The Dino Falls Masters Adventure Golf competition in Manchester

Looking back at the Dino Falls Masters Adventure Golf competition at the Trafford Golf Centre in Manchester.

Playing Dino Falls Adventure Golf in Manchester

I competed in the first-ever Dino Falls Masters Adventure Golf competition at the Trafford Golf Centre in Manchester on the 6th April 2018 - and won it!

Playing Dino Falls Adventure Golf in Manchester

The event saw hundreds of players compete.

The venue has been a good spot for me and our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, as I also won the Mini Masters and Mini Open there in 2009, as well as a Midlands Minigolf Club Invitational Tournament, also in April 2008.

At Dino Falls Adventure Golf in Manchester

The Trafford Golf Centre is home to two 18-hole adventure golf courses. Check out Trafford Golf Centre and Dino Falls Adventure Golf websites for more information on the courses.

Pubs of Stockport during the coronavirus pandemic

A look at Stopfordian Pubs during the Coronavirus Pandemic.

Four years ago today we photographed The Kings Tap on Station Road in Cheadle Hulme. It became the first of 265 pubs, bars and clubs we visited in the borough between April and the 4th of July when the first coronavirus pandemic lockdown ended.

Pub number 1 - The Kings Tap on Station Road in Cheadle Hulme. A lovely Art Deco building. We'd never seen it shuttered before the lockdown

We visited each of the pubs while on our daily outdoor exercise between Wednesday 1st April and before pubs were allowed to reopen with social distancing measures on Saturday 4th July.

It gave us something to do during the lockdowns and it was interesting to see the variety of architecture, different signage, parts of the town we haven't been to for a long time and other parts of the area we've never been to. I documented the pubs on Instagram using the #StopfordianPubs tag.

At the 265th pub on our lockdown 'pub crawl'. Not a drop was drunk on our daily walks in April, May, June and July

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury, Greater Manchester

A look at the Crazy Golf courses at HUKD Golf in Bury, Greater Manchester.

A BIG thank you to our friend Pete Campbell for sending us these photos from his recent visit to HUKD Golf in Bury.

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury. Photo by Pete Campbell, March 2024

HUKD Golf opened last year and has two indoor 9-hole Crazy Golf courses - the Roll Up Course and the Kick Off Course. One is funfair-themed, while the other is sports-themed.

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury. Photo by Pete Campbell, March 2024

Pete tells us that all the holes were well thought out and he thought it was really good. The venue also has golf simulators which he's keen to go back and try out.

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury. Photo by Pete Campbell, March 2024

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury. Photo by Pete Campbell, March 2024

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury. Photo by Pete Campbell, March 2024

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury. Photo by Pete Campbell, March 2024

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury. Photo by Pete Campbell, March 2024

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury. Photo by Pete Campbell, March 2024

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury. Photo by Pete Campbell, March 2024

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury. Photo by Pete Campbell, March 2024

Visit the HUKD Golf website for more information.

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury. Photo by Pete Campbell, March 2024

HUKD Golf in Bury is another new local course location for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

A Back to the Future DeLorean - in 2020

I saw a Back to the Future DeLorean time machine four years ago today.

This was the last event we went to, as the world went into shutdown with the coronavirus pandemic shortly afterwards.

In 2019 I ticked 'See a real life DeLorean' off of my bucket list.

On Friday the 13th 2020 I managed to see another one at MediaCityUK in Salford and that one was this Back to the Future version!

Four years later and I still need to drive one...

What time would you go to?

Check out the Back to the Future car's website for more information.

Crazy Golf at Hukd Golf in Bury

There are two new indoor Crazy Golf courses at Hukd Golf in Bury.

Hukd Golf, a new golf venue in Bury, Greater Manchester, has two indoor Crazy Golf courses the Roll Up Course and the Kick Off Course.

Check out the Hukd Golf website for more information.

It's another new venue for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Tandy in Stockport

Finding a Tandy ghost sign thanks to The Power of Parker!

A recent post in the excellent Tandy UK (InterTAN Ltd) Facebook Group alerted me to the fact that there's a ghost sign from an old Tandy shop in Stockport. A fellow group member had spotted in the background of a scene in the new BBC comedy The Power of Parker. The show is set in Stockport in November 1990.

Tandy lives on!

The store used to be at 111 Prince's Street. It's now home to a Betfred.

The former Tandy shop in Stockport as it is today

My first job was at a Tandy franchise shop in Abingdon, Oxfordshire back in 1996 where I remember selling a number of electronic products bearing the 'RadioShack', 'Genexxa' and 'Realistic' brand names.

Over the years I've found a few more remains of the brand on the UK high street.

A RadioShack Tandy sign at a shop in Whitstable, Kent (September 2012)

It's crazy to think this Tandy signage has been hidden in (relatively) plain sight in my new hometown!

