We have a brand new spanking telly, for you lucky bunch to watch the fantastic Six Nations, AND we’ll be opening early so you needn’t miss a minute of those big men in small shorts.

Here are the match fixtures:

Sat 6th Feb

Ireland v Italy, 2.30pm.     England v Wales, 5pm

Sun 7th Feb

Scotland v France, 3pm

Sat 13th Feb

Wales v Scotland, 2pm.   France v Ireland, 4.30pm

Sun 14th

Italy v England, 2.30pm

Fri 26th Feb

Wales v France, 8pm

Sat 27th Feb

Italy v Scotland, 1.30pm.   England v Ireland, 4pm

Sat 13th Mar

Ireland v Wales, 2.30pm.    Scotland v England, 5pm

Sun 14th Mar,

France v Italy, 2.30pm

Sat 20th Mar

Wales v Italy, 2.30pm.   Ireland v Scotland, 5pm.   France v England, 7.45pm

Milk Street Brewery is hoping to strike gold at a beer competition next month to find the best beers in the country. Over 60 beers from the nation’s smaller brewers will be judged at the National Beer Competition organised by the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA).

The competition, held in Nottingham on 4^th February, brings together the winners of seven regional heats, including the South West where Milk Street Brewery triumphed last spring.  The 56 draught and seven bottled finalist beers present an impressively diverse array of beer styles, from milds and pale ales to stouts and fruit beers. Judges will select a winner in each of nine categories, as well as a Supreme Champion beer.

Milk Street Brewery has high hopes for its Funky Monkey, a summer ale boasting as many fruity flavours and aromas as a grocer’s counter.   Richard Lyall comments, “Of the 1,400 beers that entered the regional heats, ours is one of only 63 to have made it to the National Beer Competition, so this is a real thrill for us.  We’re up against the best beers from brewers across the country, so the competition will be tough and we’ll be delighted to come away with one of the national titles.”

The 10 winning beers will be announced at SIBA’s National Conference in March. In addition to the prestige of winning a national title, the winners are guaranteed a place on the SIBA Champions Bar at the Great British Beer Festival in London in August.

The competition is being held at The Canalhouse pub in Nottingham. The purpose-built bar for the 56 handpulls will measure 12 metres, making it the longest temporary bar in the country.

Fingers crossed, chaps!

The Griffin pub sent 2009 out with a bang.  Loads of Fromeites flocked to their favourite boozer to see in the New Year.  Our resident pharmacist kicked the evening off with his weird and wonderful choice of tunes, before the Boothill Allstars hit the stage.  They played their original hoedown of Somerset hill-billy.  DJ Ohead headlined, bringing a fantastic mix of psy-trance and and dub tinged space-rock.  Dancers were still going till the early hours, and a fun night was definitely had by all.