The William Stead (JD Wetherspoon), Darlington

A large Wetherspoons / Lloyds No. 1 Bar just off the town centre named after an influential local journalist who was credited as developing interviewing as a form of journalism and who subsequently died aboard the Titanic. The pub is split over 2 floors with the split level cavernous ground floor broken into 3 or 4 distinct areas by bookcases and screens. There are multiple TVs and the raised end section houses a DJ booth, lighting rig and quite spectacular mirror ball. Presumably the furniture is pushed aside in the evening to create a dancefloor. The lengthy bar didn’t have the best selection of ales given its Good Beer Guide mention with 3 guests on but 2 others with the “available soon” clips. Upstairs is another large section with its own separate bar and outside is a courtyard, quite small in comparison to the size of the pub overall. For a modern style Wetherspoons I actually thought it did have a bit of character and since I was only there for a short while in mid-afternoon I did not succumb to any of the clubbyness that obviously takes over in the evenings. Given the number of nearby pubs that I had walkied in and straight out looking for an ale & footy on TV combination, the William Stead met my requirements but I would think it is a case of choosing your moments.