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Derby Museum and Art Gallery – Piece of Lucknow Gate Pinched by British Soldier in 1857

This is handy, it’s part of the Lucknow Gate that was pinched by Riding Master Captain Richard Shaw of the 9th Lancers as he fancied a little souvenir following the end of the siege of Lucknow during the Indian Mutiny. Built by Nawab Asaf-ud-Daula in 1784, the gate stands at over 60 feet in height and it did lead to a rather decadent palace, but the British knocked that down in 1857.

The gate after it was damaged by the British during the mutiny (image copyright of the IWM). I should add that some people don’t think that it should be called a mutiny, they prefer a term such as the First Indian War of Independence. Whichever, this was very much a one-sided battle in terms of the outcome, as 6,000 British lost their lives, but around 800,000 Indians lost their lives. That’s some brutal putdown.

As for Richard Shaw, he was born in Portsmouth in 1802 and enlisted into the 17th Lancers in 1823. He must have been competent, or well connected, as he was rapidly promoted and became the Troop Sergeant Major in 1842. After returning home from his Indian adventures, he moved to the 7th Light Dragoons in 1860 and he later became a Military Knight of Windsor. This was a role for former military officers and enabled him to live in the grounds of Windsor Castle until his death in 1872. He had married Helen Callahan in Dublin in June 1830 and they had three sons.

This is the sort of fascinating exhibit in a museum which tells a real story, a reminder of very different times.

June 6, 2025
Derby Museum and Art Gallery – How to Display the Mummified Bodies of Pa-Sheri and Pypyu

There’s a whole wave of debate on how to display mummified bodies and indeed human remains in general. A few museums seem to deal with this in a slightly clunky manner which seems more patronising than useful, but I really rather liked how Derby Museum has dealt with this. The helpful man at the entrance to the museum had already mentioned that they give visitors the choice of whether they want to see the mummified remains or not, placing them behind screens.

The two mummies are Pa-Sheri and Pypyu, although the text on the external displays is a little muddled about what relates to each mummy with conflicting information on-line and indeed within the museum, I rather suspect there was a wider exhibition here and they’ve kept some of the displays and not all. The museum also seems confused about whether they have two male mummies or one female and one male, something which feels sub-optimal in terms of accuracy as they refer to both situations. Historically though, there has been one male and one female, I’m not sure why they now refer to two male mummies or if something has changed.

The mummies have been on display in the museum since 1879 and were likely brought over from Egypt by a collector in the earlier part of the nineteenth century. In keeping with the entire point of their display, I decided against photographing the mummies and the imagery is easy to find on-line anyway. However, I rather liked that I could still take photos if I so desired, although the staff member at the museum entrance told me they’d had problems with people taking selfies with the mummies. Talk about keeping it classy…..

There’s a really detailed article in the Derby Daily Telegraph from 17 November 1892 about the two mummies, with quite engaging content about a close study of the two mummies. There’s actually more information about the mummies presented in this historic newspaper article than there is in the museum today though, something which probably needs some form of correction when the new exhibition is opened.

June 6, 2025
Derby Museum and Art Gallery – “The King of Rome” Pigeon

This is quite an important pigeon and known to many people in Derby. It’s a homing pigeon that flew into local legend in May 1913 when it completed a gruelling 1,001-mile journey from Rome to Derby in just under 24 hours. In the spring of 1913 there were more than 2,000 homing pigeons gathered in the Italian capital for the arduous “One Thousand Mile Athens to Rome Club” race. Entrants came from as far afield as Austria, Belgium, Germany and beyond, but it was a modest loft in Littleover, Derby, that produced the eventual victor. The pigeon was owned by professional baker Charles “Charlie” Hudson (1871–1948) and the bird known only by its band number “42PN150” took wing from Rome on the morning of 13 May. When it alighted in Derby just under 24 hours later, it had beaten every other pigeon by more than an hour, crossing the finishing loft at thirteen minutes past eight on 14 May. It did rather well to survive, as a number of the pigeons were shot on their way home which was a little sub-optimal.

After the event Hudson, ever the practical man, resisted calls to tour the now named “King of Rome” around poultry shows and fairs. He instead housed the bird in solitude, allowing it to rest before entering it in subsequent races. Very proud of his pigeon, in 1914, Charlie Hudson had it stuffed (after it died obviously) and he gave it to the museum in 1946. Today, the pigeon even has its own Wikipedia page….

