Ripping yarns from gricers

In 1966 I was on holiday with my parents in Fort William. I asked them to "Pop over" to Aberdeen and see the A4's. We got there and asked to go in the shed, then I asked to go in the cab of Kingfisher - which then moved to the water tower. The driver then asked me if I wanted to go to Edinburgh with him.....I had to very sadly decline as I thought my parents would not like to drive back to Fort William via Edinburgh!

 

Of course railway knowledge helped at school an unusual way.
Two loco hauled traisn went through my home town about 1525/1530. Being useless at football and worse at cricket, I did a lot of cross country running.
There was a defined route and check in at a layby on a main road. (To stop any short cuts there was a reasonable chance that a teacher would just be having a break there just to ensure we did the full course.) Anyway, the loco hauled trains were a good time check to head back to the school and get through the showers and changed before the team sports players returned.

Eventually the sports master realised what was happening. His view - that's good observation, well done for working things to your advantage!

Cheers, Neil

 

That is a good point made about how railways and other transport affected our routine. From the age of 14 I used to spend time in the school summer holidays earning money helping on the farm where my uncle was farm manager. Providing I didn't go on a public road tractor driving was allowed at that age, I bet it isn't now! The midday meal, for some reason, known as dockey in the fens, was traditionally taken at 11.30 but no one used a watch, there was a train from Wisbech to March visible in the distance at about that time which was the cue for the break. It was always known as the Dockey train. Work finished in the evening for dinner at 4.30, signalled by the bus heading for Wisbech along the road about a quarter of a mile away. At harvest time work would recommence at around 5.30 and finish when the light got too dark.
One of my Aunts was porter signalman at Coldham, her alarm clock for the early shift was the early freight on the line that woke her up in time to get ready and walk from her cottage for the 6 am shift

 

Today marks 58 years since the end of Southern steam so I thought it would be a good subject to revive this thread. This is 34095 backing onto the stock of the 18.15 to Waterloo at Weymouth, the same train that I was on from Basingstoke when Royal Mail did 106mph at Fleet on June 26th. The date is July 7th and was my penultimate trip by steam, the last one was this engine’s back working the 02.45 Bournemouth Mail on which driver Gordon Porter said he was going to try for his last ‘ton’. He didn’t do it quite but the attempt down Christchurch Bank proved to be, shall we say, interesting.

 

It was my intention to go and see what was going on on the Sunday and pay my last respects to the Elms but I didn't do it for good reasons. The timetable that weekend was, leave home at 6 am, travel down to Weymouth in stages phographing everything I saw on the way. 18.15 back to Waterloo, 02.45 back to Bournemouth then back to London in stages as above. I got home at 8 to a rather angry girlfiend as I was late but we went out and I got home at 01.00. Having had no sleep since the alarm clock went off at 05.30 Friday I just wasn't up to it. The mad things we used to get up to!

 

Did you marry her?

 

No!

 

Tell me about it...





First one is 61994 leaving Glenfinnan on the morning Jacobite, the second is 34067 at Clapham Junction the following morning. About 550 miles of driving between the two, which is bad enough as it is, but made worse by the fact I worked a night shift in between!

 

A bit more up to date on Southern experiences. For some reason I was always fond of the Class 74s - even beginning my love of night photography photting them at Waterloo in the early hours. When I discovered the day of the last Channel Islands Boat Train I took a day off work (the Civil Service of the day accepted up to 10 sick days without documentation !) to photograph the last workings. On the day I succeeded in catching the down train under Southampton Central's gantry thanks to a friendly signalman allowing access to the trackside but then thought to catch the up return working from Bournemouth. On arrival at Bournemouth I found 74007 in the bay platform waiting to take-over the service and a friendly driver who offered a cab ride to Waterloo. Offer accepted !! As I stepped off the cab at Waterloo I discovered 74003 waiting on a relief service that would be the last Channel Islands Boat Train; as I approached the loco Colin Marsden popped out of the loco cab and knowing my interest offered a cab ride to Bournemouth. Having been awake for 36 hours at that point I kindly declined the offer but often wonder "What if ... ?"