Our first meeting of the month takes us to the southern border of Northampton, to the village of Collingtree. At 9.00pm on Thursday 4th we will be paying a visit to The Wooden Walls of Old England in the High Street, NN4 0NE. It must be nearly 10 years since we last went there. Look for us in the lounge (on the right if you come in from the car park, or on the left from the front door). If we're not in the lounge then we will be in the Skittles Room.
Thursday 4th from 8.15pm: FThOTM will be at the Millstream, Cambridge Road, Hitchin. Good food and good beer available! The pub is about ten minutes' walk from the railway station.
After two months of being evicted from the Golding's Room due to a private booking we should be back on our usual table this month from 8.00pm on Friday 5th. However, our move into the main bar did coincide with the Vat & Fiddle's weekly Tuesday night quiz where we won a gallon of beer - having swiftly hidden the Mblem from view as the winning team was announced!
Monday 8th at 8.00pm: A favourite film - our regular 2nd Monday meeting this time held at George Howie's house. Choose one of your favourite films and let us know what you like about it. If you can bring a clip or a DVD that's fine too. Please bring the usual small amount of crisps or nibbles. Please email/phone me if you plan on attending and I will let you have George's address.
Having tried two out of the three Wetherspoons in Leicester, we're starting off this month by completing the set with dinner at the High Cross on the top of High Street in Leicester on Monday 8th at 8.00pm. Full details of the place can be found at http://tinyurl.com/cccnvej, but please call/email for any extra info you might need.
Hoping for better weather this time (i.e. no snow!), we are having another go at visiting Que Huong, the new(ish) Vietnamese restaurant in Bedford. It's in St Mary's Street, and we will be there at 8.00pm on Tuesday 9th. Please let me know by Sunday 7th if you plan to come so that I can book a table.
On Thursday 11th we'll be meeting at the Beekeeper pub/restaurant on Meadow Lane in Beeston for food or just a drink any time from 7.30pm until closing. New faces always welcome and you'll find us on the long table just beyond the food order point at the end of the bar with a yellow Mblem on display.
Meet me at the pay and display car park on the B489 near Marsworth Bridge by 10.30 am on Saturday 13th. Ian will lead a gentle stroll along the Wendover Arm of the canal and around the Tring reservoirs, habitat of many species of water birds. We'll also watch out for anglers and twitchers!
The total distance is approximately three miles and the paths and hides claim to give good access for wheelchairs, buggies, etc. Walking is reasonably level, no steep slopes, no stiles and unless the weather is very unkind, not too much mud. Family, friends and well behaved dogs are welcome to join us. More details of the area are available at: www.tringreservoirs.org.uk/touristinfo.html#Map
Having worked up an appetite we will adjourn to the "Angler's Retreat" opposite the car park for lunch. Alternative refreshments are also available at the adjacent tea room. It would be helpful to have some idea of numbers in advance, but you are welcome just to turn up on the day. Please let me know if you would like to join us for lunch without doing the walk first so that we can arrange a time to meet and I can let you know if we are delayed.
For now, it's back to the Adam and Eve pub on Lindum Hill on Sat 13th at 12.05pm for general chat and some discussion of 'Should celebrities be expected to be role models?' Some lunch, others just imbibe; free car park, friendly faces, what a nice way to spend Saturday lunchtime.
On Monday 15th we continue our new Third Monday of the Month meetings at The Barge at Woolstone. Join us from 7.30pm if you wish to eat or chat beforehand, and then from 9.00pm we will form one or more teams for the quiz. Cost is £1 per person. See www.vintageinn.co.uk/thebargewoolstone/ for location and menu details. If possible, please let me know beforehand if you're coming so we can reserve a big enough table.
We have two events this month. Opportunity to dine out then work off all the calories on a walk! We'll be in the rear section of the Standing Order on Irongate in the city centre from 7.30pm on Wednesday 17th so why not join us for a meal or just a drink? Both are excellent value as this is a Wetherspoons venue. No loud music so good conversation too. New faces always welcome and you can stay as long as you wish.
Two weeks later the Roadshow goes to a pub that we used after a walk in 2011. Join us on Thursday 18th at 8.00pm in the Stag's Head, High Street, Great Doddington, NN29 7TQ. There's easy access from the A45 and from Wellingborough, so come and meet the regulars. We will be in the bar or in the lounge depending on which room is the quieter on the night.