June 6, 2025
Halifax – Kobenhavn Bar

I didn’t realise at the time of visiting, but this is the sister bar of the Victorian Bar Cafe, which I’ve visited before and both of the venues are listed in the Good Beer Guide. The venue is positively reviewed on-line although one person was angry at the lack of Danish beer noting:

“Not a Scandinavian Beer on offer , not even a basic Calsberg or Tuborg”

There is certainly an argument that there should be a Scandinavian beer available, but a rather more limited debate about whether Carlsberg or Tuborg should be there. In my view, no, it shouldn’t.

There are two entrances to the bar, this is the former Blue Mountain cafe which they extended into in 2024, but they have a larger entrance on the Westgate Arcade which had opened a year before that.

The beer list is located near to the end of the bar.

The list on the wall isn’t the easiest to read, but fortunately, there’s a printed version as well. The downside of these, especially with 24 keg options and 6 cask options, is that they must need to be reprinted on a very regular basis. It’s a well curated list of options, but I note the review saying:

“Expensive, and serving bland, yellow beer, suitable for lager drinkers. Poor child.”

This is likely some sort of sneering about keg hazy pales and ironic that it is has one of the widest ranges of beers in the town. And:

“Not known drinks very student pub”

I think this means, not Stella.

The interior of the main part of the venue, which has very much of a cafe bar type atmosphere and they sell what looked like artisan coffees and the like. The service was notably engaging and welcoming, I rather liked the informal and laid-back nature of this whole arrangement. And the member of bar staff was positive about my faffing about on Untappd before ordering.

Beer one was the cask Shifty from Drop Project, a fluffy, gentle and soft pale ale which was nicely balanced.

Beer two was the keg Hecate from Tartarus Beers which was listed as being a chocolate and coconut stout, but I thought that it needed more coconut for my Bounty taste expectations. But, it was smooth with nice roasty and chocolate flavours. The Monster Munch helped with the flavour though and made up for the coconut deficit.

Overall, I felt that this was another excellent addition to the Good Beer Guide and I’m not sure that I would have visited otherwise as the door I walked by made it look like a cafe rather than a bar. I’m not sure that they’re doing food at the moment, or there weren’t any menus visible at least.

June 6, 2025
Halifax – Vocation & Co Taproom

I’m a big fan of Vocation brewery and I was pleased to see that their flagship new taproom has opened in Halifax since I last visited the town. I also noticed that one of the two JD Wetherspoon outlets has gone, but this more than made up for that as this venue is listed in the Good Beer Guide so that’s another one ticked off.

It’s a decent space and they have additional floors and space, along with a rooftop terrace. It’s all very on-trend and seems to be attracting a younger demographic. And me. They serve pizzas, which are a little punchy in terms of the price, but it all looks of a high quality.

I very much like the darker beers that Vocation brew, although there was nothing new available to me in that regard, so I went for some different beer styles. This is an excellent range of beers though and covers numerous beer styles. I didn’t have any cask options, as I tried them before, but they have keg and cask available to choose from. The beer list is also on Untappd which is handy, along with their wide range of cans which they have available.

This is the Spring Zing from the brewery, a balanced sour which wasn’t overly sour but had lots of rhubarb and was suitably agreeable.

And my second beer, both of which were just thirds, was the Afterglow from the brewery which was punchy and zesty. Coming in at 8% ABV it had a heap of stone fruit, lots of hops and a feeling of complexity around it.

I liked this venue, it was clean, comfortable and felt welcoming. The prices were towards the higher end of the scale, but there’s clearly been some considerable money invested here and I’ve a lot of time for what they’re trying to achieve. I’m not sure when I’ll next be back in Halifax, but I’ll likely quickly pop in here when I am as it feels like the equivalent of a friend who always has biscuits in the cupboard, somewhere worth dropping in whilst passing.

June 5, 2025
Wigan – The Brocket Arms (JD Wetherspoon)

I visited one of the two JD Wetherspoon pubs in Wigan (the Moon Under Water) a couple of months ago, but this one is a little further out at just over a mile away from the centre. Today, I managed to get my rail ticket from Glasgow to Shipley to incorporate a two hour period in Wigan to visit the Brocket Arms.

It’s a sizeable place, large beer garden at the front and it looked welcoming.

Some pub history here, the text reads

“This typical post-war public house was built by the brewers Peter Walker of Warrington. It had seven guest rooms, some with television sets, and was officially opened on 10 October 1957 by the company’s chairman, Lord Brocket. The pub is situated on Mesnes (pronounced ‘Mains’) Road. This is a shortened form of ‘demesne’, meaning land retained by the Lord of the Manor, in this case the Rector of Wigan, for his own use.”

An advert from 1991, some interesting marketing going on there and I note that the food is still about the same price 35 years later.

One of the lower price bands in the chain, although the breakfast muffin deal was actually cheaper than advertised here.