A Tandy ghost sign in Stockport

Related blog posts:

• Tandy
• Tandy in Hitchin (June 2021)
• Lost Shops - RadioShack in Saint Annes on the Sea (August 2020)
• Long Lost High Street Shops - Tandy (July 2020)
• Tandy in Hitchin (January 2019)
• RadioShack in Lytham Saint Annes (June 2017)

Pubs of Stockport during the coronavirus pandemic

A look at Stopfordian Pubs.

Three years ago today we photographed The Kings Tap on Station Road in Cheadle Hulme. It became the first of 265 pubs, bars and clubs we visited in the borough between April and the 4th of July when the first lockdown ended.

Pub number 1 - The Kings Tap on Station Road in Cheadle Hulme. A lovely Art Deco building. We'd never seen it shuttered before the lockdown

We visited each of the pubs while on our daily outdoor exercise between Wednesday 1st April and before pubs were allowed to reopen with social distancing measures on Saturday 4th July.

It gave us something to do during the lockdowns and it was interesting to see the variety of architecture, different signage, parts of the town we haven't been to for a long time and other parts of the area we've never been to. I documented the pubs on Instagram using the #StopfordianPubs tag.

At the 265th pub on our lockdown 'pub crawl'. Not a drop was drunk on our daily walks in April, May, June and July

A Back to the Future DeLorean in Salford - in 2020

I saw a Back to the Future DeLorean time machine three years ago today.

A Back to the Future DeLorean in Salford

Time flies! Or does it...

A Back to the Future DeLorean in Salford

What a different time 2023 is!

New Adventure Golf at Regent Park Golf Club in Bolton

There are plans for a new Adventure Golf course to be created at Regent Park Golf Club in Bolton.

The Adventure Golf course would be built by City Golf and is proposed to have a jungle-theme.

Pitch & Putt at Woodheys Park in Sale

An unexpected miniature golf course visit.

We found another miniature golf course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour while driving to Altrincham this morning!

Pitch & Putt at Woodheys Park in Sale

We took a more scenic route than usual and while driving through Sale spotted a sign for the 18-hole Pitch & Putt course at Woodheys Park.

Pitch & Putt at Woodheys Park in Sale

Naturally, we swung by for a look.

Pitch & Putt at Woodheys Park in Sale - looking quite autumnal already!

The 18-hole Pitch & Putt course at Woodheys Park in Sale became the 998th miniature golf course location visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since September 2006.

Pitch & Putt at Woodheys Park in Sale

We wonder how many other minigolf layouts are lurking in Greater Manchester that we haven't been to yet?

Pitch & Putt at Woodheys Park in Sale

Visit the Woodheys Park website for more information.

Dino Crazy Golf at Swinton Square in Salford

We played the Dino Adventure Mini Golf course at Swinton Square in Swinton, Salford last weekend.

Dino Crazy Golf at Swinton Square in Salford

The 9-hole pop-up crazy golf course was the 997th visited and 561st played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since September 2006.

A to...

...Z

A tricky cup to reach

Emily playing the volcano hole

Y the volcano?

The Rules

Crazy Golfer

The course is opening until this Sunday, 21st August. And it's free to play!

In our minigolf match Emily scored the win with a round of 24 to my 25.

Visit the Swinton Square, Salford website for more details of the Dinosaur Mini Golf course and event.

Videos of the course

Dino Mini Golf at Swinton Square in Salford

We played the Dino Adventure Mini Golf course at Swinton Square in Swinton, Salford this morning.

The 9-hole pop-up course was the 997th visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

We had brilliant fun playing the Jurassic miniature golf course

The course is there until the 21st August. And it's free to play!

 

Visit the Swinton Square, Salford website for more details of the Dinosaur Mini Golf course and event.

Mini Golf at Swinton Square, Salford

There will be a pop-up Dinosaur Mini Golf course at Swinton Square in Salford this summer.

There will be a dinosaur minigolf course in Salford this summer

Games tee-off on the free-to-play dino crazy golf course on Monday 1st August and run until  Sunday 21st August. Players can tackle the course between 10am and 4pm.

We'll have to go along for a game on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour as it's quite near to us. And we've never been to that bit of Salford before.

Visit the Swinton Square, Salford website and social media for more details of the Dinosaur Mini Golf course and event.

Crazy Golf in Bury town centre

There are plans for a Crazy Golf course as part of a new indoor golf venue in Bury town centre.

A new Crazy Golf course could be opening in Bury

Bury in Greater Manchester could soon be home to a new indoor golf venue.

Part of the plans include the creation of a Crazy Golf course.

Visit the Hukd Golf website to find out more...

It'd be another new and fairly local course for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Puttstars Crazy Golf at Ashton Leisure Park

There are plans for a new Puttstars Crazy Golf centre at Ashton Leisure Park in Tameside.

Check out the Puttstars website for more information.

