December 2025. Cambridge. I may have been happy to spend 25th December back in Sheffield reheating Chinese takeaways and eating crisps in the Blake with Will, but “society” insists I follow certain protocols. More to the point, our two lads wanted to see their grandparents at Christmas. Someone brought them up OK....

Welcome to the annual review of Retired Martin’s pubby 2026. Part II can cover life, whatever that is. THE STATS Six hundred and thirty-one (631) pub visits, 580 different pubs, only 160 of those were new Beer Guide pubs but who cares about GBG ticking nowadays. Go, BRAPA ! And go, Daddy BRAPA, too. What a father...

December 22nd 2025. Hastings. A solid if unspectacular birthday ends with a last look at Rock-A-Nore, and a half in the Hastings pub I’d meant to have birthday fish pie in. But I’d have needed to book for lunch in the Dolphin, and I NEVER book. The Dolphin is a classic, though I’d struggle to explain why today. A...

December 22nd 2025. The Stade. Hastings. One of my most photogenic birthdays, even if one of the dullest. The next post-lunch stretch takes us from the brutalism of Sports Direct in Hastings New Town, past that iconic view of Pelham Crescent’s amusement arcades with the castle ruins behind, through the mini-golf and...

December 22nd 2025. Hastings. I’ve given up on getting the blog up-to-date before year end, and you’ll be wanting my awards issue tomorrow, but I’m not rushing Hastings. In fact, I think I’ve invented the birthday (22/12) equivalent of slow tourism, as we spent last Monday wandering aimlessly taking photos of...

December 22nd 2025. Hastings. Well, I think it’s Hastings, where the eponymous pier stands, though the video is less conclusive, and you folks will know how much invisible and pointless boundaries matter to some people. Mrs RM decided that at 10:52 am it was time for the Official RM birthday pub, and looked bemused...

December 22nd 2025. St Leonards. I’ll keep you waiting for the “birthday pub“; it’s a doozy. We managed 18,000 steps on my birthday, (Mrs RM does more than me as her legs are smaller, it’s the patriarchy), including a bracing stroll along the prom between St Leonards and Hastings, which are virtually contiguous...

December 22nd 2025. St Leonards on Sea. And so, I awoke, 61 up, another year ahead. Never look back, folks. You’ll know my view on anniversaries and celebrations; don’t do them. My only requirements for my birthday are NO presents or cards, just make sure I’m somewhere I haven’t been before, crispy beef and a new...

December 2025. Ashford. Kent. The journey from Sheffield (Home 1) to Rye (Home 3) ticked into an 8th hour as we pulled into Ashford International, which I’ve seen far too much of these last two months. 36 minutes between trains, too long to admire the art trail, so I felt compelled to seek solace in Spoons. Grief,...

December 2025. Sheffield. Ely. King’s Cross. London. Not actually a road trip but it took longer than 7hr 41 by rail You’ll be wondering by now what’s happened to my birthday (22nd December, make a note on your new Retired Martin calendar). That’s coming soon, and rest assured it’s not as bad as last year, but first...

December 2025. Manchester. Walking back from the City v Hammers match I got a text from Matthew; “Fancy a beer ?“, which is exactly the sort of thing you hope a child will grow up to ask you. Quosh had recommended a new brewery tap under the Piccadilly arches (“ANOTHER one ?“), only a 5 minute deviation from the...

December 2025. Manchester. Normally I meet Matt in Manchester near Piccadilly before a City game, but last Saturday I just fancied getting to the Etihad early and jumped off at Ashbury’s. Note, map above, the astonishing number of sports stadia in East Manchester, a legacy of the Commonwealth Games of 2002 and the...