Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Tag: Darlington

Monday – Failed Visit to Piercebridge But More Success in Middlesbrough (Part One)

My intention had been to visit Piercebridge, promoted by the area’s tourist authorities, which is the site of a Roman bridge. I had watched the Time Team episode filmed at the bridge a year or so ago and though that it looked like an interesting site. I abandoned that plan when I discovered that the bus was going to cost £6.60 for a return ticket, despite it being a 12 minute bus journey. Normally I would have just walked it instead, but it was raining and quite bleak.

The Arriva bus driver was very helpful and tried to work out on his machine if he could find an alternative, but he was unable to do so. He apologised on numerous occasions for the price gouging of his employer, but it was hardly his fault. His bus departed shortly afterwards with just one passenger on board. If I had wanted a day ticket for the wider area it was nearly the same price and I realised why the company hid the prices of single and return tickets on their web-site. As an aside, the Government has demanded recently that bus companies publish a list of all of their fares, but they’re presented in a complex format which makes it hard to unpick without some IT knowledge.

I accept that this is yet another complaint I’m making on this blog despite trying to be a permanent ray of sunshine, but it’s no wonder that increasing numbers of people are moving away from using the bus network. Since this little failed adventure, Grant Shapps has announced (before being sacked) the new £2 bus fare maximum from January to March next year, which would have meant that I would have made this journey.

Instead, I decided to walk back to Darlington’s railway station to get a day return to Middlesbrough. This was a cheaper ticket than the bus would have been which pleased me greatly. The rail network very often produces remarkable value for money, particularly on advance fares, so the day was looking more interesting. And Middlesbrough has more beer than Piercebridge. It did mean traipsing back to the hotel en route to pick up my bag, but at least that meant I could have my laptop for the day.

Another photo of the grand interior of Darlington’s railway station.

My train would be departing from Platform 3.

And here thunders in the Northern train that I needed to catch, on time and in the right place. Still in a slight mood about the bus fares that Arriva charge, I decided once again that I’m really more of a rail person.

Clean and functional. I had purchased an off-peak return and wondered what times I could return, but the helpful guard said that there was no limit in the afternoons.

Wooo, power.

Welcome to Middlesbrough.

The railway station felt just a little bleak. The town had a railway station as early as 1830 when the Stockton and Darlington railway line was extended here, although the current building is from 1877. It was badly damaged during an air raid in August 1942 and apparently has been restored recently, although I’m not sure which bit. Please do though enjoy the beautiful greenery that the station has as its floral display.

What a graceful building, the former National Provincial Bank on Albert Road which opened in the 1930s. I’m not sure that its current usage is quite as decadent, but at least the building is still standing. For anyone interested, some helpful individual has placed the architect’s plans on-line.

The beating heart of Middlesbrough. I quite liked the town, but they had a lot of empty premises, including some large shops which are currently boarded up. It’s hard to see how they’ll fill those, but the atmosphere felt suitably vibrant. Like many cities and towns, Middlesbrough has had to transform itself from an industrial and manufacturing town into a more service and IT based economy over recent decades.

I thought I might as well tick off a JD Wetherspoon outlet first and this is the Resolution. The large Lloyds pub explains on its website:

“This pub is part of the Captain Cook Square development, named after Middlesbrough’s most famous son. The pub takes its name from Cook’s flagship, Resolution. Between July 1772 and July 1775, Cook undertook an even more ambitious voyage. He was given two ships, with the Resolution as his flagship. He successfully completed the first west-east circumnavigation in high latitudes, chartered Tonga and Easter Island, discovered New Caledonia in the Pacific, the South Sandwich Islands and South Georgia in the Atlantic.”

For reasons unknown, but which I assume relate to price testing, this is the cheapest JD Wetherspoon outlet that I’ve seen in a long time, this meal and drink came to £5. It’s quite a well reviewed pub as far as these things go, although they annoyed one local:

“I work in a bar an night club so I know how to treat customers right your polite and not rude it’s called manners whiclh your staff don’t have. There ill mannerd and are walking around like lifeless zombies an a face like Margret thatcher” [sic in several places there]

I tried to picture this whole experience in my mind, but perhaps I shouldn’t have done. Anyway, my lunch was delicious just in case anyone wanted to know. I accept that I have no idea who might want to know that, but there we go.

