retiredmartin
retiredmartin
Martin
Retired NHS, doing long walks around UK and the world to record the great bits. Focused on Good Beer Guide pubs and live music.
Latest Posts
June 2026. Holme. Cambridgeshire. We popped down early on Tuesday to see Dad on his 91st birthday with card and chocolate. He barely stirred from sleep, at least until the Salvation Army band turned up after lunch to play for him. I...
June 2026. Shipley. Despite the lure of a pint in Shipley’s top-rated pub, and a chance for Mrs RM to use David Hockney for a boost in views like I did with Humphrey, we called it a night after that curry. But as we headed back to the...
June 2026. Shipley. West Yorkshire. Well, I know two (2) readers who’ll want to see pictures of Bradford curry. We called it a day at Gallows Bridge, a memorable place from which to restart the Cask Camino, and headed to the £29.99...
June 2026. Bradford. You left us outside the George & Dragon in Apperley Bridge, where a couple of pedestrians had just used the horsey crossing rather than the human one in contravention of some ancient by-law or other, which was...
June 2026. Apperley Bridge. West Yorkshire. Back on the Cask Camino last Sunday, which seems to be the regular date solely on account of the Travelodges on the way being £30 rather than £189 that day, at least till we get to Skipton. We...
June 2026. Sheffield. An actual day at home in Sheffield last Saturday. It was torture. I was so sleepy I needed a cool drink, so why I ended up drinking cider at the New Barrack is a mystery. This was of the the famous ale houses a...
June 2026. Sheffield. Thursday morning saw a bit of tension in the dining room at Tunbridge Wells’s Russell Hotel, which had kindly found Mrs RM a fan while I was out melting in London. You’ll remember Mrs RM had ordered the Full English...
June 2026. London. A bit hot for a gig last Wednesday, but after a week in Armenia I really needed a night of cask and chaos in central London, and you won’t easily beat that Harp/Cock combo for a reintroduction to the joys of the...
June 2026. London. In central London on the hottest day of the year, I had that joy of an aimless pre-gig wander through the capital, now so freed of traffic you can cross roads without looking and stand in the middle of busy streets...
June 2026. London. A day at the in-laws, bearing up in the Tunbridge Wells heat better than me, and then the 17:10 into Charing Cross for a gig. The rail advice was not to travel unless absolutely necessary. I asked ChatGPT for guidance....
June 2026. Royal Tunbridge Wells. We arrived back from Armenia at 1:30 in the morning, delighted to have won the Wizz seat roulette and secured aisle seats. A quick snooze in the campervan before a whizz down the A505 to see Dad in...
June 2026. Armenia. Our week in Armenia comes to an end with a late flight home to Luton, and who doesn’t dream of arriving home at Luton Airport at 2am in the morning ? But first, Mrs RM has got a “short” tour planned before a dash to...
June 2026. Kond. Yerevan. One more bar that last night in Yerevan, and a 20 minute uphill slog to Kond. We had no idea why Kond was a recommended detour, beyond it being inaccessible. This pic from We Did It Our Way hardly draws you in,...
June 2026. Yerevan. Our final night in Armenia, Sunday proved the busiest of the lot, the streets around Republic Square heaving with families. Pavstos Buzand Street in particular seemed as classy a dining street as anywhere in London...
June 2026. Yereven. At ten to nine, the whole city of Yerevan seemed to descend on Republic Square. And bang on nine, the singing fountains outside the national museums and Government buildings came to life. Press PLAY to try to identify...