I don’t really know why they push these muffins so much, as they’re not very good at them. But, they are only £1 more than the coffee so a cheap and cheerful little meal. I removed that cheese as it felt excessive to the arrangement, but the sausage and egg were as expected, with the lightly toasted muffin. Try to ignore that I managed to have a little spill with the coffee, although that was for reasons beyond my control relating to the stickiness of the table.

It’s a cavernous building inside, there must be hundreds of seats here. The chain opened it in the mid-1990s and there were numerous complaints from locals that the hotel element was left derelict for some years before work was done to re-open the hotel element.

And as my usual meander through the reviews, which are relatively good for the chain, as it’s a JD Wetherspoon venue:

“Never had any issues here. Went tonight and started off nicely. Service is as normal.. we ordered food and drinks on the app, and our friends ordered x3 times for us, they got us some x2 pints, shots and some ice cream (thanks). There was only 2 of us. Every time they’d bring something over they’d slam it down whilst rolling their eyes. Specifically this young girl, quite tall, brown hair, pony tail. Didn’t catch her name, but I’ve never felt so uncomfortable whilst being served in any establishment ive been too. Then I went to order some more food and drinks on the app (as friends arrived at this point to order stuff) and it no longer allowed us or them. Bit strange.. so I asked the same young girl and she said “it’s been turned off” I said “all together or for this table?” She said “just this table, youre playing a game”, I carried on conversating with her nicely as I am usually to anyone in customer service, and this girl just walks on off away from me, mid sentence. I just wanted to understand. So so rude, after all the eye rolling too… a simple answer would have sufficed, but the attitude just made me want to leave and never come back. Bare in mind, i never continued to order anything since the cut off after only 3 orders and that stonking interaction. It just made me not even want to. If it was such a problem, why not my question and tell me and I will understand and carry on ordering and giving you my money appropriately.. but the stinking attitude from the get go just made me want to run from there. And its such a shame as a local.. I can’t say I’ve ever been anywhere where theres young girls with as much as a stonking attitude as this. Times are really changing.. Cause I’m quite positive and couldn’t be more appreciative of service since being in the same industry, so i understand the service they get on the receiving end. But i gave them no reason, i will always smile at you.. but this has taken me a back. Don’t think I’d feel comfortable going there again. That interaction was just plain ignorant and so uncalled for. Especially with the energy i was giving to them. I wish I caught her name.. Rolling your eyes at me like I’m some drunk whose ruined your cornflakes that same morning. I’m just stunned…. Other than that, we would have stayed longer, drinks were okay until they stopped after only 3 different orders, food okay. Service was absolutely nil. Proper ruined my mood#”

I’m a bit with the pub here. This getting team members to go constantly to the tables to deliver stupid items is sub-optimal from their point of view. If the team members look annoyed, it seems to me best to just stop doing it, not get into an argument about it and write about how they’re ignorant.

“Very poor service this evening from this establishment, arrived with my wife and my friend and ordered some food together and drinks for my friends food to arrive before mine and my wife’s the time had past my 20 mins so I asked a member of staff if he knew where the rest of our food order was as our food was now cold due to waiting for ours, the attitude given back was appalling and told us “it is what it is” you’ll just have to wait. At this point I asked to speak to the manager to then be told “I am the manager” we regularly go to all different weatherspoons and the service here shocked us, would avoid this one!”

I’m with the customer here though, I hate it when my food arrives much later as I have to pretend not to look stressed. I like the “it is what it is” approach though….

“The staff don’t speak to anyone and don’t know what their doing with their job. Asked for a hot chocolate and they gave me a powder sachet and told me to go pout some hot water in. It’s very untidy and food is stale.”

Oddly, the two coffee machines here didn’t have hot chocolate, not sure I’ve seen that lack of option at one of the chain’s pubs for some time. Unless there was another coffee machine tucked away somewhere.

“Staff have Poor attitude, serve 14 year and olds but not 15 year olds disgraceful”

I’m guessing this reviewer was 15.

A lot of the negative reviews (about 85% of them on TripAdvisor) are about parking fines which have been issued, I’m not sure why they’d have a problem with people parking here but it’s clearly something of an issue and there are numerous angry customers. The venue is a hotel as well as a bar, which I imagine makes matters more complex if there’s limited spaces.

It was too early for beer (which is also why I didn’t visit any Good Beer Guide pubs when I was here), but they had Sharp’s Doom Bar, Greene King Abbot, Thornbridge Jaipur, Hawkshead Lakeland Gold and Peerless Langton Spin, all of which were priced at the bargain £1.99 for a pint. Anyway, this is a standard JD Wetherspoon venue, nothing overly exciting of note but it’s cheap and cheerful.

