Hit The North : pt 2/7

20Feb12

So further North still today, albeit not much further. To the finest bookshop in Britain, (other bookshops are of course available), namely Barter Books in Alnwick. If you’ve not been then you should start making plans this instant because it’s a wonderful place – located in Alnwick’s old railway station, (thanks to Dr Beeching), it’s just the way a book shop should be.

Barter’s is also ‘home’ of the increasingly infamous ‘Keep Calm & Carry On’ poster, which appears in this month’s issue of the Creative Review – where they mention the unpleasant, (and disappointingly successful), trade marking of the phrase by Mr Mark Coop. Whilst the volume of low quality money making opportunities that has misappropriated the phrase is a depressing sight, I think the trademarking of it is even more depressing still – if you do too you can join Barter Books over here in their attempts to overturn the registration. I wish them the best of luck.

Purchases completed, (including Penguins, Pelicans, Ladybirds and The Incredible Cottage Goes to the Moon by Willie Rushton), it was time to reunite ourselves with the sand and the sea at Alnmouth with it’s beautiful sandy beach and the lighthouse on Coquet Island out in the distance, although too far in this instance for Puffin spotting.

Alnmouth also ‘boasts’ the oldest nine hole golf course in England, or it could be fourth oldest in the world, or maybe the second oldest in the UK, seems to depend on who you ask, whatever it’s vintage I can confirm that it does have a golf course.

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Tags: Alnmouth, Alnwick, Barter Books, Keep Calm & Carry On, Mark Coop