The 2012 CAMRA Derby Winter Beer Festival Wednesday 15th February to Saturday 18th February.

It does not seem long since the Derby Summer beer festival was here does it, well now its not long until the Derby Winterfest 2012. Which is the 11th winter beer festival to take place in Derby.
Here is my complete guide to this Winter beer festival in Derby.
Update : Saturday 18th Feb 2012.

The 2012 CAMRA Derby Winter Beer Festival starts on Wednesday 15th February and runs until Saturday 18th February. Here are all the details about this years winter beer festival
This will take place the Derby Roundhouse on Pride Park, Derby.

If you have never been to a beer festival before then you are missing an experience, there are not just beers on sale there are ciders and Perries.  You can get some hot or cold food too. T-shirts and glasses are available to buy. And great live music to watch each day.

Its best to arrive by the free bus service from Derby Assembly rooms.

This year there will be real ale on sale in the Carriage Room as well as the Main Hall of the Round House itself. The Carriage Room will also host the extensive range of live entertainment.

Dates and opening times:
Wednesday 15th February 4pm to 11pm
Thursday 16th February 11am to 11pm
Friday 17th February 11am to 11pm
Saturday 18th February 11am to 11pm

Entrance charges:
FREE to CAMRA Members at all times. Non-members will be charged as follows :

Wednesday 15.2.12 4pm - 11pm - £3
Thursday 16.2.12 11am - 4pm - £2
Thursday 16.2.12 4pm - 11pm - £4
Friday 17.2.12 11am - 4pm - £3
Friday 17.2.12 4pm - 11pm - £5
Saturday 18.2.12 11am - 4pm - £3
Saturday 18.2.12 4pm - 11pm - £5

Travelling to the Derby Winter Beer Festival:
There is a FREE Shuttle Bus between Derby Town Centre and the beer festival provided by Harpurs Coaches. (Yes its FREE there and back honest !) and travels as below :
I have created a very detail map for this free bus showing locations etc. - Free Derby Beer Festival Shuttle Bus Map.

This free bus shuttle will run at these times :

Wednesday 15th, Leaves Derby City Centre at these times :
17:30, 18:00, 18:30, 19:00, 19:30, 20:00, 20:30, 21:00
Leaves the Roundhouse at these times :
17:45, 18:15, 18:45, 19:15, 19:45, 20:15, 20:45, 21:15

Thursday 16th, Leaves Derby City Centre at these times :
14:00, 14:30, 15:00, 15:30, 16:00, 16:30, 17:00, 17:30, 18:00, 18:30, 19:00, 19:30, 20:00, 20:30, 21:00
Leaves the Roundhouse at these times :
14:15, 14:45, 15:15, 15:45, 16:15, 16:45, 17:15, 17:45, 18:15, 18:45, 19:15, 19:45, 20:15, 20:45, 21:15

Friday 17th, Leaves Derby City Centre at these times :
14:00,14:30,15:00,15:30,16:00,16:30,17:00,17:30, 18:00, 18:30, 19:00, 19:30, 20:00, 20:30, 21:00
Leaves the Roundhouse at these times :
14:15, 14:45, 15:15, 15:45, 16:15, 16:45, 17:15, 17:45, 18:15, 18:45, 19:15, 19:45, 20:15, 20:45, 21:15

Saturday 18th, Leaves Derby City Centre at these times :
11:00, 11:30, 12:00, 12:30, 13:00, 13:30, 14:00, 14:30, 15:00, 15:30, 16:00, 16:30, 17:00, 17:30, 18:00, 18:30, 19:00, 19:30, 20:00, 20:30, 21:00
Leaves the Roundhouse at these times :
11:15, 11:45,12:15, 12:45, 13:15, 14:45, 14:15, 14:45, 15:15, 15:45, 16:15, 16:45, 17:15, 17:45, 18:15, 18:45, 19:15, 19:45, 20:15, 20:45, 21:15

The bus looks like this, its quite distinctive so keep your drunken eye open for it  :

Here we see the Beer bus on The Morledge.



Live entertainment at the 2012 Derby Beer Festival :
Wednesday 15th February its an 'Open Mic' music & song night with prearranged Performers. Bands TBC.
Thursday 16th February its The Merseybeasts.
Friday 17th February its Superdupergrass followed by the Headline Act Coldplace.
Saturday 18th February the UK Foo Fighters headline supported by Steak Club.

Venue
The Roundhouse
Roundhouse Road, Pride Park, Derby, DE24 8JE

A video showing a pan around the Roundhouse at last years winter beerfest.


For those non-drinkers giving people a lift in your car, the SATNAV postcode for Derby Roundhouse is DE24 8JE

Its also a perfect location to get to by train as Derby railway station is less that 30 seconds walk away from this venue !
See when the next train to Derby station is here - Thetrainline.com

Google Streetview of Derby Roundhouse. (note this was captured by Google before the Derby College restoration was completed!)

Smartphone mapping pin for smartphone owners:
If you are a new visitor to Derby's winter beer festival then you will find my smartphone navigation pin of use. Simply view this blog on your smartphone and follow my instruction below.

Derby Winter Beer Festival drop pin <---- Tap this link on you smartphone.

When you tap the link above, it will launch your mapping application and place a "push pin" onto the map with the exact location of Derby Roundhouse beer festival. You can then use this marker to get walking directions.

For example on an iPhone you tap the "Directions" button at the bottom and this will pre-fill in the start location with your current location and the end location with the Roundhouse.

So all you need to do is just tap the "Route" button at the bottom then tap the walking icon and it will show you walking route. If you tap the bottom left icon 3 times then this will turn on follow mode, Centre mode and direction mode. What this means is that a blue flashing dot which represents you will stay in the centre of the screen and orientated in the direction that you travel in.

