Barrow Hill Social Evenings 2010

There is currently a rather long thread in the railtours and galas section of the wnxx forum which suggests a lack of events at Barrow Hill in 2010 compared with recent years. However, this is not the case - in fact there are monthly social evenings at the site and even though is not the type of event where people get the oppurtunity for haulage etc... there is the chance for a quick peek around the roundhouse and coaling stage to view goings on. Whats more this shouldn't get in the way of the commercial operations (one of the suggested reasons for a lack of events) and is a very important method of fundraising.

I am starting this thread to help publicise these events so that attendance might increase - even if it is only by a few people - every little helps. All money raised is invested back into the roundhouse, its confines, rolling stock owned by the society and so on - and trying to improve the social evenings by any method possible.

All the meetings start at 19:30 hours on the 3rd Thursday of the month (exact dates below). Meetings are held in the roundhouse lecture theatre (the cafe) which has many comfortable seats and a good heating system. Entry is possible as of 19:00 approx (sometimes earlier) - free parking is available on site with room for plenty of vehicles. Refreshments (hot/cold drinks and some cold snacks - scones etc) are available before the meeting and during the interval. Toilets are also available throughout the evening. Most meetings end at 22:00 approx and the site is quickly cleared and locked.

Public transport is available, the TM Travel bus service 90 operates between Chesterfield and Staveley via Barrow Hill (setting down fairly near the bottom of the access drive), this runs very late so it would not be a problem - see Derbyshire County Council website for details.

Tickets currently cost £1.50 for B.H.E.S.S members and £2.00 for non members. Annual membership is available for £16 per year - this can be done on the Barrow Hill website. http://www.barrowhill.org/ Tickets are available on the night and gain purchasers free entry to raffles which are held periodically.


18th February - Les Nixon - Fifty Years of Railway Photography Part 2

18th March - PSOV - Preserved Steam on Video Mainline 2009 The Highlights (In Association with The Little Midland Society) - *please note this may be held in the roundhouse itself due to increasing popularity - wrap up warm*

15th April - David Birtle - Early Days on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway

20th May - Alan Spencer - The Lickey Incline: The Steepest Adhesion Mainline in the UK and Running Charter Trains in Switzerland

17th June - Howard Turner - Out With the Old - In With the New (last days of UK steam in the 60's)

15th July - Martin Bromley - A Grinder To Town (Sheffield Midland - London St Pancras over 60 years worth of images)

19th August - Jeff Lane - The Woodhead Route

16th September - GB Productions - Steaming Through Britain (videos of steam at work on preserved lines and mainlines in the UK)

21st October - Phil Eccleston - The Duchess & The Royal Train

18th November - Ken Horan - WYSIWYG & How It Was Part 2 (a delve into Ken's extensive collection)

19th December - Christmas Social Evening - *Confirmed details to be advised* - Usually a short fireworks display, an update on goings on from Mr Mervyn Allcock and a quiz. Free entry for B.H.E.S.S members - to be confirmed at the time of writing.

If there are any updates to this list I will endeavour to get them posted here or on the Barrow Hill website - if we can persuade someone to have it updated!

Whilst many meetings may be steam orientated, hopefully there will be something to suit all interests. Any suggestions would be gratefully received and and we are always on the look out for new presenters for the 2011 season. Anybody with queries please feel to post them here or PM me and I'll get back to you.

Cheers,

Ian

 

Just to remind everyone that the next meeting is this Thursday - starting 19:30. Expect a great night. Our presenter is the well known railway photographer Les Nixon - showing 50 years of railway photography part 2. Part 1 was last year and included a very wide range of photo's of different subjects from all over the world.

Just in case anybody isn't aware of who Les is - he has submitted images to Steam Railway magazine for a long time now, as well as having several of his own books covering varying subjects - I hope this gives you a small insight to our presenter. But the best way to find out what his photography is like wuld be to come Thursday. Hope to see some new faces there maybe.

