Darlington has direct trains from quite a lot of places. Stockton (using Thornaby station) and Middlesbrough less so but each have ten or more options each. The main problem with the latter two though are most of the better options are pretty tiny - I would say micropub but they play music...
Widening the field a bit, I made a brief stop at Wigan last year and came across a few good pubs. Anyone local know if there are enough to make a crawl viable?
Places that I haven't been to for years include Preston, Wakefield and Warrington - any thoughts?
I did go to Darlington this year and my impression was that there are a limited number of good pubs.
On leaving the bar, I felt a strong blow to the back of my head. Turning round, I discovered it was the pavement
Your impression of Darlington matches my impression of the Three Ws mentioned by you. Maybe five or six in each.
Preston is pretty good, but there's quite a long way between pubs. I was there in August with a crew from Beer and Pubs Forum - see this thread: my post on 13 August has itinerary and walking distances, to save you reading the whole thing. Their suggested lunch stop in the Wellington was pretty awful, despite being in the Good Beer Guide, so in the interest of research I also visited Hogarths (cheap beer but good condition), the Princess Alice, the Wellfield and the Plug & Taps microbar (standing room only at tea time). My idea of the best of Preston based on this visit would be as follows:
Continental
Old Vic
Hogarths
Old Blue Bell
Guild Ale House
Moorbrook
Vinyl Tap
Market Tap
Black Horse
Plug & Taps
Others that may be worth a try: The Orchard, Plau, The Northern Way or even the (no longer Mad) Ferret. Any more, anyone?
Come On You Hatters!