The coffee was lovely as well. There was then a chat with another customer, not instigated by me obviously, that distracted me for around half an hour, although he said early on that I had a posh southern accent. When I said I was from Norwich, he replied that he thought my accent was from somewhere posher such as Surrey. I was annoyed at numerous levels with that, but there we go…. Bloody Surrey.

I approve of this, a number of streets which are more accessible for pedestrians and where outdoor areas have been created for restaurants and bars. Who would have though Middlesbrough would be so on trend? But what would I know, since I come from Norwich and not Surrey…..

Very appropriate for Baker Street. This road, along with Bedford Street, had an abundance of micro-pubs, I was really quite impressed. They had so many micro-pubs that I’m very tempted to visit Middlesbrough again, it was an unexpected delight that was only limited that I didn’t have time to get to many on the day I went.

Although some of the micro-pubs weren’t yet open, I felt the need to visit one and I went for the Twisted Lip, which is a former terraced house turned into a micro-pub. It has been trading since 2014 and seems to have quite some following, with a range of craft and keg options which were all keenly priced.

I ordered, in my upmarket accent, the Thunderbridge Stout brewed by Small World Beers of Huddersfield, a very decent and rich stout.

I think it would be hard for anyone to deny that this interior was anything other than quirky.

The pub seems to get busy, but it was relatively quiet in the afternoon. The service was friendly and I was rather taken with the surroundings of the venue. I’d merrily recommend this pub, it sets its own style and avoids being formulaic.

Anyway, more about my little meander around Middlesbrough in the next blog post including a former Wetherspoons pub which I thought was quite intriguing…. And, not wanting to go on about it, there is nothing less decadent about Norwich compared to Surrey.

September 9, 2022
Sunday – A Short Perambulation around Darlington

Saturday evening was wet to say the least, but it all looked a bit drier, and indeed hotter, on the Sunday morning. On the left of this photo is the TCB Darlington, or The Chinese Buffet, which closed down earlier this year. The story of the closure is a bit odd, it closed due to lockdown which is understandable, and then after a break of a few months it reopened for about three hours before being shut down due to irregularities with the electricity supply. Draw your own conclusions….

The River Skerne, which is a tributary of the River Tees, and this area is of note for an historic building which was once here. But, I only realised that later on during my visit to the town, so more about that on a different blog post. Oh, the anticipation…

The entrance to the parish churchyard of St. Cuthbert, with rather a sparse collection of graves, so I assume many have been removed at some point.

The church dates from the twelfth century, although was modernised and faffed about with during the 1860s by George Gilbert Scott.

A war memorial in the church’s graveyard in memory of those who died between 1899 and 1902 during the Second Boer War.

It’s a grand war memorial and it was unveiled by Field Marshal the Rt Hon Earl Roberts (1832-1914) on 5 August 1905. This would have been seen as important, as he was the man who was in charge of the entire campaign and had also been the last Commander-in-Chief of the Forces until the abolition of the role in 1904. He died during the early stages of the First World War, although he fell ill on a tour of troops and not through enemy action, and was buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral.

A list of the 11 men from the local area who died during the campaign.

And 89 more names are on Grade II listed monument, but these were listed in honour of the men’s contribution to the campaign. Unfortunately, war memorials following the First World War could hardly list everyone who had fought, just those who had died. This memorial was funded by 5,576 different subscribers, so it’s a real public effort.

Another quick visit to the William Stead with its interesting carpet. I was rather productive here for some time, lots of coffees for just £1.25. I may have mentioned I’d constantly surprised and delighted by this bargain arrangement though.

