The Plaza Super Cinema and Variety Theatre in Stockport

A look at The Plaza Super Cinema and Variety Theatre in Stockport, Greater Manchester.

The Plaza opened in 1932.

It has had closures over the years, but has been open fully since 2009 and is still going strong.

It's well worth a visit and there are regular theatre shows, pantos, comedy performances and more.

We've also watched some excellent new and classic films on the big screen there.

To watch a film or show there is a superb experience from start to finish - with much more to it than your average multiplex.

The Plaza's original Compton theatre organ is still in situ, and rises out of the floor before performances and during intervals.

The Compton organ being played before a showing of Jaws at The Plaza in July 2024

Find out more on The Plaza website.

An old Pontin's Crazy Golf postcard from Hemsby, Norfolk

A look at a minigolf postcard from our collection.

Here's a long-lost crazy golf course depicted on a Pontin's multi-view postcard of the Hemsby Holiday Village in Hemsby, Norfolk.

PONTIN'S HOLIDAY VILLAGE, HEMSBY, NORFOLK R5713 by Photo Precision Limited, St Ives. Unposted, undated

The layout is of the Eternit Miniature Golf style - a rarity in the UK.

Related blog posts:

• Postcards
• Pontin's
• Hemsby

Arnold Palmer Putting course at Pop’s Meadow in Gorleston-on-Sea, Norfolk

A look at the old Arnold Palmer Putting course at Pop’s Meadow in June 2010.

Miniature Golf of one sort or another has been played on the site since the early to mid-1900's.

There used to be an Arnold Palmer Putting Course at Pop’s Meadow Putting Green in Gorleston-on-Sea. In May 2009 that layout became the 100th visited overall on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

We played the 9-hole Arnold Palmer Putting Course that was at Pop’s Meadow back in June 2010.

There is still a crazy golf course at Pop’s Meadow. The area is now Pop’s Meadow Kids Amusement Park and Café.

Check out the Pop’s Meadow Kids Amusement Park and Cafe Facebook Page for more information.

Arnold Palmer Putting Courses.

Arnold Palmer Putting Courses are a design classic and include all the elements that make a Crazy Golf course great – the Windmill, the Waterwheel, an Obelisk, ledges, bunkers, traps, flat loops, hills and plateaus – everything laid out to make a course interesting, testing and most of all fun!

The Arnold Palmer branded miniature golf courses were part of the Arnold Palmer Enterprises empire set-up in 1961 that saw the legendary golfer's name licensed and franchised to a wide-range of activities and products including Dry Cleaning centres and an Arnold Palmer brand foot detergent.

By 1966 there were 130 Arnold Palmer Putting Courses in the USA, with ten in Japan and some in South Africa.

Take a look at this blog post about "Arnold Palmer Putting Courses in the UK" for further information.

Related blog posts:

• Pop's Meadow
• Gorleston-on-Sea
• Arnold Palmer Putting Courses

Crazy Golf in Oxford's Westgate Centre

A new crazy golf venue is opening at Oxford's Westgate Centre.

Junkyard Golf recently closed in Oxford's Westgate Centre and will reopen as Ted's Crazy Golf after a revamp of the venue.

Ted's Crazy Golf will be home to two 9-hole indoor crazy golf courses when the venue opens in August 2026.

Find out more on the Ted's Crazy Golf website.

A Great Yarmouth miniature golf postcard from 1927

Stepping back in time for a look at minigolf in Great Yarmouth in the 1920s.

One of the earliest miniature golf postcards I have in my collection is this one showing the Putting Green on Marine Parade in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk.

Putting Green, Great Yarmouth. Postcard postally used on the 11th November 1927

The postcard was sent to Hayes, Middlesex on the 11th November 1927.

You can see the Hippodrome in the left of the image and this building is still standing and is the Hippodrome Circus on St George's Road. If you visit now you'll find a row of buildings in front of the Hippodrome itself!

You will also find that there is still a minigolf course on the same spot as the Putting Green.

Now called Castaway Island Adventure Golf the site was an Arnold Palmer Putting Course that we played a number of times on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Guess the Minigolf course location...

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

The Ipswich Portal in Ipswich, Suffolk

There's a portal to different cities in Ipswich town centre.

No one was at the Brazil side of the portal while we were in Ipswich on Saturday afternoon

The Ipswich Portal is a live public art sculpture that links different places around the world.

The Ipswich Portal opened in October 2025 and has a real-time video link to six cities around the world between 6am and 11pm (UK time).

The seven places linked by the portals are:

• Ipswich, UK
• Dublin, Ireland
• Manila, Philippines
• Lublin, Poland
• Philadelphia, USA
• Vilnius, Lithuania
• Piauí, Brazil

Ipswich linked to Manila last Saturday afternoon

Find out more

Check out the Portals website for more information.

Sneaky Links Crazy Golf in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk

Sneaky Links Crazy Golf is an indoor minigolf course in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.

We played the Sneaky Links Crazy Golf course last May.

Link:

• Sneaky Links Crazy Golf

Related blog post:

• Playing at Sneaky Links Crazy Golf in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk

Mini Golf at Frasers Plus Designer Outlet East Midlands

There's a pirate-themed mini golf course at Frasers Plus Designer Outlet East Midlands in Alfreton.

Find out more on the Frasers Plus Designer Outlet East Midlands website.

Adventure Golf at Beacon Park in Lichfield, Staffordshire

A look at the new adventure golf course at Beacon Park in Lichfield, Staffordshire.

We swung by the adventure golf course at Beacon Park in Lichfield during an afternoon in the city on the way back home from a trip to visit family and friends in East Anglia.

Back in September 2017 we played the Eternit-style miniature golf course at Beacon Park. That layout became the 461st played and 775th visited on our travels.

The new course replaced the crazy golf course in the park and covers the same location

This particular Eternit miniature golf obstacle has been retained in the new course layout, with some modifications as can be seen below

The new adventure golf course at Beacon Park opened in May this year.

The adventure golf course at Beacon Park is a 9-hole outdoor woodland-inspired adventure golf layout.

It became the 1,129th course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since 2006.

Beacon Park in Lichfield is also home to a Pitch & Putt course.

Find out more

Check out the Lichfield Historic Parks website for more information.

Art Deco in Lichfield, Staffordshire

A look at The former Regal Cinema in Lichfield, Staffordshire.

The Regal Cinema opened on Tamworth Street in Lichfield in 1932. It closed in 1972, later becoming a Kwik Save supermarket.

The building now consists of residential apartments and retail units.