On Sunday 21st we're going for a walk starting at Whatstandwell car park on B5035 (just up the road from the Derwent Arms). Meet at 11.00am for a circular walk of approximately three miles that encompasses canalside, woodland, passing over the tracks at the National Tramway Museum, a short ascent to Crich Stand for fantastic views, then downhill for a pub lunch at the Cliff Inn before returning to the car park. However, please phone me on [Phone Number] in case of inclement weather to check the walk is still going ahead. Suggestions for future walks are very welcome. As are volunteers to become Derby LocSec!
Monday 22nd at 8.00pm: Pub meeting King's Head, Bridge Road, Hunton Bridge, WD4 8RE. We usually meet upstairs in the 'gallery' area furthest from the bar. The pub is easy to find from the dual carriageway (A41 Watford Road). From Watford turn right at the traffic lights, over the small bridge and then on the right. Look for the magazine or ask at the bar. New members are warmly welcomed.
On Tuesday 23rd at 7.00pm, we will continue our bimonthly weekday evening jaunts to the eating places of Lincoln, venturing to Wagamama on Brayford Wharf. All very welcome to join in our convivial fun but it would make my life easier if you could kindly book with me by Sat 20th, thanks.
Wednesday 24th at 7.45 pm: our regular meeting at The Old Mill, London Rd Berkhamsted. Have a drink or eat with us. Pub does good meals. New members, partners etc. always welcome. Free car parking.
Friday 24th from 8.00pm: LFOTM. We're back to our usual Last Friday slot and we'll be at the Cowper Arms, Digswell, Herts (by Welwyn North station). The pub is next to the railway station, which is served by stopping trains from Kings Cross to Cambridge and Peterborough. For more details and encouragement, call me.
I'm organising a pamper night between 6.00pm and 9.00pm on Wednesday 24th at Eastwood Comprehensive School (NG16 3EA). Admission is £2.00 in advance or £2.50 on the door including a non-alcoholic fruit cocktail and entry into a prize draw to win a hairdressing voucher. Enjoy a beauty treatment such as manicure, nail art, facial, eyebrow shaping, massage and more from just £3. Browse stalls selling beauty products, cakes, books, jewellery, candles, homeware, giftware and more. There will also be a tombola with lots of lovely prizes. All proceeds will go to Cancer Research UK and this event was very well attended last year raising over £800. Gentlemen welcome too!
On Thursday 25th we will return to Costa near the church in the centre of High Wycombe from 10.30am for relaxed coffee and conversation. I will try to get one of the comfortable sofas downstairs. Just come in and look for me inside. If you let me know you are coming I will save you a space!
The High Wycombe Arts Festival runs from 27th April to 2nd June. The programme should be available by mid-April so I will bring a copy with me and we can look through to see if there are any interesting events we would like to attend.
After that, we're back heading to our usual haunt at The Craddock Inn in Knighton for our fourth-Thursday thingammyjig on the 25th. See you there about 8ish!
And talking of walks, your first chance this year to take in the delights of the Northamptonshire countryside will be at 11.00am on Saturday 27th. The meeting point is the Village Centre Car Park, Bridge Street, Weedon Bec, NN7 4PN, for a 3 mile circular walk that takes in the village of Flore and the Grand Union Canal. We'll finish off with lunch in one of the pubs in Weedon (free car park). As this event is weather permitting please contact me before you set off.
Sunday breakfast will be at 10.15am on Sunday 28th at Wetherspoons on Midsummer Boulevard West, next to Chiquito's and not far up from the railway station (NOT the other Lloyds/Wetherspoons nearer the shopping centre and next to Jurys Inn). Come for a full breakfast, a snack, or just a drink - look for the Mblem on a table.
Then on Sunday 28th 3.00-5.00pm we wind down the month with Teatime Thinking at my house near Alford. More romping through the alphabet of philosophers and their ideas with tea and various cakes to sustain us in our deliberations - basic stuff, no previous knowledge required. This month 'Optimism; Occam's suggestion that the simpler the better.'
On Tuesday 30th, there'll be dinner at Livio's Italian restaurant in Shepshed (http://www.livios.co.uk/). This has had some excellent reviews, so please can you let Maxine Bates know you're coming ([Email]) so a table can be reserved?