Called in the
Tap and Spile, Hexham, on my trip back to Hadrian's Wall to retrieve my phone. £27 each way first class - cheaper than the standard fare. Hexham is a busy town with everything you need, including a lost property office at the bus station. Calling it a station is a bit grand. It's a couple of stops either side of a brick building which serves as changing and rest rooms for the crews. Also an obstacle course for the general public, greeted by door signs labelled as private, staff only, followed by loud banter of a sexual nature between the drivers. I overcame any shyness and the phone was back in my possession. So for a drink.
We were two men sat either end of the bar. He got up to refresh his drink next door. The landlady put the glass to the tap, pulled a lever and ... all the lights went out and
spotify on the pa system went silent. Spooky, or so I thought, until an electrician came through the back door, wielding two pieces of wire.
The other bloke had sat down with a full pint.
Hexham also has a pound shop. Three pairs of spectacles were soon mine, one of which I have already misplaced.