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Beer lovers prayers have been answered as this Coach firm has just launched a 250-mile-long pub crawl starting early at 9:15am from Dolgellau and taking in many famous Spoons along the way

Nobody loves an organised pub crawl more than the Brits – but this one may have just topped them all.

While some make pilgrimages to a significant place or worship or set out on a journey to deepen their spirituality, this particular tour will have travellers doing less thinking and more drinking.

Lloyd’s Coaches has launched the ultimate ‘Spoons Pilgrimage’, a 250-mile round journey visiting a whole load of JD Wetherspoon pubs throughout North Wales, and venturing slightly beyond the border as well. The route begins and ends in Dolgellau.

It’s such a brilliant idea that other travel companies are likely kicking themselves, wondering why they didn’t come up with the scheme first. Yet the concept is pretty simple.

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For the very reasonable price of just £20, not including any drinks bought along the way, passengers can embark on a day trip like no other.

Departing nice and early from Dolgellau, Wales at 9.15am, the coach will head towards the inaugural Spoons in Oswestry, known as the Wilfred Owen. It’s expected that the coach arrives at noon, with attendees given a 45-minute stop to knock back a pint or two.

Then it’s time to get back on board and head on towards The Castle Hotel in Ruthin, under an hour’s drive away. Here they’ll have another 45-minute stop, before carrying on to The Picture House in Colwyn Bay, a further 45-minute drive.

It’s shaping up to be a long day on the road already, but fortunately, it’s a shorter drive this time around to the Palladium in Llandudno: the most impressive of all the establishments on the route. At this point, six county boundaries have been crossed, but there’s still plenty more to go.

Perhaps feeling a little bit giddy from all of the drinking thus far, punters will head to Tafarn y Porth in Caernarfon, then Pen Cob in Pwllheli for 7.30pm, for the final drinking stop.

Lloyds Coaches announced in a statement: “Ready for a legendary day out without the ‘who’s driving?’ debate. Grab your mates and hop aboard for the Lloyds Coaches Wetherspoons Tour. We’re hitting some of the most iconic pubs across North Wales and the border. Whether you’re in it for the affordable ales, the legendary breakfasts, or just to check the carpet patterns, this is the trip for you!”

The never-before-seen Wetherspoons Tour is set to be held on Saturday, June 27, and with the initial Facebook post gaining so much traction, who knows, it could go on to be a regular event.

Full of excitement, the travel firm later added: “We’re filling up faster than a pint of Ruddles on a Tuesday. At this rate, we’re seriously asking ourselves: ‘Do we need to add another coach’.”

On Wednesday afternoon, Lloyds Coaches added a second coach on the same day, after the first sold out.

The period drama has now been split into four parts for the free streaming service.

A “masterpiece” period drama split into four parts is free to watch on BBC iPlayer.

The Count of Monte Cristo is a 2024 film based on the 1844 novel by Alexandre Dumas.

Starring Pierre Niney as Edmond Dantes, the tale follows the young sailor falsely imprisoned for treason on his wedding day.

Escaping more than a decade later from the fortress he is imprisoned in, he transforms into a wealthy Count and builds a new life under the fake identity.

Behind the mask, he sets out to get his revenge on those who betrayed him.

The synopsis reads: “Falsely accused, imprisoned for 15 years – now he’s out for revenge on those who wronged him. An epic drama of betrayal, love and vengeance starring Pierre Niney.”

The 2024 film has been split into four parts for BBC iPlayer after becoming a huge hit when it first premiered.

One fan hailed it an “excellent adaptation from the beautiful novel, with another calling it “absolutely terrific”.

One viewer branded it a “masterpiece”, while someone else said: “I truly loved this movie and I am not an avid movie watcher, easily one of the best movies I’ve ever seen.”

“A dream come true for Monte Cristo fans,” one said, as another review was titled “Absolutely stunning”.

“Go out of your way to see this one,” one viewer advised, while someone else called it “unmissible”. They continued: “I was absolutely captivated by the film from start to finish. Every moment kept me on the edge of my seat, and I wasn’t bored for a single second.”

“A gorgeous modern production of timeless epic,” another person said, while one fan called it “spectacular”.

Despite the widespread praise, French actor Pierre Niney previously admitted he was “pessimistic” about the project at the start.

He told Forbes: “I remember thinking ‘It’s not going to be made, they’re not going to find the money’. It would take people crazy enough to embark on a 1200 pages book to make one movie.

“So I was pessimistic at the start, thinking it was too good to be true. And actually it’s even better than what I had imagined, so it will stay engraved in my memory forever.”

The Count of Monte Cristo is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.

LOUSVILLE, Ky. — Another day, another change in the Kentucky Derby field, with this one adding another Southern California horse to the starting gate.

Right to Party was scratched Friday morning, the third straight day a horse has been withdrawn, following Silent Tactic and Fulleffort. The latest change brings Robusta off the also-eligible list, giving trainer Doug O’Neill a second horse in Saturday’s race.

Robusta, a Calumet Farm homebred sired by Accelerate, has only a maiden victory from five career starts. His best race was March 7 at Santa Anita when he finished just a head behind Potente in the San Felipe Stakes at odds of 67-1. But in his next start, he faded to last in the Santa Anita Derby.

Emisael Jaramillo originally was named to ride Robusta in the Kentucky Derby, but the Daily Racing Form reported the jockey will keep his commitments Saturday at Santa Anita and Cristian Torres will be aboard Robusta. Torres had been set to ride Silent Tactic.

O’Neill, who won the Derby in 2012 and 2016, also will start Pavlovian, who won the Sunland Park Derby and was second in the Louisiana Derby. The other Derby horses based in Southern California are Mark Glatt’s So Happy, Jeff Mullins’ Intrepido and Bob Baffert’s pair of Potente and Litmus Test.

Right to Party was scheduled to break from the No. 5 post position, meaning every horse outside him will move in a spot. Robusta will be in the No. 20 position.

LOUSVILLE, Ky. — Trainer Brad Cox will have to get by with two starters in his bid to win his second Kentucky Derby after Fulleffort was scratched Thursday morning.

The Daily Racing Form, which first reported the news, said Fulleffort has a chip in his left hind ankle.

“We’ll get that cleaned up and hopefully have a fresh horse for the fall,” Cox told FanDuel TV.

Cox still has two strong contenders in the race, Further Ado and Commandment, who are both 6-1 on the morning line. The trainer won the Derby in 2021 with Mandaloun but he didn’t know it until several months after the fact when Medina Spirit was disqualified after testing positive for a prohibited drug.

Fulleffort was coming off a strong victory in the Jeff Ruby Steaks on Turfway Park’s synthetic track. The colt has never run a race on dirt, but he’s bred to do so (sire Liam’s Map won the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile in 2015), and Cox had said he looked better training on it than he did earlier in his career.

Fulleffort’s withdrawal means Ocelli is now in the field in the No. 20 post position. Ocelli is winless in six starts, with his best showing a second in a maiden race last year. In his most recent race, the son of Connect finished third in the Wood Memorial. He will be ridden by Joe Ramos for trainer Whit Beckman.

Great White, who moved into the field Wednesday with the scratch of Silent Tactic, will now break from the No. 19 post.

There are two horses left on the also-eligible list, Robusta and Corona de Oro. If there are any other scratches before 9 a.m. EDT Friday, one or both will get into the field.