And then to Darlington’s covered market. The council are mid-way through their modernisation, and it seems from reading news articles that this has been a controversial process. The market building itself is rather beautiful and was designed by Alfred Waterhouse and constructed in 1863.

There aren’t many stalls here at all and they’re a little aggressively priced in terms of the food. I’m not suggesting that’s bad, as it’s expensive running a business, but the prices of the stalls inside the market seemed to be higher than the outlets outside of the market. That seemed an odd way round to me, this is being run as a decadent arrangement and not as a cheap alternative for locals. A chips stall here would be good, affordable and inviting, which could then sit alongside the more expensive options.

The bar at the market, which I thought (and perhaps harshly as I try not to be too judgemental) was rather formulaic and bland, but I think it’s fair to say that they’re pitching themselves at a rather younger market to myself, namely teenage girls I suspect (of a legal drinking age I’d better add). It’s a shame though, this market would have been lifted by a on-trend, modern and exciting craft beer bar which sold some interesting drinks. Given there are some operators of fantastic bars nearby, perhaps they could have been prevailed upon to operate this.

I went for the IPA from Caps Off Brewery who are from nearby Bishop Auckland. I asked for half a pint, which the staff member repeated back, but then was clearly pouring a pint. I stopped her before she served the entire pint but she then decided to get another glass and tip what she had already poured into that. That of course fobbed the beer up (which is evident from the photo), so there was a wait whilst that settled. She then tried again and proudly announced that she had given me more than a half. Unfortunately, she was reading the third of a pint line on the glass, so I politely queried that and she poured a bit more in. I have no idea what she did with the small amount of beer that was left, but it was a comedic performance at least which added positively to the visit.

The beer was acceptable, but I wasn’t entirely confident that it was being kept at the appropriate temperature, but it wasn’t so bad as to be a problem. The scampi fries were delicious though, the bar excelled themselves there. I was surprised how few people were in the market, but it did have something of a laid-back atmosphere at least. I hope that Darlington can do something with this market when the refurbishment project is completed, these are such important elements to a town and it would be good to see it done right. Barnsley have really thought through their new market, which is on-trend, affordable and interesting.

The statue of Joseph Pease (1799-1872), the railway pioneer who was born and died in the town. He was involved with the creation of the Stockton and Darlington railway company, on which more in tomorrow’s riveting blog post, as well as being the first Quaker MP. There’s also a link to Norfolk as he married Emma Gurney in 1826, the youngest daughter of the banker Joseph Gurney.

The four panels represent different elements of Pease’s life, including politics, industry, education and the emancipation of the slaves.

Thrifty.

And a quick half a Bass in the Darlington Flyer, which is a Stonegate pub on Skinnergate. The prices are low, the service was polite and the surroundings were comfortable enough. Most of the customers were watching football and minding their own business, but they all seemed to be enjoying their visit. This was a Yates Bar, but Stonegate have rebranded it, which is probably for the best. The pub is opposite the Tanners Hall pub, operated by JD Wetherspoon, and this is perhaps their nearest competition in terms of a pub chain. Stonegate are going for a similar market, although they are orientated a bit more towards showing sports at this venue. All affordable and not at all pretentious, which I think is a very nice compliment.

Back to the Mercure Darlington which I’d stayed at a couple of nights before, although this time I was staying for three nights. I was upgraded again to a superior room, which meant more free drinks and it was once again all peaceful. I mentioned this before, but I was impressed at this hotel, it seemed very well run.

The pigeons looked content as the sun started to set.

September 8, 2022
Saturday – Pubs of Darlington and the Town Library

The view from my Mercure hotel room in Darlington over the town square. It looked damp and cold (outside, it was lovely inside), which was a great relief to me. It’s a bit prosaic, but I did think about previous guests from long ago who shared this view, as this hotel was once one of the grandest in the area when it was described as a “temple of luxury” when it opened in the 1890s. This wasn’t just some Travelodge of the Victorian period, it was really quite decadent. Indeed, there has been a hotel on the site, albeit a couple of metres further forwards, since the middle of the seventeenth century. As an aside, in the former building, the meetings of the Stockton and Darlington Railway Company were held in its rooms, one of the world’s earliest railways.

