remains of a computer system, a CRT TV on a desk and a larger CRT TV hanging from the ceiling.

How TV's should be

I wonder what the last film trailer to be shown on that telly was?

Blockbuster ceased operations in the UK in December 2013.

Oh how times have changed since then.

Social distancing

As with all of the other shops at Fallowfield Retail Park the pathways and walls have had Covid-19 social distancing signs and stickers added.

There's nobody around to observe social distancing from

It's quite something to see the remains of a defunct brand from 'the before times' alongside the signs-of-the-times during the coronavirus pandemic.

A Covid-19 social distancing sign on the exterior of the long since closed Blockbuster store

The tented bay you can see in the right of the photo is part of a drive-in Covid-19 test facility!

A look at the old store

Did you ever rent games from Blockbuster? I remember buying a few ex-rental PlayStation games from the Luton store in the early noughties

Frozen in time

I wonder what the last item to be dropped in here was?

Some old paperwork

Unfortunately in the coming months and years we are likely to see a number of other brands disappear.

The last Blockbuster

There is currently one independently owned franchise still operating as Blockbuster in the USA and you can find it in Bend, Oregon.

We were planning to visit Portland, Oregon later this year. The Blockbuster in Bend is 174 miles from Portland and a 3-hour journey by car.

There used to be a Carphone Warehouse in Fallowfield. That store was another casualty of the retail wars. They actually bought Tandy when that went out of business too. My first job was at a Tandy franchise in my home town back in the 1990s

Blockbuster Crazy Golf

Interestingly there is still another 'Blockbuster' store in the UK. It's part of the Ghetto Golf indoor crazy golf course at The Custard Factory in Digbeth, Birmingham.

The Blockbuster Video hole at Ghetto Golf in Digbeth, Birmingham

Do you have a favourite defunct brand? Are the remains of an old brand still visible on a building where you live or work? Do let me know.