A couple's 'strange' pastime has seen them travel all over England. Phil and Julie Fox, from Brighouse, West Yorkshire have visited an incredible 321 Wetherspoon pubs since 2004.
The couple hit the milestone on Tuesday, March 2, when they popped into a 'Spoons in King's Lynn, Norfolk. The couple enjoys "bagging 'Spoons" and visiting parts of England they have never been to. Visiting number 321 was a special day for 74-year-old Phil, reports Yorkshire Live.
The father-of-five said: "Number 321 has a nice ring to it. We are staying near here for a late winter break. We are off to London in June and have plans to bag a few 'Spoons south of the river including one called Fox on the Hill."
He added: "We just enjoy bagging 'Spoons, visiting bits of England we've never been to. Did you know King's Lynn has its very own leaning tower?"
Phil says he enjoys visiting Wetherspoon pubs as he loves geography, beer and value-for-money grub. He visited his first in Richmond, North Yorkshire, in 2004, and hasn't looked back.
In 2020 they visited The Imperial in Exeter, a former hotel with a barrel-vaulted conservatory space, described as "absolutely wonderful" by Phil. He and Julie are also fans of the strangely-named The Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, a former courthouse and police station in Keswick, Cumbria.
Phil, a retired production worker, is also fond of The Admiral Collingwood, named after Nelson's second-in-command at the battle of Trafalgar, which is situated in Ilfracombe, Devon, and features a 'rooftop garden' bar with sea views.
He admits that one or two 'Spoons pubs have been a bit on the 'rough' side, including one near Rochdale where Phil says "we had to shout over women using the 'F' word. We sat right at the back."
He says that his family accepts that he and Julie have a 'strange' pastime.
"I think our family just accept that we have a strange but good hobby," he said.
"When we go anywhere they love the fact that seven or eight of us, including grandchildren, can eat for less than £50."
Phil says he has another ambition, aside from visiting more Wetherspoon pubs.
"We have one ambition. One day we hope we may see ourselves in the house magazine that 'Spoons publish."
* Greyfriars Tower in King's Lynn, one of only three surviving Franciscan monastery towers in England, is informally referred to as 'the leaning tower of Lynn' as it leans dramatically to the west.
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