With all that history floating about in my mind, I went to drink copious amounts of coffee at one of the town’s two JD Wetherspoon outlets, the Tanner’s Hall. They themselves note:

“Skinnergate was once the location of Darlington’s Skin Market. In 1621, the local council decreed: ‘Noe tanners shall bye any skins, but upon the Skynnehill.’ The long-gone tanners are remembered by the name of this Wetherspoon pub.”

The view of the interior, a little bit dominated by AWP machines, although the volume was turned off as a compromise. It probably needs a refurbishment at some point, but it was a comfortable enough place to visit. I enjoyed my numerous cups of coffee for £1.25 and they provided electricity for my to stay fully charged. A bargain.

And this is what it looked like in 2005, so it has been here for a fair while.

The town’s library is currently being refurbished and renovated, but they’ve kept the building open.

It’s light and airy inside. Although every time I think of that word I’m reminded by Basil Fawlty responding to the “is it airy?” question with “well there’s air in it”.

There was a little display about the history of the street names in the town.

And the local history room, although the books looked a bit locked away for the most part.

The library was opened in 1885 thanks to a donation from Edward Pease, who for a long time it was named after. This is when they built entrances to libraries to be functional, rather than to look like a shopping centre.

This photo is from the time that the library opened, I think it’s a beautiful building. The town should be pleased with itself that they haven’t let some idiot demolish it.

As an irrelevant aside, Wetherspoons ‘up north’ (defined by me as anything to the north of Cambridge) seem to have a lot more things going on than the ones down south.

I’m not going to get distracted writing about carpets in JD Wetherspoon pubs, but this is perhaps one of the best I’ve seen. It is a nod towards the name of the pub, the William Stead. As the chain notes:

“This pub is named after a former editor of the Northern Echo who went on to become one of the most influential men of his age. William Stead submitted several articles to the Northern Echo which were so well received that, in 1871, he was offered the editor’s chair without ever having set foot inside a newspaper office. He was in charge at the Northern Echo for nine years, before moving on. His new journalism paved the way for today’s tabloid press. One of the most influential men of his age, Stead was one of those who lost their lives on board the Titanic in 1912.”

The fish was much larger than the photo looks and it met my expectations.

It was a nice enough pub, very busy and more modern than their sister outlet that I’d been to earlier on in the day. It’s one of the few outlets that responds to reviews on social media, and I suspect it’s against company policy since Wetherspoon withdrew from social media as I assume they couldn’t cope with the deluge of negativity. I liked this one:

“I have a DEAD vape in my pocket which doesn’t work or produce vape… as I use it as a placebo.”

The pub replied they’d had a little look at CCTV and seen him vaping. Do people carry placebo vapes around though? Is that a thing?

And a review from what I assume was a 12 year old….

“It was vile and disgusting the food wasn’t what I ordered it says nothing about kids ordering food without an adult my food wasn’t nice I hated it it’s disgusting don’t go”

Anyway, it was time to move onto some more decadent and interesting pubs in the town.

The House of Hop and this is a pub that I really liked, with a suitably on-trend and inviting feel to the arrangements.

All clean and organised. I think I was the first customer of the day, the service was personable and engaging as well. All good.

Free sweets on every table, which I’ve decided should be a requirement in every bar in the country.

The Sticky Toffee Porter from Three Brothers Brewing and this wasn’t under-poured, it ran out during pouring and they gave it to me for free. A rich flavour, lots of toffee, I was pleased to be able to try it at least.

The Pape Jangles Voodoo Stout from Totally Brewed in Nottingham, a perfectly acceptable stout which I’ve had before.

I like how the beer is stored, keeps it chilled but also accessible.

And the mixture of cask and keg options that was available.

There are some lovely little alleys in the town.

One of the alleys led to Crafty Merlin’s Coffee House & Micropub.

For a small bar, this is an exceptional choice.

