01/14/2026
Driving home from the Lake District, done for the day, and by chance I pass this little place, the brilliantly, beautifully named Sticklebarn pub.
⠀
It's lovely inside – low ceilings, beams, wood fire, blankets, boardgames… I sit outside, look at the fells opposite, and order a coffee with a big glug of rum in it (just to keep warm, you understand). All very tranquil. All very picturesque.
⠀
Step forward Lenny… Lenny gets a whiff of the food on the table next to ours. He sniffs the air incessantly, stares threateningly at the people eating this food. They take it quite well. One man shouts: "SAUSAGES!" Lenny tilts his head at him, then gets right back to sniffing and staring.
