BRAPA in ..... MONTH END REVIEW (SEPTEMBER 2026)
3 minutes ago
6 min read
I'm waving the white flag early on September pub ticking, knowing for certain that there will be no more BRAPA activity between now and 11:59pm on Wednesday.
A useful analogy would be a cricket umpire calling time shortly before tea on the final day of the county championship season. The five wickets required for victory in the final session isn't an insurmountable ask But an ultimately pointless exercise for a beleaguered team finishing runners up in every competition every year since Chris Tavare was in nappies.
48 ticks in September ain't too shabby, but is actually my poorest Sept return since 2020. But the big story here, as you may already now is that this year's #CruelChurn wasn't as cruel as usual. So, I'm vaguely satisfied.
At the time of writing, I sit at 3335 current Good Beer Guide ticks, that is 74.1% completion. 1,165 to go. A big push needed in October as my overall yearly ticks are well below 2025 and I'm not too sure why. But the key is to get back to 80% as soon as possible, and try and stay above it this time.
I'll talk more about 2027 GBG ticking 'strategy' at the end of this blog, but for now we'll look at the counties where I made gains, with a few stats, thought for the future and pub highlights. Oh, and mascots .....
Oh, and to ease BRAPA FFP, we've offloaded a few on season long loans. Dudley Duck (Sandwell & Dudley), Pedro Plum (Preston North End), Brekkie the Sheep (Brecon Sheepshearers Town), Oscar Owl (Sheffield F.C.) and Colin Senior (Knackers Yard XI).
Right, let's fuck 'em up, get into 'em .....
Devon (18 ticks - plus 4 in August - 63.2% complete, 46 pubs to do)
Well, you can't accuse me of swerving the 'tough stuff'. All Devon is painful, in a beautiful way. But North Devon is brutal. Rewarding, but agonising. And this all without any chauffeur, minimal buses and trains, very absent taxis. It was my most physically (and mentally) testing BRAPA holiday to date, and five nights was never enough.
Still, I'm seeing shoots of progress and despite Devon remaining my fifth worst county despite THREE holidays here now (Exeter, Exmouth, Barnstaple), I'm thinking that a week in the Plymouth area in the first half of 2027 could actually push me down to levels of respectability.
Best pub? Oof that's tough. I can't count Duke of York at Iddesleigh, because it was pre-emptive at the time. I can't count the excellent Champ at Appledore because it happened in August. Ship & Pilot Ilfracombe stood out. Parkham's Bell Inn oozed class. But overall, on a personal level it has to be the Black River Inn at Black Torrington because I arrived 8pm, knackered, bereft and quite terrified, and although A1 taxis from Barnstaple deserves a lot of the praise, I ended up leaving with beaming smile and like I'd actually made friends. Incredible turnaround!
Lincolnshire (6 ticks, 9 to do, 91.82% complete)
Could this finally be my year for Lincs completion? And why have I been asking that every September for the last four years? And why do I always have an excuse for not finishing it?
This year it is North Hykeham. Campaign for a minimum number of hours open a week (double figures sounds reasonable) before you're allowed in the Good Beer Guide? Motion at the next CAMRA AGM?
But I might have a stab at it, on a balmy Friday evening next June/July. RetiredMartin has inspired me.
Big thanks to Daddy BRAPA for Saturday's efforts, a fantastic half dozen to get done. Does he want to move to Devon? Bored of York by now, surely?!
Tyne & Wear (6 ticks, 3 to do, 94.92%)
One of my easier counties to complete year on year, just the three left after a successful Newcastle NFFD outing. And we play Sunderland away in Jan, by which time we'll have lost a few games and getting a ticket for the game should be easier. And why didn't I accrue any points for regularly going to games like #TeamsLikeExeter away on a Tuesday night in 2002 when we were shit?
So that's the plan. With cheeky Gateshead 'Spoons at brekkie, perhaps combined with some pre-emptive Mag nonsense post-match.
NB - I wrongly stated that Last Resort in Heaton was Elder Beer Cafe, when in truth it is two totally different buildings that just have an eerily similar layout. So not the wasted tick I thought it was.
Greater Manchester (6 ticks, 94.97%, 8 left to do)
And with two ticks in Rochdale, Horwich and Ramsbottom, completion shouldn't be a tough ask. I've already been fingered over Rochdale (hang on, I watched a BBC Panaroma doc along those lines .... don't go there Si!), but I'm pretty relaxed about when my Northern neighbours get ticked.
Still, it was a constructive #ThirstyThursday recently, a reminder how nice people are over t'wrong side of the hills. And rare that they put any ole' shite in the GBG.
Hertfordshire (5 ticks, 87.88% completion, 8 left)
Map not coloured in yet, which is symptomatic of the chaos involved in my recent Herts Saturday that coincided with the arrival of the new GBG - A.K.A. I had better things to do than colour in silly maps!
A decent day was had in one of those frustrating counties that has its moments of sheer class, but never manages to deliver quality across the board. The Jaden Philogene / Abu Kamara / Liam Miller of pub counties.
More to come from me in Herts in the coming months.
Surrey (5 ticks, 81.43%, 13 to do)
Not a rock hard county by any means but my Surrey malaise since full completion in 2021 has left me with more gaps than is acceptable.
The new trio out east upset me. Don't get me wrong, I'm not surprised Titsey Brewing has been ditched, but come on lads, that was an expensive Uber!
I can have another northerly day like my recent Thursday, Hull City have about 500 away days in London this season so perhaps one of them if I can't get a ticket for Fulham or the like.
As for the rest, could pair a couple with Hants, which I'm having a push on this season. Or perhaps better still, a follow up to the brilliant recent Ed Wray day. The only question is, will Ed Wray be up for an Ed Wray day? And if not, can I even call it an Ed Wray day if no Ed Wray is present? What even is 'The Sands'? Does Ed Wray know?
There was also a tick apiece in Northumberland, Central London and South London. Probably liked the Ship in Holborn best out of those.
Where My Head is At?
Thanks Rachel.
The main mistake I made in 2025/26 was having a huge London purge last November, leaving me with nothing remotely central later in the GBG season on the way back from places like Kent & Bedfordshire when it would've been nice to have bonus low-hanging fruit to sneak in rather than yet ANOTHER Parcel Yard ESB!
Along similar lines, I'm more relaxed about my remaining Yorkshire / northern ticks this time. In those grim winter months, it might be nice to have more localised trips I can tackle rather than a daunting snowy cancelled DrossCountry train to Birmingham.
Oh, and to keep me extra focused, I've created a 'BRAPA : Most Wanted' list of pubs for each county. just England & Wales at this stage. Just so I'm not swerving the annoying ones year on year. Will be interesting (for me) to see how many I can get done by next September.
Right then, big October push coming up. Liver transplant needed.
Keep it pub, Si
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