Beefy Seabrooks, what a time to be alive! I got a bit like Liam and was quite excited by the pump clip of the Dr Morton’s 4 Yorkshiremen of T’Apocalypse and although it was well-kept, it was a bit generic.

I treated myself to the Molinillo from McColl’s Brewery from County Durham, an excellent little number which has chilli to add some heat to the beer, as well as rich chocolate flavours. The barman, who I assumed was the owner, was conversational and friendly, there’s a laid-back feel to this venue and I wasn’t surprised that it was so busy.

The Mercure was quite expensive on the Saturday night, so I switched to the Dalesman for my accommodation, which was very reasonably priced. I was returning to Mercure the next day, but this was perfectly pleasant.

All very functional and they fixed the room door after there was a little issue with it…. I was going to go back out to visit a few more pubs, but it poured with rain and I wanted to save some of them for the next few days.

September 1, 2022
Friday – Arriving into Darlington (Part 2)

Picking up from the previous post.

The inside of Newcastle’s Central railway station, designed by John Dobson and constructed between 1845 and 1850 on a site which was three acres in size. The sheer scale of these projects was remarkable and today there are twelve platforms for trains and two platforms for the city’s Metro service.

I had a little issue that when I got the station that I had a ticket for a train that didn’t exist. I walked over to the customer service desk and the LNER staff member said that the train had been scrapped from the timetable the previous week and that I could board any LNER service to Darlington. I started my question with “I’m a little confused” and she responded “not as confused as we are”, so I liked her. The service was busy, not least because it was the day before and after a rail strike, but it meant I could depart 20 minutes earlier than I had expected. That strike action must have made matters challenging for the customer service staff, but they seemed to be doing a marvellous job.

I got a seat for the relatively short journey, but as it was so busy I didn’t take a photo of inside the carriage until I was disembarking. There was an announcement when I boarded that the trolley with food and drinks would be going through the train, but then another announcement ten minutes later saying that it wasn’t as it was too busy.

Safely in Darlington railway station which has some similarities to Newcastle, although was constructed later in 1887. There was an earlier station which had opened in 1841, but it didn’t prove large enough as passenger numbers grew.

Usually these signs note the local university of similar, but in this case, Lingfield Point is a large business park which is an important part of the town’s regeneration plans. One interesting little fact (or at least I thought so) is that the town’s name got shortened over the centuries and was frequently called Darnton during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. It was originally known as Deathingtun, meaning the settlement belonging to Deornoth’s people.

The frontage of the station which is now just the entrance to a car park area which I suspect might be repurposed in the future as it’s not a very attractive first impression. Although, looking at this news article, it seems they might be even more ambitious in their plans to modernise the station buildings.

Hints about the town’s railway history are visible at one of the main roundabouts. This is a model of the steam locomotive Tornado and there’s some information about this little arrangement at https://www.darlington.gov.uk/your-council/news/news-item/?id=997. More on this railway history in future days of this riveting blog though.

I was staying one night at the Mercure in Darlington, which I was returning to again later on during my little trip. The service was excellent, friendly and welcoming, and they kindly upgraded my room. There was a welcome drink available which I had to ask about, but that was willingly resolved. It was quite a hike to the room, it’s a large building and there are two separate sets of stairs (or lifts) to get there.

Ooooh, a Nespresso machine.

And a fridge with numerous cold drinks, all free of charge. I was very pleased with this.

It’s fair to say that there was no shortage of liquid soap and lotion options.

My welcome drink, a pint of John Smiths.

They’ve spent some money here on the hotel bar, and there’s a separate restaurant upstairs as well. The building has its origins as the Kings Head hotel and much of the original survives, although much modernised. The former grand entrance has been turned into shops, with a 1960s extension being where the reception and bar areas are. There was a large fire at the hotel only a few years ago, which led to a modernisation of the building, and everything still feels modern and contemporary.

The town’s market building, but more on this in a future post. I had a little meander around the centre of Darlington for an hour or so, although it was all rather quiet.

August 30, 2022