Avril's cousin Mike had not been to the UK before and had therefore not experience any UK pubs. His visit here was intended to redress this imbalance; we did. Mike arrived on a Thursday morning at Gatwick and Avril and I decided that he had to visit a quintessentially English pub in the shape of the Falkland Arms at Great Tew. This didn't really disappoint although one of the beers was a bit past its best and the barmaid was on the phone to a supplier. Nonetheless we enjoyed the garden in a window of decent weather, and drove back afterwards to Great Bourton where we had several more ales at home.

The following day, Avril elected to stay at home, so Mike and I ventured by railway into Oxford to have a look at the dreaming spires. In actual fact we also managed to squeeze in about 8 pints somehow. The railway station in Oxford is a fair walk from the town centre so this gave the opportunity to see a few sights on the way in, but we soon became thirsty and our first port of call was the White Horse, a wood panelled pub, sandwiched between bits of Blackwell's bookshop. As a yardstick to judge the quality of the beer, I had a pint of Timothy Taylor Landlord, which was very good. We decided not to have any food at that juncture, thinking that we would have some quite soon after.

Although the White Horse is nice and wood panelled, there is nothing better than the Turf for an especially Oxfordian experience. We were in luck as amongst their selection on that day was Buffy's Mild, a delicately nutty mild which is actually stronger than you might first think at 4.2%. This was perhaps the best pint of beer that I had tasted in a long time, certainly all year, and so we decided to have another one in case there wasn't any more on anywhere else. This allowed time to push on a little bit and it was well after 5 by the time we left. I decided that it would be quite a good idea to have a look at St Edmund Hall, so Mike and I left the Turf and headed down Queen's Lane to Teddy Hall.

The focus of our time there was supposed to be soaking up a bit of culture and having a look at a college that I had attended, so he had a look around the graveyard and the quad. However, it was approaching 6 by the time we had finished and as it turned out the bar was going to open quite soon. I felt that it might be a good idea to get an experience at an authentic Oxford bar, especially as it was still term time. We were in luck again. After a short while, Clive came down to assist the barmaid who was serving at the time, and as per usual he recognised me and made the customary 'Are you still here?' comment. By some coincidence there were some other people who were also former college members and who were enjoying a drink. Clive took the opportunity to show us the improvements that had been made to the graveyard in his typically candid style, before we went back in. As it happened the other people in there were actually celebrating the stag evening of Richard Woodfine and both he and Stuart Robinson were there dressed up in jackets. Mike particularly enjoyed the camaraderie of our tea-time stay there. Nonetheless, after a pint and a half of keg bitter, it was time to move on.

An Oxford staple would need to be visited next, in the form of the Lamb and Flag on St Giles, which we reached via a photo opportunity or two at the Radcliffe Camera and the High Street, and for some reason the covered market. I had to nip up to the shops opposite St Anne's College, but Mike managed to make himself at home in the Lamb and Flag Passage just outside the pub where smokers tend to congregate. It was actually quite convenient to be there for a while as the window ledges offered suitable resting places for pint glasses. Mike ordered a Betty Stoggs whilst I had gone; I'd not had one of them in a little while - it was actually quite nice.

We had attempted to go to the Gloucester Arms , but as this was shut and as we were in no mood to drink at that toilet pub on Gloucester Green, we went to Far from the Madding Crowd instead. Although the building is not exactly ye olde worlde, they do do a splendid range of well kept beer so we were kept happy at least in part. The time had come when we should begin to think about heading back. There was still time for a few more though and I felt that getting into the vicinity of the station might be the best course of action. On the way we went to the Honeypot, which is quite a trendy pub now complete with trendy people and trendy cushions. We sat in their narrow beer garden (back yard really) which was nice, and actually had a couple of splendid pints of Tim Taylor Landlord, for they know their beers in the Honeypot, and they keep them well. It is also pleasing to see that the toilets have not been trendified. There was still time for one more so we went around the corner for a typical backstreet boozer experience at the Kite. However, I had made an error of judgment and the train that we were supposed to catch was actually due to depart 15 minutes earlier than I had originally thought. Therefore, two pints had to be sunk in their rather nice beer garden in the time that should have been allocated to enjoy two halves. We also did not have any time to consider solids either.

Despite these difficulties, we still managed to get to the station in plenty of time to catch our train back to Banbury, and then a taxi back to Great Bourton. However, it wasn't actually that late and so Mike and I decided to pop into the local pub, the Bell, which is only about 75 seconds' walk away from the house. I had originally been here a few years previously with Dave Wacey and remember that it wasn't particularly welcoming and nothing to really write home about. It has since changed hands and the clientele are much better. It does really feel like being in someone's living room though. They do a very good few Hook Norton ales however, and I think we had two which almost put a cap on the evening although we might have squeezed a sly bottle in back at the house too, though still no solids as I remember.

The following day was the wedding party at Sturdy's Castle and fortunately apart from a slight dullness and lateish start, there were no ill effects from the previous day's indulgences. The party kicked off at 6 or so and most people arrived over the course of the next hour, with a buffet and DJ thrown in to keep the stomachs full. People from all over the place had managed to get there and a special mention must go to Richard Bradshaw for his karaoke rendition of 'Crazy Little thing called Love'. A great number of pints of Hook Norton Best were sold that evening as this pump was nearest to the function room. I later discovered that they also had Spitfire on the other side of the bar but no-one found it. HNB is an ideal beer for these sorts of occasion and Mike managed to stick away about 10 of them. I managed 7 or 8 as I was talking to people. Avril had wine which was stronger and had a more rapid effect. We finally got home by taxi at about 1.15am and decided to have another bottle or two for a night cap.

June 1st 2008 dawned without too much of a hangover but with the realisation that the car would need to be retrieved. A plan that would work logistically was hatched, and Mike and I boarded a train from Banbury to alight at Tackley. The walk from Tackley to Sturdy's Castle is longer than I had thought, and we walked in the heat and up some hills for about 30 minutes before reaching the car. A small detour was taken to look at Woodstock and Blenheim Palace, but after this a need for refreshment became apparent, and so I parked the car on Parsons Street in Banbury and he had a look at the interesting Woolpack pub at Banbury Cross. This is a quaint-looking black and white fronted pub with the sign in an almost cartoon font. It does however do a splendid array of beer, and is bigger than you first think as there is quite a lot of room out the back. As I was driving I could only have one, and in any case I still had to move some cars around, so I left Mike in Banbury whilst I took the Rover back and returned by bike about 45 minutes later. The plan had been to go to the Reindeer, but this was closed so Mike went into the New Flyer (I think) for one before returning to the Woolpack