Built between 1911-14, Burnham's pier has the slightly dubious distinction of being Britain's…read moreshortest pier, consisting of just a Pavilion. It is one of the oldest reinforced concrete structures of its type in the world, and is in a remarkably good state of preservation, giving a good impression of a late Edwardian illuminated Pavilion. It was named by the Daily Express as being one of the top five in Britain, being described thus: "Britain's shortest pier, a bit stubby perhaps but full of mid-Edwardian architectural elegance and it won't wear your shoes out". It is not known whether an extension was ever contemplated, although this would not have been an easy task with the strong currents and enormous tidal range of this stretch of coast. For most locals, it is known as 'the Pavilion', rather than 'the Pier'. When it was built, the adjacent half mile stretch of the Esplanade was provided with a wide pavement deck reaching out over the sea wall in a matching style, with large grids in the pavement to relieve pressure from the waves during storms at high tide. However, this structure was severely damaged in a storm surge in December 1981, after which the present sea wall was constructed. However, the Pier survived. For the past 30 years or so, the interior has been an amusement arcade, with small outlets selling snacks. The tidal range here - the second highest in the world - means that at low tide it is possible to walk safely underneath and in front of the structure. If you want to take a 'live' look at the Pier, the excellent Burnham-on-Sea website has a 24-hour webcam overlooking it, at: http://www.burnham-on-sea.com/webcam

A tired looking place on the inside, which makes it a bit sad as it's a nice looking if not short…read morepier on the outside. Rather than the amusements, grab a drink on the entrance a sit and watch the sea (or sand!).

This is the place where a lot of toothbrushes are made, hence the name "Bristle City", and people…read moreare also a little unfriendly. Actually Bristol is actually becoming the party capital of the UK (ish) and definitely of the South West. It's a really young and up and coming city which might be why they didn't support me at all at my concert here, lol, but then again I was very late. First-Hand Experience: I was lucky enough to see Bristol Rovers play at Ashton Gate against Bristol City, so I got to experience the famous and rabid local derby. It was actually a pretty friendly derby, but I loved both teams and I have an affinity with City. Their fans are loud and passionate and I am very glad that I was able to see such a famous game live and in person. Bristol City is the more successful and "bigger" of the two Bristol teams in my opinion, and is my preference. Their stadium is better, they are doing better at the moment in the third tier, and a long time ago they were league runners up (1907) and FA Cup runners up to Man U (boo Man U). But they've never won either of the big things, and for such a big city, you have to hope that with their enormous new stadium that's being remodeled on the site of the old one (Ashton Gate) that they can get back to the big time. Until they do, they'll stay at 4 stars for underachieving, but they're a very good side indeed. All of the reviews on here are pretty much for the stadium (and trashing it, no less), so they should be moved to the stadium listing which is separate.

Come on, lets build a bit of support for the *Ahem* mighty City!…read more The 21,000 seater stadium might not be as impressive as many others, and Ncky Maynard might not be banging in the goals that we would expect him to after his record transfer. But it is the City's big club... unless your aleagence is with rovers, even then though their a whole devision bellow city! You can't beat a saturday afternoon cheering the pride of Bristol as they beat middlesborough 2-0 against the odds (or loose 6-0 to Cardiff infront of the home fans! you've gotta take the rough with the smooth!) Come on, lets bring the pride back and get behind the City massive!

As a Sea Cadet, kids (10 -18 yrs) learn alot about themselves, meet new friends other than just…read morethose from school and have the chance to do things most people could not afford. Not bad for £1.50 for each twice weekly session! The Royal Navy even loan most of the uniform! In exchange for all this they do ask for regular attendance and high standards of conduct. Still a fair exchange in my book. The staff, who are all volunteers, offer a wide range of activities on and off the water and there is no expectation or pressure for cadets to join the Navy (although alot of the training is based around the same skills that are taught to sailors). This unit also seems to have alot of activities at weekends, social events and excellent value and unusual trips. Last autumn a weekend trip to London including meals, accomodation (aboard a WWII museum ship!) entrance to all attractions and transport came to £50. The arrow on the map on this page is slightly wrong as the unit is right on the river opposite the Lamplighters.

