Freshly-back from gardening duties in Bergerac, it was a relaxed and tanned Bill Blunt who travelled last Sunday to the Lancashire County Cricket ground in Old Trafford to watch popular musical ensemble Take That play their final concert in Manchester.
Lest my readers think I have always harboured a love of boy bands, I should explain that I was redeeming my part in a bargain that had involved my current squeeze going to see Bob Dylan when he played in Liverpool earlier this year. I'd like to pretend that I got the better of the deal, but I'm almost embarrassed to say that I thoroughly enjoyed my outing last weekend. The Liverpool Echo Arena is a wonderful venue, but it can't compare to Old Trafford on a balmy Sunday evening, with a light breeze cooling the summer sun. And Bob Dylan's performance (though adequate) paled into insignificance beside the four showmen who turned out in Manchester.
Take That never really appeared on my musical radar before, so I was surprised how easy it was to join in the sing-along, since their songs had managed to penetrate my subconscious without me being exactly aware of it.
As a cub reporter, I learned early to distinguish between my ultimates, my penultimates and my ante-penultimates. But I can't quite work out what comes after something that's already been touted as the Ultimate Tour. Whatever it was, I was there: not a zimmer frame in sight. And it wasn't half bad.
Early days for the Brown premiership, but I am already liking what I see.
The Blairite obsession with opening up gambling in the UK was always one I found disturbing. There was never any evidence, of course, but the suspicion was always there that money might have passed hands between US casino giants and politicians, or their stooges, to help sweeten the process.
The news today that Brown has turned his back on the deal to open up US-style super-casinos here in Britain has got to be good. I never bought that specious argument about how they'd bring growth, jobs and prosperity to our run-down inner-city areas. More likely, they'd bring in their train a focus for criminals, greater indebtedness and increased gambling addiction to areas of our country that need that like a hole in the head.
Hats off, then, to the new PM. Keep going as you are, and you may even tempt old Bill to vote Labour.
Thanks to Daddypapersurfer, I discover I have been 'tagged' to tell my loyal readership about '5 Places Near To Me Where It's Good To Eat'.
Of course, this brings into question the whole issue of what is meant by 'near to me'. I am not an insular man by nature. The world, to me, is not a whelk, but more a delicious oyster to be savoured and relished.
I err towards the thoughts expressed by that great newspaper columnist George Ade, of the Chicago Record, who once said "A friend who is near and dear may in time become as useless as a relative".
So, my search for the top five places I like to eat has involved me casting my net a little more widely than Oldham.
In no particular order, I must mention:
Salieri's
I first discovered this little gem about ten years ago, whilst hosting a party of European visitors to our capital, and a visit to London is now rarely complete unless I drop in to eat here. In the area around Covent Garden and the Strand, there have always been many tourist traps ready to entice the unwary. Finding Salieri's was, therefore, a delight. Its modest interior is decorated with a wide variety of stage memorabilia, including photographs of West End stars past and present, puppets and masks, and the menu presents a fine selection of varied, European cuisine. Situated on the Strand, opposite the Savoy Hotel, the staff here have (usually) been particularly friendly and welcoming, the food of a high quality and the price not (too) gasp-inducing.
Nando's Restaurants
As anyone knows me will attest, I am a sucker for getting my hands around a plump thigh. If the thigh happens to be a chicken, and it is served in a ravishingly hot peri-peri sauce, then so much the better. This chain of fast-food eateries offers fresh, high-quality food (for which read almost exclusively chicken) at a very reasonable price. In my travels I have greased my fingers in perhaps 8 or 9 different branches of Nandos, and the food is always consistently good. There is bound to be one near you and I can only heartily recommend a visit if you have not already been.
The Ox
This is a miniature gastropub of the finest order. Located not far from the Castlefield area of Manchester, you can be assured of good food, superbly quaffable ales and the usual eclectic mix of customers that only a Manchester public house can provide. Handy for the museums, with a nearby metro station ready to whisk you away to whichever hotel you may happen to be staying in, The Ox will satisfy and leave you ready to return again and again. Take an umbrella.
Whitburn Lodge
This is a pub. It has none of the fancy frippery of those awful gastropubs you find in places like Manchester. It's honest, down to earth and knows what it does best - and that is serve beer and good, home-cooked food. There isn't even a terrifically good choice of beer, but it is blessed with some of the friendliest bar staff you'll find anywhere in the country. It's located just five minutes walk from a rocky coastline and about ten minutes drive north of Sunderland. Neither Mrs Blunt nor I would describe it as the homeliest establishment we've frequented, but one taste of their home-made mince and dumplings and you'll be coming back to the Whitburn Lodge for more.
Jaen Parador
The town of Jaen isn't one of the prettiest you'll ever visit in Spain, but a trip there will unveil the wondrous beauty of its parador, perched high above the town itself and offering stunning views across the olive groves of the district. The menu (in common with most of the Spanish paradors) offers local and regional delicacies not easily forgotten. Their 'Taste of Jaen' menu serves up something like twelve individual dishes all on one huge plate, so you would make a mistake if you ordered one each (unless you were accompanied by Mrs Blunt), who is a great rectifier of mistakes. Of course, it's invidious to choose one particular parador as there are so many that are attractive, but Jaen was one of the first I visited, so it holds special memories for me. I certainly learned a thing or two about Mrs Blunt's appetite during our stay there, and that's one memory that (try as I might) I have never been able to erase.
I understand that I now get the pleasure of inviting five other bloggers to share their views on the same subject (and that they in turn can invite five more when they have completed the task, so that, in time, the entire blogosphere will have had to list their top 5 eateries near to where they live).
Here's my list of taggees (and if any have already done this, my apologies in advance):
Julian Syngen-Smythe
Enumerator
Archie
70sTeen (and we are looking for a suitably '70's theme here)
and
Crofty, whose recent visit to Amsterdam may have led him to discover one or two decent places to scoff.
