Top 10 Archive Posts of 2012

Published on 28 December 2012 in , ,

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Sometimes I write a blog post that I think is fantastic and the world seems to just shrug, and it disappears with barely a murmur. But then sometimes it’s actually a slow burner, and over time it wriggles its way up in popularity.

Which is why, at this time every year, I dig in to the web stats tool I use and take a look at the most popular archive posts of the year! So let’s pass you straight over to Bruno Brookes to do the countdown!

10 – The Beverley Brook Walk: along a lesser known Thames tributary

With over ten years of blogging, there’s a lot that can appear in the top 10 and often some really old posts appear regularly. But this year it’s different for 2011 must have been a good year for blog posts. Seven of the top 10 were all posted in that year.

This post, on the Beverley Brook Walk – one of the tributaries of the Thames – seemed to sink without a trace without trace when I first published it last year. Which I thought was a shame as I felt it had everything necessary to go down well.

Seems I just had to wait a year because here it is, lurking at number 10. Incidentally I tried to find the Beverley Brook again recently whilst out on Wimbledon Common. Could I find it? No. Perhaps I should have read my own blog post for some tips.

9 – The Night Rivera: to Cornwall for a weekend

Yes, it’s another post in my ever growing collection of sleeper train posts, and it’s in at number 9. Whilst the Caledonian Sleeper gets most of the love in the sleeper world, the Night Rivera heads off to Cornwall six nights a week too and at the end of 2010 I took a trip (the post itself wasn’t posted for some months later.)

If you’re heading to Cornwall from London, it’s a great way to travel.

8 – Well I’m not moving: the problems caused by ignoring train seat reservations

Ah, one of those posts that keeps rearing its head in this collection every year. Our first non-2011 post comes in from 2007 and is an old fashioned example of what happens if people ignore seat reservations. For not only do you cause seating chaos on a train, but you get a ranty blog post written about you.

7 – Tooting Bec Lido

Last year’s top 10 didn’t feature this post which has to be one of my favourite from 2011, although the memories of the cold water of Tooting Bec Lido are lost popular in my mind!

Whilst it didn’t chart well in the Top 10 of 2011, this post has the long tail effect and has risen to be the seventh most viewed archive blog post. Indeed, it’s even had more views than most of my 2012 blog posts [makes mental note to write better blog posts in 2013.]

6 – Train ticket collection: how doing something pointless can make sense for the user

Funnily enough this was the 6th most popular post of 2011 as well. Who knew the system usability of train ticket collection would be so popular?

5 – Buying a Network Railcard for a pound

There’s always at least one post in these roundups that is about saving money on train tickets. This year it’s the fact that you can buy a Network Railcard for a mere pound.

Terms and conditions apply.

4 – The Oystercard website: exposing the underbelly of your technology is not necessarily what’s best for your users

Yes, it’s yet another of those train ticket systems usability posts again. Coming in at number 4, it’s an old fashioned “look, this is not as good as it should be” post about how your Oyster Pay as You Go usage was shown on the Oystercard website.

Basically the old website (for thankfully they’ve made it better) made tracking your pay as you go usage very confusing. And lots of people agreed.

3 – Vegetarian Iceland

Perhaps one of the most popular posts on this blog of all time, it’s the Planet Bods page telling you that it’s not all rotted sharks head when you visit the amazing country of Iceland.

2 – GE Money – incompetence and downright lies

If you’re a regular follower of these rundowns (and who out there can say that they are not?!) you’ll recognise this one.

1 – My recipe for Brussel Sprout soup

And out of nowhere, it’s a brand new number one here for us on the Planet Bods Archive Posts Top 10 and it’s a good one.

It’s my recipe for Brussel Sprout soup. Seriously, this is one most truly excellent soup and you should eat it. I know you don’t believe me, but it is! Go buy some sprouts now and try it.