Formby pint

Although set up for diners, the Cross House in Formby has good atmosphere and good, cheapish beer. Lancaster Blonde was my choice yesterday and went down all too well. Lots of interesting guest beers coming up.
There was a time when Alan Stubbs’ bar Woodwards was the place, but it seems to be fraying round [...]

Curse of the Bay Horse returns

The Bay Horse in Formby, one of the most shockingly vandalised pubs in the history of local boozers,  has been fined over £13,000 for being caked in grease and dirt.
Good. No one who cares one jot about pubs should ever set foot in the Toby monstrosity that was once one of the finest melting-pot bars [...]

The Hightown stumble

Things didn’t start well at the Hightown last night. As we walked in, a man collapsed in front of me, blood streaming out of his nose.
Stepping over the body, I was greeted at the bar by six hand pumps. A Tom Woods bitter (so-so) was followed by a Burton-something (unimpressive) before I stuck on Bass Cask, a [...]

Royal appeals to locals

The Royal Hotel in Formby is one of those pubs that suffers from locals preferring to lock themselves inside their expensive homes rather than mix with the hoi polloi.
In a bid to tempt people back, the Liverpool Road ale house is offering a full range of traditional pub competitions including pool, darts, dominoes, shove ha’penny [...]

Here’s to the old slapper

The Freshield is not one of my regular haunts, being a little out of the way. But the chance to meet the brewer of Bolton’s Bank Top beer and sample some of his ales persuaded me to board the rattler and make the very pleasant five-minute walk from Freshfield Station.
The pub, which is on Massam’s [...]

Meet the brewer night

Gareth and Joanne of the Freshfield Pub, Formby, have arranged a “meet the brewer” night featuring the Bank Top brewery of Bolton on Thursday July 3.
There will be a range of beers from the brewery on offer (as well as their usual impressive range), a presentation on brewing and an opportunity for the customers [...]

Name a beer, drink a beer

The landlord of The Pheasant pub in Hightown is commissioning an ale for the Open and appealing for help naming it.
John Bentley, licensee of the pub on Moss Lane, is asking people to come up with a name for the bespoke brew, which will be bottled and available for a short time around the golf [...]

The curses continue

I’ve searched high and low for Brains SA, the favourite beer of my university days, only to find the Welsh are keeping it for themselves.
Yet since swearing off alcohol for Lent, I’ve seen it on at the Wheatsheaf, Croston, as well as The Phoenix and Guest House in Southport. Am I cursed never to taste [...]

Mitchells & Butlers deserve to go under

It’s hard to have sympathy with the Mitchells and Butlers pub chain.
M&B, who run several popular pubs in the area (such as The Crown (Birkdale), the Railway (Formby) and loads of Toby’s, Vintage and Ember Inns) are in dire straits after a gamble on the property and financial markets left them £391m out of pocket [...]

A right Weld Blundell roasting

Being a considerate family guy, I promised my family a lunch at one of the Formby by-pass Bermuda triangle of carveries.
First call was the Red Squirrel, which used to serve cask beer but looks as if it’s given up since becoming part of the Harvester chain. Luckily, it was packed with old farts so we couldn’t get a table.
Next stop was The Pheasant, until recently a [...]