Mild Magic
Friday 11 April to Sunday 18 May 2025
Records Broken in 2024
When Mild Magic 2024 started we had an inkling it was going to be an exceptional year when a completed card (12 areas visited) was handed in by 9pm on the first day!
The next landmark was when, in only the second week, another sole handed in cards recording a visit to every pub on Mild Magic - all 97!
At the final count, participation was up 33%, with 200 people completing one of the objectives. This accounts for a remarkable 3800 visits to pubs. How many people started but didn’t finish is unknown, so we guesstimate 4000 visits were made in total.
Remarkably there were something like 80 different milds reported, but how many went unreported is again unknown, so the actual total may be many more.
Finally, people partaking in Mild Magic was by no means limited to locals from the Greater Manchester and near regions. The accolade for the most distant participant (unless you know otherwise) goes to Bellingham. Don’t be fooled, that isn’t the town in Northumberland UK, but Bellingham in the state of WASHINGTON USA!
Evolution of Mild Magic
We are now entering the 31st year of what is now Mild Magic. We think this is the longest-running local mild promotion in CAMRA, so let’s have a look back to see how things have changed.
Mild Magic started life in April 1994 as the Stockport Mild Challenge (read about it in Opening Times page 10). Run in conjunction with the Stockport Express Advertiser, it was originally devised as a celebration of Stockport’s position as one of the remaining strongholds of traditional cask mild. No fewer than 55 pubs took part and it’s a sign of the times that 24 of those pubs have subsequently closed, and a further three no longer sell cask beer.
The Challenge ran again in April 1995 and then took a break until November 1997. There was then a further hiatus until April 1999 when it returned as the Stockport & Manchester Mild Challenge featuring 50 pubs over a wider area, including Manchester City Centre, Gorton, New Mills and Whaley Bridge. In recent year, after linking up with other branches of CAMRA and with support from Hydes, Holts and Wetherspoons the area has expanded to stretch from Altringham to Swinton, via Manchester to Stalybridge and Glossop to Chapel-en-la-frith. Last year we include Macclesfield for the first time in a few years. This year we have expanded again to include Buxton
Mild is an endangered species!
Until 2015 the Manchester region could boast the enviable position of having all four local family brewers producing at least one mild. That is until Robinsons decided to terminate all production of mild. Thankfully Hydes, Joseph Holt, and J W Lees all still brew milds (two in the case of Hydes), along with many smaller local breweries creating a plethora of additional milds. Hydes have agreed to sponsor Mild Magic for 2025 and there are many Joseph Holt's pubs featured on Mild Magic.
As an added bonus, this year Hydes, Holts and Robinsons are bringing out special milds. Hydes have released Anvil Mild in March, so why not search it out now and start practising drinking mild early? Holts are again brewing their Unmistakably Mild, previously released in 2023, especially for Mild Magic. Robinsons, however, aren’t releasing their seasonal mild until autumn.
Mild Magic Tours
Three socials based around Mild Magic are planned.
Firstly, there is an opening event on Friday evening April 11 taking in six pubs/stickers/areas. Starting at the Piccadilly Tap, located on the Piccadilly Station Approach, we will then be winging(!) or way down the A6 calling in Levenshulme, Heatons Chapel and Norris and finishing in Stockport town centre. Full details here.
Secondly, not exactly a Mild Magic outing, but cunningly created to encompass a few participating pubs, is the May Weekday Wander taking place on Wednesday 30 April. We will be going to Urmston, where we will visit four pubs (three being on the card), with the option of picking up another pub/area on the way home as most will travel there through Oxford Road Station, where a fourth handily placed outlet is adjacent to the station.
Thirdly we are embarking on an expedition into the wilds(?) of Derbyshire with an afternoon saunter around a selection of five pubs (four on Mild Magic) in Buxton on Friday 2 May. There is the option to pick up one or more stickers/pubs/areas on the journey home. A number of travel options are available, with full detail here, but a basic summary is "Be in Buxton by 1pm, with a return to Stockport by 7pm" (earlier options are available).
Participation in these three will amass a total of 13 stickers, each from its own area so one card completed, with a further two or more as optional add-ons by breaking travel arrangements.
