EATEST SITS

Sam tours the country rating our best and worst BENCHES

WACKY Sam Wilmot is sitting pretty thanks to his “pew’s who” of British benches.

The recruitment worker has assessed the qualities of more than 200 on his Instagram account Rate This Bench, which now has nearly 8,000 followers.

Sam, 23, said: “I’ve always been a fan of sitting down. I had an eye for a good bench from my younger years.

“One day on a walk I started to comment on what I did and didn’t like about the benches we passed, and a friend said it would be a hilarious idea for an Instagram page.”

Sam’s critique focuses on comfort, maintenance and the view from each bench. Followers from across the world have also sent in “guest reviews”.

But Sam, from Yate, Bristol, said his followers are quick to pull him up if he sets the benchmark too high.

He said: “There are a few followers of the page who pick up on times I’ve been overly lenient or given a higherthan-expected rating. But there have been just as many people who have submitted their own reviews from far and wide – Australia, India and the US.

“There have also been hundreds who have messaged me to discuss their favourite benches.”

Sam’s top pew is outside St John the Baptist Church in Old Sodbury, South Glos. He wrote: “I genuinely believe this is near-on perfection.

“It has a paved base, thick arm rests. It has a deep-set and comfortably curved seat, and a heartfelt plaque.”

Benches in Brynmill Park, Swansea, and Downend, Bristol, make up his top three. But a seat on River Street, Bristol, gets a pasting. Sam dubs another the “stupidest bench in Wales” for being 2ft from a hedge.