Channel 4 Programme

It was this one from an old LNWR ambulance coach http://www.cs.vintagecarriagestrust.org/se/CarriageInfo.asp?Ref=597
I agree they didn't really explain where it was from etc

 

Probably not but who knows! "Our" carriage was one of two built in 1885, neither as "Royal" . One was rebuilt with a clerestory in 1887 and was used for Royal work until before W.W.1. when it exchanged duties with its compatriot. (source C. Hamilton Ellis) So this picture could be of either.

PH

 

Even I am not sufficiently obsessive to run through the programmes to see if the production team were any different for the last episode but I suspect they might have been. All the other programmes had a reasonable focus on woodwork, running gear, manufacture of transfers, stained glass and upholstery. About the only trade which featured to any great extentin the fourth episode was signwriting.

People do notice. One of the people involved with I.W.R. 10 told me he was astonished by the number of people wishing to talk about the programme.

PH

 

Either way it gives a good idea how a LSWR royal coach of the time would have looked.

The restored coach seems to have achieved a good representation of this.

 

What a ceiling! Elaborate, very crisp. virtuoso work of its kind.

Would it be reasonable to guess the picture might well date from when electric light replaced gas
and to do it properly they didn't just swap the light fittings but put in a complete new patterned ceiling?

It has not had lots of repainting. And looks as if it ought to be whatever inspired any firm of decorators to be
putting Lincrustra overhead. Exigant to replicate I fancy.

NB No clerestory to be seen.

 

Thanks for pointing out the electric light. This rather proves this is not the "Royal" vehicle as the addition of the clerestory antedates adoption of electric light by the L.S.W.R.

PH

 

Details of travelling in the royal carriage are on the Embasy website https://www.embsayboltonabbeyrailway.org.uk/aboutus/queen-victorias-golden-jubilee-carriage

Tickets cost £75. Next running day is 8th July.

 

It was the sister-in-law I felt for .... poor woman comes for a visit, all the way from China and gets waylaid by one of our lot .....

Balancing the (likely) original 'royal' fittings against the requirements of an operational carriage can't have been easy and the result looks absolutely wonderful. Hats off to Steven and his family for a complicated restoration very well done.

Seeing two restored clerestory vehicles side by side was a real treat. Did my eyes deceive me, or was the other one the NER diesel (ex-petrol) railcar?

They certainly look to have some very good facilities at Embsay.

 

It's wonderful to see coach restoration featured.

How about this Nigel Kidd set? I have his permission to share it (sister coach to my own 4449)

 

I may be barking up the wrong tree, but I thought I saw LMS on the toilet roll holder towards the end of the program when Peter Snow was seeing the end result, but pehaps it was LSWR and I misread it.

Regardless of any small quibbles, I have to say how impressed I was with what they achieved.

 

I thought it said LMS on the loo roll holder too. Not always possible to find or recreate the correct parts I suppose, especially with a 6 month deadline. You have to use what is available.

Either that or I misread it too.

An amazing achievement overall though.

 

You did see correctly Rob. I'm sure if an appropriate LSWR original became available to Steven, he'd be only too happy to fit it. Oddly, these aren't an item I've ever searched for, so I've no clue as to how rare they are .... but I'd guess most surviving grounded bodies probably don't retain their original khazis!

 

Unless this item is in fact "repro" I am surprised this was not picked up when the was some footage of the restored facilities. Just one example of how this programme seemed a little off form compared with the others.

PH

 

Agreed it did seem off form.

Other examples:

Lifting the coach and saying it looked ok, without showing what they were actually looking at.

The sumptuous interior just seemed to appear, with no filming of how any of the curtains, chairs, carpet etc were selected and made.

I can’t fault Steve Middleton’s restoration , but the filming seemed like a wasted opportunity.

 

yes I thought that too...LM&SR.

 

I suppose that was for the camera, they surely would have checked out the underframe and bogies before fitting the body

 

Another great restoration and I thought the Middleton family came across very well

 

LM&S I thought I saw

 

To be honest, they could have produced a 6 episode series about this coach if they went into its 1. History, 2 post railway work, 3 preservation, 4 Exterior restoration, 5 Interior restoration 6 The Future.

But who (apart from us dullards) would have watched it

Having got a feel for the series I admit that I was harsh with the NE teak coach, but it was the weakest of the bunch.

Just need to raise some monies for the Maunsell driving coach at Swanage to run with the M7

 

Wasn't to keen on this weeks episode, I really wouldn't want to take anything away from the Middleton Family and what they've done for carriage restoration, but for me when I caught a glimpse of the Railcar in the background for me that's the one that has the slightly more interesting history.
But how many times of 'this has to be good enough for Queen Victoria' or 'what would 'Queen Victoria approve of this' that were mentioned in this weeks show were really annoying! Don't get me wrong I think it's a wonderful restoration and I'm totally full of admiration for the work that's gone into it, but I think this weeks episode made more about the Royal connection rather than the work that went into it.