Our Visit Derby review trip in February took us a little out of the city centre on the Saturday afternoon, but not far. 20 minutes drive North of Derby on the A6 (just past Ambergate), is the old wire works site nestling on the river Derwent. This is now the White Peak Distillery, and we joined them for a Distillery Tour and Gin Tasting... 

Originally an iron forge until 1876, the wire works became a major local employer, manufacturing heavy duty cabling and wire right up until the mid 1990's. The White Peak Distillery have now taken some of the buildings on, and it is the ideal spot to create some very interesting spirits. 

I've been to breweries before, but never a distillery, and this is a very young one, so the first thing I noticed was how spotlessly clean it all was! A mere 2 days before we arrived, the very first batch of 3 year aged Wire Works single malt Whisky had gone on sale and immediately sold out, so there was a real buzz of excitement, and well-placed pride. 

This week family festive extravaganza Silcock’s Winter Wonderland opened for the 2021/22 Christmas season at EventCity in Manchester, and we were lucky enough to be invited along as guests to review...

Silcock's Winter Wonderland is organised by Kingpin Events, who are back in charge after a 3 year break, and EventCity is an ideal location, right beside the M60, 3,000 free car parking spaces outside, and with tram and bus links nearby... 

The building itself is massive, with high ceilings and plenty of space for over 50 rides and attractions under 1 roof.  EventCity is right beside the Trafford Centre, so it's also handy if other people in your party would also like to go shopping...

We had an epic time when we first visited Simulator Adventures in Manchester, so we were delighted to be invited back to try out their Airbus A320 Flight Simulator now that they've added the hydraulics. It felt like you were actually moving before, and this really does add another dimension of reality to the experience. 

Our visit was actually 6 months ago, but COVID has kept leisure activities off the menu for a while. Simulator Adventures is used for pilot training, so has been in use during lockdown, but pretty soon (May 17th) they can reopen to the public and let anyone have a go... and bookings are being taken now. 

These guys keep changing their waiting room seating, so it wouldn't surprise me if they've upgraded again, but you get into the mood for flying as soon as you arrive. 

There's no age 'limit', but you need to be around 4ft6 / 10 years old before you are tall enough to actually use the flight simulator, and it's not a place for little ones. This is grown up playtime. 

It's all very different, but that doesn't mean we can't still make it fun! When we look back, we won't really remember 2 weeks of self-isolating that turned into nothing, or all the hours we were trying to work while the kids asked endless questions. The things we'll remember the most will be the times we laughed at technology fails, the zoom calls with Grandma, the fact we sent parcels and letters. The precious hours getting to really know our family, the NHS, the rainbows, Marcus Rashford, and most of all, the way we still made it work.  

Here are lots of people who are still making it work in order to entertain us, and maybe teach us a few things along the way... Throughout the post are some printables that you can click on, save and print off on A4 paper... 

To book onto sessions you need to join the Bright Sparks, which is free to families on low incomes, and during the Coronavirus pandemic the £15 membership is also being waived, so that everyone can benefit. The sessions are FREE. Toddler sessions run on Tuesdays, family sessions on Saturdays. Sessions are open to all, and have to be booked via the Z-Arts website up until midnight the night before (you only need to book one ticket per family).

Toddler Sessions - Tuesdays, 10.00 - 10.30am
1st December, led by Gill - Kitchen Disco – let’s get fruity! Join Gill in a playful bendy yoga session themed on the fantastic story 'Kitchen Disco'.
8th December, led by Natasha - Hibernating - with The Very Hungry Caterpillar as inspiration.
15th December, led by Tom - Sticks and Stones workshop - create some winter characters that may be hidden outside. 

Family Sessions - Saturday 11.30am - 12.30pm
21st November, led by Gill - Find joy in the everyday - a mindful nature treasure hunt and then join Gill in creating a superb stick crown and some fantastical sculptures.
28th November, led by Yemi - Make & believe heritage in your home! You will uncover, search and explore items that represent your family’s culture.
5th December, led by Natasha - Christmas creations – reuse, recycle and repurpose.
12th December, led by Janine - Create your own Dreamcatchers - collect items on a winter's walk and join Janine to teach you the magic of  creating your very own Dreamcatcher.
19th December, led by Tom - Storyteller Tom shares his tips and tricks for creating new settings where your stories can be set.  Walk around your neighbourhood and put the things you see into your stories. 

Waterside are working with renowned family theatre company Wrongsemble to deliver an alternative online Festive Christmas show – HUMBUG – to homes and schools throughout the country.
All ages can enjoy seven filmed episodes of this exciting story throughout December, accompanied by an interactive HUMBUG ‘Fact File’ filled with 13 artefacts sent directly to your home.
HUMBUG takes place deep beneath the city, where a secret world full of wonder awaits; a place where wizards bake endless gingerbread, goblins bottle festive cheer, and there’s a whole department devoted to detangling fairy-lights! This is the Ministry of Make Believe.... Recently strange things have been happening at the Ministry. From nose-less snowmen, to exploding baubles, and a forest of bald Christmas trees – things are not quite right… It’s almost like someone (or something) is trying to sabotage Christmas! Together with Secret Agent Dash, audiences will help to solve the mystery and save the day!

1 - 31 December 2020, 7 short films - A £10 family ticket gives access to all 7 episodes of this online digital adventure throughout December, and is accompanied by an interactive HUMBUG Fact File filled with 13 artefacts sent directly to you.

Find out more and book online at Diverghub - online platform for Waterside arts & theatre

Last November we were invited to review the Airbus A320 Flight Simulator at Simulator Adventures in Trafford Park. The simulator has been designed and built by two brothers, Alan and Stewart Russell, who also happen to have been professional Airbus A320 pilots.

Simulator Adventures are working on introducing a Motion System to the simulator this Spring, but we reviewed without it and you still feel like you are moving, even when you aren't at all. It's an amazing and truly immersive experience.


When you arrive you are well looked after. There is excellent seating in the waiting room (masses of legroom).... and the best toilet door I've seen besides those at LEGOLAND.