Today is Star Wars Day

May the 4th Be With You.

A selection of Star Wars characters and props I've seen on my travels - clockwise from top left at the Merseyway Comic Con in Stockport, at Collectorabilia in Leeds, at Stockport Comic Con, at Milton Keynes Outdoor Market, at Dunstable's Party in the Park, in an action figure box at John Lewis in the Trafford Centre, on a speeder bike at the Merseyway Comic Con, in a games shop in Norwich, on the planet moon of Endor at Warrington's Geeky Christmas Market 

Woolworths in Nuneaton

Finding a Woolworths ghost sign.

We were surprised to see a Woolworths ghost sign while walking through Nuneaton town centre!

The sign was above the store's former entrance on Queens Road.

Social distancing signage alongside Woolworths branding - not something I ever thought I'd see

The shop was most recently a Poundland and before then had been a 99p Stores and a TJ Hughes.

It's always fun seeing old & lost brands, ghost signs and retail relics.

You can see some of Poundland's 'Sorry We Have Closed' messaging on the shopfront. Interestingly one of our local Poundland shops in Stockport has recently closed and where the signage has been removed you can see a British Home Stores ghost sign

Other Woolies

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009 so it's always nice when remnants of the brand become visible again.

We visited the Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent last September. That store still has the signage in place and we'd originally spotted it while driving through the town the previous November.

We took a look at an old Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh in August 2011. That was a Big W Woolworths store at The Jewel retail park. It's long gone now.

You can however still see an old mosaic tile logo at the former Woolworths on Stamford Street Central in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester.

Interestingly there's a Woolworths Pick n' Mix Crazy Golf hole at Teezers Retro Golf in Coventry!

Puttshack Mini Golf at Lakeside

A look at the Puttshack indoor minigolf course at Lakeside, Essex.

Many thanks to my friend and minigolf rival Stephen Skinner for sending me some snaps from his visit to Puttshack at the Lakeside shopping centre in Grays, Essex. Stephen played the course last August.

For more information about Puttshack high-tech mini-golf visit the Puttshack website. The brand has recently launched in the USA too.

Playing at Puttshack

Emily and I played the Puttshack course at the Westfield shopping centre in London in October 2019. The course at White City was the 529th course played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

We also swung by the, then still under construction, Puttshack super-tech mini-golf venue at Bank during our trip to the capital.

Crazy Golf at Rylstone Tea Gardens in Shanklin on the Isle of Wight

A look at the Rylstone Tea Gardens Crazy Golf course in Shanklin, Isle of Wight.

My friend and minigolf rival Matt Dodd sent me this photo of the Crazy Golf course at Rylstone Tea Gardens in Shanklin on the Isle of Wight during his minigolfing trip there last summer.

We've been to the course and seen it in two iterations. The first time was when the layout was on the original wooden course design in 2008. When we returned in 2016 the layout was using many of the original obstacles but in a concrete setting.

Visit the Rylstone Tea Gardens & Crazy Golf Facebook Page for more information.

May is Celiac Awareness Month

This month is Celiac Awareness Month.

Coeliac Disease (Celiac in the US and Canada) is a lifelong autoimmune disease caused by intolerance to gluten and the only treatment is to adhere to a strict lifelong gluten free diet.

In the UK it's estimated that 1 in 100 people have the condition, in the USA the figure is 1 in 133.

Visit the Beyond Celiac website for more information.

Living a gluten free life

Having suffered from a range of symptoms for around ten years I finally received a positive diagnosis of Coeliac Disease following some 'interesting' and in-depth tests and procedures in 2008. It came as a relief to finally have a name for the mysterious cause of my illnesses and ailments, but at the time I was only given a brief summary and told that I'd have to "cut down on bread and beer". It was only later when I met with a Gastroenterologist and a dietitian that I found out that the only treatment for people with Coeliac Disease is a strict, life-long gluten free diet.

Coeliac awareness dates

The month of May is Celiac Awareness Month, International Coeliac Day is on Sunday 16th May and Coeliac UK Awareness Week runs from the 10th to the 16th May.

The Minigolfer's Guide to Marketing

I published my minigolf marketing ebook four years ago today.

It's been brilliant to see the guide read and used by a number of associations, federations, course owners and managers, players and clubs around the world.

The feedback and reviews have been excellent to see, with some people also using the ebook to help them promote other sports.

You can buy my minigolf marketing ebook on Amazon.

