Just outside Lichfield in the village of Whittington is the parish church of St Giles where I once attended the wedding of one of Mrs RM’s Uni friends.  It cost about a zillion times more than our own wedding; I think her Dad owned the salt mine.  I’m sure Mrs RM wants to tell me off… Continue reading BASS AT ITS BEST, NEARLY

  “Those who attain any excellence, commonly spend life in one pursuit; for excellence is not often gained upon easier terms”. Samuel Johnson, on completing the 1770 Good Beer Guide. What a wonderfully underrated little place Lichfield is.  There’s not much to do, but its streets are made for walking.  Mostly into the back of… Continue reading LICHFIELD – TIRED OF MICROPUBS, TIRED OF LIFE

  An early start today to see Sutton Coldfield at its best. Which is basically Sutton Park, one of Birmingham’s busiest green spaces. The ducks were queuing up to dive in their special swimming pool. (PLEASE NOTE – These are Canadian geese which should be avoided. Thanks to Richard Coldwell for the info.) It’s a… Continue reading THE CHAIN JOYS OF SUTTON COLDFIELD

  Another day, another chance for me to embarrass my son by taking endless photos of Universities. We’re coming to an end of a week driving him round Open Days and Campus Tours.  All very exciting, but I’ll spare you Guildford. Sheffield was a late addition, hence a second trip to Meadowhall in a week.  Can’t… Continue reading SHEFFIELD’S UNIVERSITY ARMS

  A GUESS THE PUB SPECIAL TODAY  You’ll notice a consistent theme in this blog, along the lines of “More isn’t necessarily better“.  The number of OK but indifferent beers I get when a pump has half a dozen or more handpumps is rising by the day. Having said that, multi-pump pubs like that are still the… Continue reading TESTING THE py HYPOTHESIS