Twin brothers travel the country rating Wetherspoon carpet patterns

2nd May 2023

A magic (Spoons) carpet ride! Brothers travel 9,000 miles across the country rating Wetherspoon carpet patterns (and reveal which pubs have the WORST décor)

Twins James and Matt Dyer, 25, travelling UK and Ireland to rank Spoons carpets
Rotherham brothers have visited more than 400 pubs since starting in 2017

Twin brothers have visited more than 400 pubs as part of a life mission to rate every Wetherspoon carpet patterns across the UK and Ireland.

The routine that started off as a joke between the brothers but has since turned into a passion where they devote their spare time to rating the variety of carpets in every Wetherspoon pub – even turning their favourites into a game of Top Trumps.

James Dyer, an assistant product manager, and Matt Dyer, a timetable planner for a railway company, both 25, from Rotherham, South Yorkshire have always loved travelling and cheap food and drinks, which spawned their quest in 2017.

Since then, the pair have travelled more than 9,000 miles to visit as many of the chain pubs as they can, although they admit their search for carpets has ‘gotten out of hand’.

James said: ‘We often travelled around the country to go to football matches and just decided the local Spoons was the best place to meet.’

Twin brothers James (left) and Matt (right) Dyer, both 25, have visited more than 400 pubs as part of a life mission to rate every Wetherspoon carpet patterns across the UK and Ireland

The twins, from Rotherham, South Yorkshire, have travelled more than 9,000 miles to visit as many of the chain pubs as they can, although they admit their search for carpets has ‘gotten out of hand’. Pictured: The carpet (left) at The John Fairweather (right) in Cambuslang, Scotland

The carpet (left) at Wetherspoon pub The Union Rooms (right) in Batley, West Yorkshire

The carpet (left) at Spoons pub The Hatchet Inn (right) in Newbury, Berkshire

James added: ‘We knew about the carpets being different for each pub so just thought it would be a fun little way to keep a track of the places we go.

‘This has since gotten out of hand a little bit.

‘We created a Google Maps, where we painstakingly added every Wetherspoon location individually, which is now our Bible to see where we need to go to tick off the next one.

‘We colour code the map to help us – green = been to, red = not been to, dark red = not been to and hard to get to/middle of nowhere and yellow meaning we’ve not been to and it’s up for sale.

‘The main reason we go to Wetherspoon is because of the carpets, but of course the cheap food, drinks, no fuss and short waiting times are a plus.

‘We do like the architecture of the buildings – our favourite being the Opera House in Tunbridge Wells.

‘My go-to is always a BBQ chicken and bacon panini with chips with a pint of Pepsi Max to wash it down. If we’re having a pitcher, I will always choose a Purple Rain – Parma Violets in a drink, why wouldn’t you?’

The carpet (left) at The Windmill Wetherspoon pub (right) at Stansted Airport

The carpet (left) at The Opera House Wetherspoon pub (exterior right) in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent

James and Matt have turned their favourite Wetherspoon carpets into a game of Top Trumps

Matt added: ‘My favourite order is a double buttermilk and grilled chicken breast burger with chips and a pint of Pepsi Max. Sometimes I feel fancy and add a side of curry sauce.

‘It would have to be The Godfather for me, if I’m choosing a pitcher, and The Lord Wilson in Huddersfield do them best.

‘We use the map to see where there’s a cluster of Spoons close together that can easily be done. James’ most recent one was a trip to Bristol to go to eight Wetherspoons.

‘He started at Keynsham train station and walked 15 miles to eight different pubs, eating and drinking in some, and of course walking up endless steps to the toilets.’

The brothers have each given their individual top five Wetherspoons and also the names and locations of one pub they each want to visit.

The carpet at the South Strand Wetherspoon pub in Dublin, Ireland

The carpet at The Flying Standard Wetherspoon pub in Coventry, which was James’ local during his university years and he ranks as his second favourite carpet