Don't worry if you don't have a Kindle as you can download the Kindle App on iOS, Android, Mac & PC.

The ebook is also available on Kobo.

It's just £1.99.

Minigolf Marketing

As a minigolfer with over a decade of experience as a tournament competitor and years of experience in marketing and communications I designed the guide so that anyone interested or involved in minigolf could help promote the game. It's a niche title, but an audience and subject I know a lot about.

Writing the book was brilliant and enabled me to bring two areas of my life together. I've worked in marketing since 2003 and have played minigolf since I was a child. Stepping up to compete on the national minigolf tour circuit and in international tournaments opened my eyes to the potential of the game. I’ve also had the honour of serving on the committees of the British Minigolf Association (BMGA) and the World Minigolf Sport Federation (WMF).

Minigolf is a sport for all. People of all ages, sexes, backgrounds and abilities can pick up a putter and play the game.

The Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Emily and I have visited 958 courses in the UK and overseas on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. When our travels began in 2006 there were around 600 courses in the UK. We've got 40 from that original list left to visit.

The minigolf boom

The game is really booming and new courses are being announced all the time.

There are a huge amount of interesting and fun stories to tell and positive aspects to highlight to potential players, the media, sponsors and the wider sporting community. The Minigolfer's Guide to Marketing should give federations, associations, courses, clubs and our fellow players ideas, inspiration and support in their marketing efforts.

Links:

• Minigolf and marketing consultancy
• The Minigolfer's Guide to Marketing on Amazon
• The Minigolfer's Guide to Marketing on Kobo

Minigolfing in the Netherlands. In Andover

We played an around-the-world themed indoor minigolf course in Andover, Hampshire back in May 2019.

Each of the holes was themed after a different country. Hole 1 was the Netherlands.

The Glo-Golf course at the Riverside Bowl in Andover was the 882nd course visited and 514th played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. We've now been to 958 courses since September 2006.

We're yet to play in the Netherlands itself. However, my brother Christopher - a charter member of the tour - has played a Time Travel themed GlowGolf course in Amsterdam and swung by the Midget Golf course in Muiderberg.

Mini Golf at Cherry Hill Garden Centre in Hemlington, Middlesbrough

There's a new minigolf course at Cherry Hill Garden Centre in Hemlington, Middlesbrough.

The 9-hole outdoor minigolf layout opened in 2020.

Visit the Cherry Hill Garden Centre website for more information.

It's a new miniature golf course - and another at a garden centre - for us to add to our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

No Minigolf at Chester Zoo

The Conservation Golf course at Chester Zoo is no longer there.

We had a day out at Chester Zoo yesterday. Unfortunately the Conservation Golf course that our friend John Mittler snapped for us in January 2018 is long gone.

Check out the guest blog post from John's visit for more photos.

Looking for the Putting Green at Runcorn Hill Park

We had a look for the Putting Green at Runcorn Hill Park in Runcorn, Cheshire on our way back from a day out at Chester Zoo yesterday. Unfortunately the course wasn't cut in.

Out of season

You could however still see some of the mounds and bumps of the greens of the layout.

A green on the Putting Course

It was still nice to have a wander around a different park, after having traipsed around the same parks and paths for more than a year.

Not a minigolf hole

But it looked a bit like one

One of two stones in the park that depict the Earth

The UK

The other half of the globe

We'll be heading back to Runcorn again in the future as we've never been to the town centre. We'll swing by Runcorn Hill Park again and see if the course is there next time.

We had a wander to the cliff

You get some superb views from the top of the Frog's Mouth Cliff!

Chester Zoo's monorail

A look at what remains of the monorail at Chester Zoo.

Unfortunately we were two years too late to have a ride on the monorail at Chester Zoo when we visited yesterday.

However, as a big fan of monorails it was interesting to see sections of the track still in place

There were quite a few 'ends of the line' too!

A bench underneath the monorail

Mini Golf at The Boathouse in Christchurch

A look at the Mini Golf course at The Boathouse in Christchurch, Dorset.

Our fellow crazy golf adventurer Matt Dodd recently played the Mini Golf course at The Boathouse in Christchurch, Dorset and sent us these snaps of the layout.

Check out The Boathouse's website for more information, opening times and prices.

Matt and his family have visited hundreds of courses on their crazy golf adventures and it's always great to meet up with them for a game. Matt has managed to track down and play quite a lot of courses that we're yet to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour!

We're looking forward to having a game at The Boathouse in the future.