72 (SEVENTY TWO) new Good Beer Guide pubs ticked in the month of November, my third best ever monthly total, bringing me up to 631 for the year, already a BRAPA record even if I do diddly squat in December.
My total is now 3,181, which represents 70.69% Guide completion. Clawing back that deficit one pub at a time! Back in credit by May?
Let's have a look at the counties where I've made gains, with the pubs I enjoyed most (and least) ..... we'll have a 'Spoons update, and end with a look ahead to December and beyond.
Greater London (37 ticks, 8 pubs left to do!)
As you'll probably have seen over the past week if you follow me on TwXtter / BlueSky, I've been pulverising London as best I can, whilst leaving a few deliberate spares for when I come down to watch Hull City play Meewaw away with Daddy BRAPA in mid December.
There's also a couple of gaps up norf, most notably in the Enfield area. Home of Botany Bay Cricket Club, funny location but more pertinently, very dodgy opening hours. Sunday looks to be the one reliable day unless you chance your arm on one of their jazz etc. evenings, so I'm hoping some time between now and next September, I find myself down there on a Sunday.
As I've done so many London pubs in November, I have chosen four winners .....
Anchor & Hope, Clapton
Eight Bells, Fulham
Dog House, Beddington
Robin, Stroud Green
West Sussex (6 done, 26 left, 59.38%)
Having almost exhausted London, I spent my last day straddling the Sussex border, determined to improve on my fantastic birthday holiday in Chichester last May.
The September churn was particularly cruel down here, but having never really made it north of Pulborough, it wasn't surprising. One of my big 2026 away trips has to be a week staying in either Horsham or Brighton, and continuing to mop up those difficult inland east and wests. The coastal stuff is a lot easier. Warninglid? Fulking? They're just inventing places now aren't they?
Joint pubs of the month (which if you combined their good bits, would make a strong pub of the year) .....
Cat Inn, West Hoathly
Brewery Shades, Crawley
North Yorkshire (6 ticks, 6 left, 95.89% completion)
Just call me a pub ticking Nostradamus because back in those distant days of the 2025 Good Beer Guide, I deliberately left Guisborough's flimsy brewery tap alone as I had nothing else to do remotely Teesside, plus its hours are dead cruel.
'Every chance 2026 will provide at least one new pub to make a visit up there worthwhile' I mused silently to myself on those quiet late summer York nights at home.
It did, and then some! New ticks at Whitby, Loftus, Easington and Staithes. Plus summat near Malton for a wee wee stop on the way back home. You can't teach pub ticking genius like mine. An easy car day for Daddy BRAPA too after recent efforts in the Borders and Northumberland.
With a nice easy tick left near me in Cawood, and potential for a gentle sunny Sunday up in the Dales, I'm pretty relaxed about NY going into 2026.
Joint pubs of the month again ......
Ibo. In his Bunker. Loftus.
Late Hallowe'en / mauled by the Easington Tiger (delete as appropriate), but Dad's having fun
West Midlands (6 ticks done, 11 left, 90.68%)
I'm not colouring the map in on principal cos I'm too pissed off with how evil that churn was. I'd got to within four pubs of completing the West Mids last time out, but truth is, the only way you are only ever gonna keep your WM levels healthy is to tick any Bathams, Holdens, Black Country Ales and Wetherspoons that you see. And even then, they'll throw some random micropub / brewery tap which no one in the world could hope to enjoy. Not to mention a boutique hotel that's not been in a Guide since 1983.
BUT go west of Birmingham, and you're in for a great day, time after time. And we did.
Pub of the month also produced 'cob of the year' here which was roast beef fresher than I've probably ever tasted in my life, proper melt in the mouth, and you have to get your own onions from a tub!
One exception to the #CruelChurn rule of the 2026 Good Beer Guide was Lincs. So often one of the worst offenders. Maybe they've finally run out of obscure rural pubs to send me to?
I still needed a Daddy BRAPA car classic on a horrid wet grey down whizzing down the A15 to make progress though, not helped by awkward opening times making our route less than linear. If it ever is in stinkin' Lincs. But good pubs on the whole.
Louth I'm ignoring for a second consecutive year cos it sounds flimsy and has become an outlier. Stamford I might be able to sweep up as part of some Cambs/Leics Thirsty Thursday, but I said that last year and never made it. And re the other 3, I've already held 'preliminary talks' with Daddy B about a future day when the sun is back out and the spring lambs are frolicking around the Boston fens.
Again, two pubs of the month cos I'm feeling pretty indecisive tonight .... both had quite 'magical' atmospheres ....
Only Falkirk's admittedly excellent Wheatsheaf to show for my efforts before November's ticks, but I'd expect no less from the home of the greatest Scottish football team who I've 'supported' since THAT Jimmy Gilmour goal at Celtic Park in 1987, a 7 yr old Saffron Walden twild dancing around in my pyjamas. Never been to a game though!
Anyway, that Stirling area is doable in the day so I went up, and I'll be back in Jan to mop up the bits I missed. The two Tillicoultry pubs were a disgrace to humanity. Sauchie's Mansfield Arms on the other hand, brilliant and sold astonishingly good homebrew called Devon, which was confusing.
And whilst I won't show you the maps cos I've wittered on long enough, I did 3 ticks apiece in Bedfordshire (11 left at 77.5% completion) and Cambs (21 left at 70%). Two former 100% completions, I'm particularly interested in plugging the Beds gaps in 2026, I think Cambs might need a bit more attention i.e. overnight stops.
None of the six pubs were 'bad', none were outstandingly good, but if I was forced to pick a winner, I'd go for the Plough at Langford due to the beams, local atmosphere and nice chat with an old relic.
Beam me up Ivor
Wetherspoons Watch
Welcome back to our newest month end feature where I give a progress update on the both GBG and non GBG 'Spoons I've done. I'm up to 390 out of 803 though new ones are due to open in December. I also managed six pre-emptives in addition to the shed load I did in London and beyond.
Hitting the 50% mark is my short term aim. It'll be really interesting next September to see if my churn really benefits from this increased 'Spoons mindfulness'.
'Spoons Carpet of the Month Gold Medallist ......
Sir Julian Huxley, Selsdon
My favourite pre-emptives were the Full Moon in Dudley and the Half Moon at Mile End, just outside Stepney Green tube station.
My most disliked 'Spoons was the London and South Western at Clapham Junction, but both Rotherhithe's Surrey Docks and Feltham's Moon On the Square were serious shitholes.
And a special dishonourable mention to Wibbas Down in Wimbledon for the split bar real ale serving chaos which was an utter disgrace and I can't wait to blog about.
The nicest GBG 'Spoons of the month was New Fairlop Oak in Barkingside, very friendly and an early morning pint of Abbot Reserve in the snow certainly helped my mood!
So onto December and it is always a tricky month in which to be productive, my average being 29 ticks. I'd love to say I'm aiming for 45 (1% of the GBG) but I think that might be pushing it. As long as I'm over 30, cos as we know 'a pub a day keeps the doctor away'.
I'll be mainly South East based again. I do have two #ThirstyThursdays planned, two of my four Saturdays will be curtailed to 3-4 pubs due to football / Christmas night out.
Jan & Feb will be quieter still. A conscious decision as I need to catch up financially, blogwise, and rest my poor lizard too! I'll no doubt regret it come September but gotta be sensible! Next BRAPA hol in March, Shropshire / NE Wales.
Remember, keep it pub and see you on Thursday for the first ticks of the month.
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