Some time ago, and probably against our better judgement, Jono persuaded Andy and I to join him in a pilgrimage to see the apparently greatest live band he has ever seen. Given he's seen quite a lot of live bands that's high praise, although it's fair to say there is limited overlap between our musical tastes. Nevertheless, we were up for a night out, and who could resist a band capable of selling out an entire pub in Huddersfield?
Initially there were plans for a road trip, but these changed on a daily basis in the preceding weeks. The appearance of another Tengmalm's owl in Shetland had the boys making plans that ultimately didn't come into play (on that note, Happy Tengmalm's day to me 😎). As the dates got closer the weather continued its unabated grimness too, so we opted for a spot of light twitching.
I collected the pseudo-Frenchman and we met the 3/4 Celt in glorious Huddersfield mid-morning for the short trip over to Grimsby. Actually it's not that short, every time I go to Grimsby it seems to take forever, but the company was good and the journey flew by. We arrived shortly after midday to the urban location of the Grimsby Institute, where the wintering 1w. male Black-throated Thrush was on show immediately as it fed on the ground. It was remarkably unfazed by us or passers by and traffic, so the views were splendid. I thought it was rather smart, albeit not as nice as the cracking adult wintering at Whipsnade zoo.
This bird has a very small amount of red on the outer tail feathers at the base, leading some to state it is possibly a hybrid x Red-throated Thrush. Perhaps, although I doubt anyone has a proper grasp of the complexities of integration and hybrid rates and it comes down once again to that unanswerable question - 'what is a species?'. Thankfully I've seen a couple of Black-throateds and the only Red-throated Thrush (way back in 1994 in Essex, when they were lumped as 'Dark-throated Thrush'), so could simply enjoy the bird regardless of it's name tag (unlike Andy, who's ticking it regardless).
Boots filled after an hour or so, we headed back to Huddersfield as the weather deteriorated and readied ourselves for the big night out by purchasing a few cans of lager and spraying some deodorant on.
So on to Mclusky. Well sometimes can exceed my limited expectations and I end up thoroughly enjoying them despite initial reservations. This wasn't one of those times. Jono revelled in the moronic shite that was apparently brilliant, whereas Andy and I gave our ear drums a rest and returned to the pub. Regardless, a very enjoyable night out with my two besties.
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