If you tap the middle button at the top, this will even show you which bus number and when the next bus to the Roundhouse is from your nearest location.
My push pins are far more accurate than any other map as its not based on the postcode which most maps are. My map is based on local knowledge of the location.

Beer and Cider Lists:
The Complete Beer and Cider lists are here : (These are in .PDF format.)

The Beer List.
Cider and Perry List.
Continental Beer List.

With regards to Cider and Perry, the tub labels should tell most of what you need to know when ordering. Green labels are cider and yellow labels are perry.
Good to see they have Gwynt y Ddraig Black Dragon on as this was on in The Babington Arms and the Standing Order but sold out before I had chance to even try it !
We also have Three Cats Morley a local cider on again which was also on at the GBBF in London.
Also the classic Broadoak Perry.

Thanks
Andy Savage
www.derbyphotos.co.uk

Get yourself ready for next year : The 2013 Derby Winter Beer Festival will take place Weds 20th to Sat 23rd Feb 2013.

2012 Ashbourne Shrovetide Football, Tuesday 21st and Wednesday 22nd February.

UPDATE : 21st Feb Videos now online to view.

Its that time of year again when the maddest game of football in the world takes place in Ashbourne Derbyshire. Here are the details for 2012 :

The 2012 game takes place on the 21st and 22nd February.
On Tuesday Dr Paul Kirtley, a GP in Ashbourne for 32 years, will be turning up the ball at 2.00pm. And on Ash Wednesday, deputy mayor and businessman Steve Bull will have the honour.

Ashbourne in Derbyshire is host to one of the Oldest Shrovetide football games in England and this annual event is one not to be missed.

It was first recorded in 1682, though thought to date back to the 12th Century ,various attempts were made to suppress it over the years.

It has continued unabated ever since, and by 1928 it had become so respectable that the then Prince of Wales was invited to start the game. From that year on it was known as the Royal Shrovetide Football game.

The Game is played annually on Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday, and consists of two teams, one from anyone born to the North of the River Henmore, and one from people born South of the river, these are known as Upards and Downards.

The Goals are on the sites of Old mills, one at Clifton and one at Sturston, these are three miles apart.
A goal is scored by a player striking the mill wheel three times with the Ball.

The ball may be kicked, carried or thrown, but generally proceeds in a series of hugs invisible to the spectator. The game can last for many hours, finishing well after dark.

The game starts at 2pm in the afternoon, when a specially prepared ball - larger than a football and filled with cork which weighs around 4lbs is thrown in by a visiting guest of honor. The balls used for the Shrovetide games are made by Ashbourne man John Harrison who is turning up the ball this year.
The hand sewn leather balls are filled with cork chippings.
The balls are a work of art and take a few weeks to paint.

The Rules
If the balls are goaled, then it will become the proud possession of the person who has goaled it. If no-one goals it, then the person that turned-up the ball gets to take it home.
The game starts in the Shawcroft Carpark (back of Waitrose supermarket), See my detailed map lower down. I have provided a detailed interactive Shrovetide map lower down in this post which will enable you to see all the key points of the playing field which 3 miles between the two goals at Sturston and Clifton.

Ashbourne Royal Shrovetide Football is something that you just have to see to believe your eyes.
Here is a video I made of the game last year in two parts to give you an idea of what its like :







I have lots of photographs and several videos from past games that you can view :

Photographs:
Photographs from the 2008 Ashbourne Shrovetide Football game.

Photographs from the 2007 Ashbourne Shrovetide Football game.

Photographs from the 2006 Ashbourne Shrovetide Football game.

Photographs from the 2004 Ashbourne Shrovetide Football game.

Photographs from the 2002 Ashbourne Shrovetide Footbal game.


Videos :

Video footage from the 2009 Ashbourne Shrovetide Football Game.


Video footage from the 2007 Ashbourne Shrovetide Footaball game.

Extra video footage from the 2007 Ashbourne Shrovetide Football game.

Time-lapse driving video from Derby to Ashbourne.

Location Map:
Smartphone drop pin locator for Ashbourne Shrovetide Football,
If you own a smartphone (iPhone,HTC etc) then CLICK HERE and it will launch your mapping app with a "drop pin" which I have perfectly located above the turning up plinth, If you have never been to Ashbourne then you can use this to get walking directions to where the action will be at 2pm.
On an iPhone, once the map shows up there will be a red drop pin in the middle of the screen with the title "Ashbourne Shrovetide" above it. Touch "Directions" at the bottom and then "by foot" icon at the top of the screen to get detailed walking directions to the start of the game.


The town of Ashbourne is located in Derbyshire just off the A52, see my time-lapse driving video to Ashbourne Football.
I have created an interactive map which shows all the key points in the game such as the turning up plinth where the ball is thrown, the two goals and the Henmore which is what determines if you are an Upard or a Downard, Click the link below the map for a large view of all the points of interest :

View Ashbourne Shrovetide Football game map. in a larger map

Thanks
Andy

Video of "Scrap Iron, Any Old Iron" - The Derby Scrap Man. Rag and Bone men with bizarre noise on Tannoy .

Here is a video I have just uploaded of some local Derby scrap men and their "Scrap Iron, Any Old Iron" noise on the Tannoy.

If your from Derby then I'm sure that at some point in the last few years you will have heard this very strange sound along your street. This guy and another scrap man drive around collecting scrap metal.
Looking on YouTube now I see this very same sound seems to be used by lots of scrap collection vans all over the UK.
Where on earth do they get the same sound from?

I've even heard this sound around Burton on Trent, Staffs.
The sound at the beginning of my video is from another scrap man that drove past in 2009.

My Video of Derby Scrap Men and their unique sound !


Video of Derby Scrap men.

Where have you heard them in Derby?




Cheers
Andy