June 5, 2025
Bloody Laptop – Small Delay Ahead……

My laptop has failed which is highly sub-optimal, so my two loyal blog readers might face a delay in reading my riveting posts until the matter is resolved….

NB, the image is AI generated, not my actual laptop….

June 4, 2025
Glasgow – Bus to City Centre More Expensive than the Flight

I experienced earlier today what might best be described as one of the more decadent bus journeys of my life, from Glasgow Airport to the city centre, courtesy of First Bus.

The excited passengers waiting to board.

This cost the not-so-bargain price of £11. Now, I don’t want to sound dramatic, but I did briefly wonder if I’d accidentally bought the seat. Not rented. Bought and perhaps provided with a free First fleece. As a comparison, my flight all the way from Budapest, roughly 1,200 miles and including a safety demonstration and a view of some clouds, was under £9. In short, it was cheaper to fly across a continent than to endure 20 minutes of pleasant Scottish tarmac.

That said, the opulent bus itself was clean, punctual and, dare I say, convenient with the driver neither shouting nor hitting any of the passengers so there were lots of positives. Within moments of leaving the airport, I was whisked through the drizzle with wifi and a USB port and it was all very smooth.

Still, I arrived safely, albeit financially rattled and maybe they should offer a laminated certificate to commemorate my participation in the UK’s most disproportionately priced transport experience (well, other than the Luton DART). It does though run 24 hours, so you can be overcharged day and night.

June 4, 2025
Budapest – District XI (Statue of Gábor Bethlen)

This statue in District XI of Budapest commemorates the life of Gábor Bethlen, a rather important figure in Hungarian history. He was the Prince of Transylvania from 1613 to 1629 and also King-elect of Hungary (he never quite took control of the entire country) from 1620 to 1621 and he was also the Duke of Opole (one of my favourite cities) from 1622 until 1625. He is particularly known for leading Transylvania into its “golden age” and for his wise rule, economic reforms and for defending Protestantism in Hungary during the Thirty Years’ War. There are rather more decadent statues of him around the city, but this one is suitably under-stated and also has a coat hook for reasons unknown to me.

June 4, 2025
Wizz Air (Budapest to Glasgow)

I thought that the tropical heat of Budapest was getting a bit much, so I decided to go somewhere rather more suited to my preferred temperature range, so I opted for Glasgow. The flight was just under £9 with the Wizz Air Multipass that I bought last December and I remain very pleased with.

Slightly blurred, well very blurred, but I was zooming in to check that I was at the correct gate. The flight was delayed by an hour, but I was in no rush at the other end so I appreciated the extra time in the airport lounge. The boarding process was efficient and the gate staff were polite and helpful, although a couple of customers being charged for oversized bags might not have agreed with that.

Boarding the aircraft 9H-WDR, an A321 which has been in the Wizz Air fleet since June 2023. The seat Gods had unfortunately given me a middle seat and I had decided to accept my fate with my usual heap of downloaded YouTube videos lined up. However, the delight of hearing “boarding complete” with no-one in the aisle seat meant that the seating Gods had looked at me favourably after all. And then I noticed that the woman opposite and forward one row had eyed up the seat and was wildly flapping for her husband (or male companion, I shouldn’t judge) to come back about six rows and sit there to be near her. Anyway, that plan was foiled as I had already moved when she was mid-flap.

And then another little situation occurred when numerous people applauded the pilots for landing the plane. I don’t know a huge number of pilots (well, two) but both of them I know hate this practice and I’m not sure if it’s from the Hungarians who know more about their national airline than I do (I accept that it might not be the official national airline, but it has far more aircraft than any other Hungarian airline).

Anyway, that was the first little situation, with the second being the lady in the window seat being determined to barge past me after the aircraft arrived at the gate to get to the aisle. Now, I’m a firm believer in the “where exactly do you think you’re going?” philosophy of post-landing etiquette. I’ve got nowhere to go or stand. Are we suddenly going to a surprise party on the air bridge? No, we’re not, so I wasn’t moving in the period between the aircraft being at the gate and the aircraft door opening. The whole mad dash is truly a marvel and it happens nearly every flight. You’ve got people practically dislocating shoulders trying to yank their bloody carry-ons down, then forming a chaotic queue in the aisle, all while desperately trying to outmanoeuvre each other for a coveted spot only to then shuffle along at the pace of a heavily sedated snail once they hit the terminal.

And safely back in Glasgow post rushoffplanegate, around forty minutes later than expected. I have a few hours at the airport but I’ll report back on this riveting exercise a little later on.

June 3, 2025