It'll be another new venue for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

We've played Puttstars Mini Golf at the Rochdale Riverside location.

Mini Golf at Puttstars

Dodgeballing again!

Back in action with the Cheadle & Gatley Griffins Dodgeball Club.

It was brilliant to be back in action with the Cheadle & Gatley Griffins Dodgeball Club last night.

Richard Gottfried - Dodgeballer

The session in Parrs Wood, Manchester was the first one for the club's adult members since March 2020.

The games were my first since the 10th March 2020 - that's 777 days!

I played 4, won 2, lost 2 in games. A fun mix of Prison Rules, Super Catch and Secret Spy.

I was also the third last player in the Last Person Standing game at the end of the night.

Check out the Cheadle & Gatley Griffins Dodgeball Club website for more info on the Tuesday night sessions.

See the British Dodgeball website for more info on the serious side of the game.

My 'all-time' Dodgeball Win-Loss Record (2005-2022) now stands at 991 games played, 453 wins, 494 losses and 44 tied games.

I've been playing the game since the eighties so this is my fifth decade!

Mini Golf at Haigh Woodland Park in Wigan

Visiting the two miniature golf courses at Haigh Woodland Park in Wigan.

We headed to Haigh Woodland Park in Wigan to contest the Great Northern Minigolf Open tournament on the two minigolf courses in the park five years ago this weekend.

It's crazy to think that half a decade has passed already. Although two of those five years don't really count as they were a covid write-off!

First up was the Adventure Golf course.

Adventure Golf at Haigh Woodland Park in Wigan

It was the 700th course we visited in the British Isles and 727th overall.

This was followed by the Crazy Golf layout.

Crazy Golf at Haigh Woodland Park in Wigan

At just £1 per game, the course was the lowest price we'd ever found for an 18-hole course on our travels. Amazing value for money. We still haven't anywhere charging less than a quid a go.

The Haigh Woodland Park Crazy Golf course was the 728th visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour and the 701st in the UK.

We've now been to 983 courses on our travels since September 2006.

Great Northern Minigolf Open tournament

Margate's Scott Lancley won the Great Northern Minigolf Open played in Wigan's Haigh Woodland Park on Saturday 8th April.

Played over two rounds on the park's two 18-hole courses, Lancley won with a 36 hole score of 87. I was runner-up on 93, with Ramsbottom's Russ Dent finishing in third place on 95. A total of nine players took part in the first - and to date, only - staging of the event.

Winning the DinoFalls Adventure Golf Masters

Looking back at the 2018 DinoFalls Adventure Golf Masters.

I won the DinoFalls Adventure Golf Masters competition at the Trafford Golf Centre in Manchester back in April 2018 - where has the time gone since then!

The DinoFalls Adventure Golf course was an 18-hole layout when we played the event and has since been joined by another 18-hole course, that one has a volcano theme. The venue is an eye-catching sight from the M60.

I've won four tournaments at the Trafford Golf Centre. In addition to the DinoFalls Masters and the MMGC Invitational I won in 2018, I won the 2009 Mini Masters and Mini Open on the 9-hole Championship Miniature Golf course which used to be at the centre.

Check out the DinoFalls Adventure Golf website for more information.

Blockbuster Video Express in Failsworth, Manchester

Spotting a retail remnant on an old Blockbuster Video store in Manchester.

My retail archaeologist senses started twitching while on the Oldham Road in Failsworth recently as I looked at a building and thought to myself, "I bet that used to be a Blockbuster."

And sure enough, it was once a Blockbuster Video Express store.

The shop unit now home to AMC Furniture was once a Blockbuster Video Express store

I've only driven along this particular part of the road once before, but luckily this time the view of the shop front was clear and I could see the QuikDrop box still in place!

Blockbuster Video

We're big fans of video, videos stores, retail history and retro stuff and have been visiting and documenting the last remaining traces of the Blockbuster brand in the UK over the last few years. We've seen a number of the brand's shopfronts, signs and QuikDrop boxes. As well as some other video shops.

The first of the old Blockbuster locations we found was also in Manchester, just up the road from us at Fallowfield Retail Park.

Blockbuster Video Stores

The first Blockbuster Video store opened in Dallas, Texas, USA in 1985.

At its peak in 2004 there were more than 9,000 stores around the world. 500+ of which were in the UK.

Blockbuster ceased operations in the UK in December 2013. At the start of that year there were 528 Blockbuster locations in the UK. The number dwindled until October when only 264 shops remained. The remaining stores closed on the 16th December.

There is now just one Blockbuster Video store left open. It's in Bend, Oregon, USA.

However, the UK's high streets, shopping precincts, malls and retail parks still hold traces of the brand. And we've been to most of them!

The QuikDrop box at the former Blockbuster Video Express store in Failsworth, Manchester

We've now visited 28 former Blockbuster Video stores since we found the remains of the Fallowfield shop.

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester