READER’S SHORT story

It’s a dream hobby – spending your retirement in a pub! Martin Heathcote travels around the counties visiting JD Wetherspoons, and as there are over 800 in the UK, he’ll be kept busy for a while.

The 72-year-old from Halifax, West Yorkshire, says: “I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease 10 years ago, but despite my obvious disabilities, I travel solely on my bus pass and senior railcard.”

Martin tells us about one of his jaunts…

I found myself, compliments of my senior bus pass, on an omnibus travelling from Halifax to Burnley last October, 20 miles over the Yorkshire/Lancashire border to visit at least three JD Wetherspoons that day.

They were The Boot Inn, Burnley, then The Wallace Hartley, Colne, bordering on Pendle Witch country, and then returning back to North Yorkshire to The Devonshire in the market town of Skipton.

Over the bleak, unforgiving hills of the Pennines, sheep clung miserably to the barren terrain and the few wind-bent trees had quickly shed their leaves after a long-forgotten summer.

Alighting at Burnley bus station, I tied my scarf, fixed my checkered tweed cap, and shuffled, Parkinson’s style, along the wet stone pavements.

The Boot Inn, Burnley, is conveniently situated round the corner from the Burnley bus station, and a short walk from Burnley football club’s hallowed Turf Moor ground on Harry Potts Way.

A stone-built traditional town pub, it boasts the most wonderful carved wooden bar, adorned with hand-pull real ale handles alongside modern gas type lager taps.

At 10am, the atmosphere was cheerful and welcoming. The clientele consisted mostly of retired people, some drinking an early pint. However, the majority of punters were making full use of the legendary Spoons coffee machine. I also paid £1.50 for a spotless mug and the promise of endless coffee.

Some of the OAPs were enjoying breakfast without the trouble of cooking or washing-up at home. Well, for £6-7 a throw, bacon, eggs, sausage beans and toast with as much coffee you can drink – what more do you want?

Oh what a decadent life us pensioners lead.

The interior of the Boot is split level. The walls are adorned with sepia photos of old Burnley.

Through glass doors there is an outdoor area for al fresco dining and drinking. A couple of hardy souls, pint in hand, braved the damp autumn weather.

Reading the notes on the cover of the menu we are told that this building started life as a farmhouse in the 18th century. The present building was constructed by Blackpool architect H Thompson in 1911.

The Boot has seen two World Wars and it’s easy to imagine throngs of uniformed Tommys gracing the bars.

I walked the short distance back to the bus station, where the Mainline bus service soon whisked me the seven odd-miles to Colne.

(Martin’s Spoons’ jaunt will be continued tomorrow).

■ Send your 500-word stories to siobhan.mcnally@mirror.co.uk