Feedback
Please feel free to give us feedback on how you found taking part in Mild Magic using the email below. We would like to know about unusual milds you encounter, problems with stickers or availability of milds, enjoyable encounters, inaccurate opening hours or anything else. This will be used to update information for other participants. mildmagic@ssm.camra.org.uk
What does Mild Magic entail?
This CAMRA, National award-winning event, is at heart a simple ale trail. With 102 participating pubs in the 2025 event, we don't ask you to do ALL of them!
"But what do we have to do?" I hear you saying.
The Mild Challenge can be completed on any one of four levels but with one overriding principle. When you visit a pub and consume a pint (or half) of cask-conditioned mild you request a sticker to attach to your Mild Magic card. No matter how many times you visit a pub, nor how many different milds you may consume, it is strictly one sticker only per pub.
To complete Mild Magic, choose 12 different areas and visit one pub in each area, eg Stockport East, Cheadle Hulme, Didsbury et cetera and collect a sticker from each of these 12 areas and win a Mild Magic T-shirt emblazoned with the Mild Magic logo and two half-pint beer vouchers. The beer vouchers are to be redeemed at the 2025 Stockport Beer and Cider Festival in the Stockport Masonic Guildhall on the A6 opposite Stockport College, (see below for this year's method of redeeming your vouchers).
Upping the achievement to complete Mild Magic Extra requires you to choose24 different areas to be visited, i.e. twice as challenging as Mild Magic. This increases your number of vouchers to three half-pint beer vouchers (redeemable at the Stockport Beer and Cider Festival) and the garment is elevated to a polo shirt, again emblazoned with the Mild Magic logo. This is the most popular target, typically achieved by around 50 people each year.
Now the stakes are get higher for Mild Magic Super. Your are required to collect stickers from a total of 48 different pubs and to visit a minimum of 36 different areas (but there is nothing stopping you setting a personal target of 48 pubs in 48 areas!) For this you will receive a Mild Magic sweatshirt and four half-pint beer vouchers to be redeemed at the 2025 Stockport Beer and Cider Festival. We hope that this will encourage you to visit pubs new to you.
The ultimate challenge is Mild Magic Ultra. To achieve this you need to collect a sticker from ALL participating pubs. For this you will receive two Mild Magic shirts, both a polo shirt and a sweatshirt, plus six half-pint beer vouchers to use at the 2025 Stockport Beer & Cider Festival.
No matter which of the above you undertake, here is a fun extra challenge, Mild Magic Scrabble. Each participating pub has an associated letter randomly selected from A, C, D, G, I, L or M, which are the constituent letters of MILD MAGIC. The challenge is to collect enough stickers on one of your cards to spell out MILD MAGIC. If you decide to participate in this extra challenge, we have helped you by spelling out MILD MAGIC on the first nine squares on your card. So when you bag a letter, stick it in the relevant square. For this you will be rewarded with an additional two vouchers to be used at the 2025 Stockport Beer & Cider Festival.
Everyone who participates also has the option of being entered into a draw to take up one of a limited number of invitations to tour a brewery. These are still being negotiated, so more details nearer the time. Full meet-up details will be provided along with your invitation (if successful).
What do I do when I have finished?
Post all your completed cards to this address:
Mild Magic, 10 New Beech Road, Heaton Mersey, Stockport SK4 3DD
[also given on the card] to arrive by Saturday 24 May, 2025 (only one submission [but all cards completed] per person). Receipt of the cards will be acknowledged electronically, so do remember to include an email address (or mobile phone if no email possessed).
Please note: Electronic entries will NOT be accepted.
Collecting your rewards
Garments and mild vouchers will all be dispensed from 19th* to 21st June at the 2025 Stockport Beer and Cider Festival from the CAMRA Shop. Make sure to bring along the electronic device upon which you received your confirmation, though assuming this is your mobile phone it probably never leaves your side!
* Public session only, 5pm onwards.
If you are unable to attend the Festival an alternative can be negotiated by consultation with the organiser via mildmagic@ssm.camra.org.uk. All garments are graced by a bespoke version of the Mild Magic insignia.
Please do remember to include your size, but do bear with us as we can't control the manufacturer's interpretation of sizes, so if you are borderline, ie sometimes medium is a snug fit, it may be better to order judiciously.