Goals Brislington is one of many branches of 5-a-side football centres across the UK but is…read morepossibly one of the only examples of a chain where each branch has an individual flavour. Located in the industrial area of Brislington it'll take a dedicated team driver to get you here for your game every week, particularly when you have and early kick off, when the traffic is bad and the pre-match tension is running high. Although the area isn't the most picturesque and the football crowd isn't the most cultured, Goals in Brislington has been home to some of my best and worst moments since living in Bristol. There are leagues running each night of the week, with six divisions running in each league, so you should be able to find one that suits you. As you can imagine, there are plenty of wurzels-esque accents, swear words, men with highlighted and greasy hair and more diamond earrings than you could shake Jeremy Kyle at. But the whole atmosphere and competition makes for a great weekly event to carry out with your mates. There are 12 floodlit 3G astro pitches bustling with 40 minute games each night. The standard is high and the games are often angry, so anyone looking for a jolly kickabout with jumpers for goalposts will be a trifle disappointed. There's also changing room facilities and a bar with big screens for you to enjoy the real footballers before, in between or after your game. They also run a site for you to check up on results and your league tables after the match. It's about £36 each week, so it's good to get a few subs down each week to spread the cost. The car park is also a potholed disaster, so drive slowly. If you want a real treat, get down on a Wednesday and catch my team Dream Bisons FC as we storm up the Bundesliga tables. We'll probably be winning some sort of trophy or something.

There are quite a few play cafés in Bristol and portico play is one of the only ones I hadn't…read morevisited until last week. It's lovely, a nice big (but not too big) main play area with 2 other smaller rooms, the toys are really fantastic, my 16 month old especially loved playing in the room with the small slides and climbing frames, she loves climbing and these toys were small enough so that if she did fall she wouldn't fall very far and it would be a soft landing. Around the outside of the main play area there are tall seats around so parents can sit there enjoying a tea or coffee and watch the children play. There are lots of snacks hot and cold drinks and things like paninis and sandwiches, I had a cheese and ham panini and it was delicious ! The staff were really friendly and I shall definitely be going back very soon

I've been meaning to go to Portico for ages as everyone I know with small children raves about it!…read more My time finally came on Friday and it didn't disappoint. My only grumble came from trying to find some where to park, so if you are able WALK!! I sadly didn't have that option and had quite a stressful 10mins with a screaming child trying to park. Once inside I ordered a coffee and some lunch and found my friends. The menu is simple but nice. I had a panini which was fine and the coffee was really good. The children's menu is perfect and simple. Once we'd revitalised ourselves with refreshments we hit the play area. Most indoor play places I've been to have a soft play and a few toys but this is so much more. The play area is full of great toys, there is a whole kitchen and shop which kept my son entertained on his own for far longer than any other play. This is also closed in with seating around so you can sip coffee and chat with your eyes on your little one. Genius! It's 3.75 for the day and worth every penny if you want to meet friends and chat while your child is entertained.

The courts are very central to Bath so perfect for a lunchtime game of tennis. They have outdoor…read moreand indoor courts. I recommend the indoor ones (inside 'bubbles') as the outdoor ones can get a bit slippery. There is a great cafe overlooking the courts if you fancy some lunch after your game. Or the crazy golf is right next door if you fancy more fun. Prices are reasonable, coaching is available and they run lessons throughout the week. Book in advance.

I dislike gyms (and even most exercise if I'm honest) so I'm excited to have found Nordic walking!…read moreThe beginners session was great fun and I think I've finally found something I can enjoy.

I recently enquired about joining Backwell tennis club and was told that, in order to join you had…read moreto meet certain requirements, and show a certain skill level. After demonstrating that my friend and I could play against other club members in a competitive fashion, we were invited back for a second session. My second experience was awful. Although we had already shown that we could participate competitively amongst the clubs members, we were again partnered up with two people we didn't know, (which is what they do,whether you want to play doubles or not.) After playing for well over an hour with these people, we were called to one side by the clubs chairman, and told that he didn't believe we were good enough to become members, and would be wasting our money by joining! This is the same person who was full of praise the previous week and invited us back for our second session. It is apparent that the club very much has its own status quo, with the average member age being around the late 50's at least, with a lot of members well in to retirement. So perhaps they didn't like the prospect of two twenty something year olds joining them. I would not recommend anyone to join this club, but if you want to take their personality and eligibility to play at Backwell test, then good luck to you!! I'll certain be joining elsewhere.

After getting in touch to show my interest in joining Blackwell Tennis Club, I was invited to visit…read morea club session to play with other members. After this first session it was hard to formulate a proper opinion as there was very low turnout from the members. Following this I was invited back for another club session. My second club session was an extremely negative experience. This time there were more regular members, however they were all much older and very cliquey. On the whole they made me, a newcomer, feel very uncomfortable trying to join. After this session I was encouraged not to join and given a generic reason as to why. The courts and facilities are fantastic but a club is only as good as it's members and it would seem that if you aren't their sort of person and of a certain age they'll encourage you not to join. It proudly says on their website "visitors are always welcome" however after my experience, I didn't feel that was the case.