Ian

 

Just a quick update for those of you planning on attending the PSOV show next Thursday...

It is more than likely that the show will take place inside the roundhouse lecture theatre as it isn't really warm enough for it to be in the roundhouse itself. This will mean it could be cosy in there as there is normally a good turn out. Please don't let this put you off though - we shall prepare the lecture theatre in advance and try to get as many chairs in there as is realistically possible - without making it uncomfortable.

PSOV always put on an excellent show...The presentation will be their highlights of 2009 (which will be available on DVD on the night - along with other sales items). All their shows have excellent quality in terms of sound, visual and the commentary on the night - this is something you cannot experience elsewhere - the commentary is only different from that on the DVD and it really does add to the entertainment. And if it couldn't get better than that we normally turn the volume right up - something you'd certainly not get away with at home!

If anybody needs any other reasons to come down there should be chance to see CIG 1881 from the coaling stage and we hopefully will hold a raffle on the night - all proceeds to BHESS and prizes will be announced on the evening.

If anybody has any questions or comments please feel free to post them here.

Hope to see you there.

 

Its coming up to that time of the month again...the third Thursday is upon us and this time BHESS are pleased to welcome David Birtle to the roundhouse, talking about 'Early Days on the North Yorkshire Moors railway'. I am sure this will be a very interesting night as the NYMR has changed alot in the preservation era - with trains now running to Whitby, the replacement of Bridge 30, the work around Pickering station and so on...

As with all the usual shows, this will start at 19:30 with admission been available from 19:00 approx. As far as I know refreshments will be available as usual and the toilets will be open till the end of the night. Admission prices remain the same.

I've not been down to the roundhouse so I'm not to sure if there's anything new around. Always worth coming early to have a poke around and to grab a few photographs.

If you're at a loose end please try to come along. I hope to see a large crowd on Thursday.

 

Sorry for the lack of recent updates, unfortunately I've been too busy to even contemplate it. Since the last posting a few of the meetings have changed and a great deal of work has gone into organising the 2011 programme which will hopefully be announced in the not too distance future.

The following two shows have swapped dates to suit the speakers.

21st October - Phil Eccleston - The Duchess & The Royal Train

18th November - Ken Horan - WYSIWYG & How It Was Part 2 (a delve into Ken's extensive collection)

So now Ken will be presenting in October and Phil in November. Hopefully this is not a problem to anyone, I've done my best to let people know well in advance. I'm sure both shows will be excellent, I've heard some of the plans for Phil's involving DVD's, models and alsorts of interesting stories but I shall let people know more nearer the time.

 

Just to make up for the lack of updates here's another one...

Next Thursday (15th July) sees the next of our monthly social evenings. This time we will have Jeff Lane presenting on the topic of The Woodhead Route. I am a fan of the Woodhead Route myself so I am really looking forward to this show. On top of this I know Jeff fairly well and he's a really interesting guy to speak to, as his interests seamingly have limitless bounds from Western Region Hydraulics, Bullied Pacifics, Vintage Buses, Ocean Liners and much more besides....

Please do come along if you have the time, I'm sure it'll be a really enjoyable evening. Admission is less than the price of a pint in some places so there's really nothing to complain about - £1.50 Members admission and £2.00 Non Members.

The show will kick off at 19:30 prompt but late comers are still welcome - just pay at the interval and don't make a fuss when you're coming in. At particularly busy shows anyone arriving after 19:30 may have to stand but we try our best to shoe horn in as many seats as possible and obviously this is much easier before we've kicked off whilst the lights are still on.

The show is expected to end around 22:00 as per usual and we will have a short interval for drinks and light refreshments and the use of the facilities at about half past 8. This should also give people chance to explore the site and see anything new thats arrived.

There is plenty of car parking available and it is also perfectly feasible for you come by public transport too if you live in the locality.

Hope to see you there,

Ianb47306

 

Just a thought but is there any chance the moderators could make this thread sticky please assuming that's allowed. I know there aren't many updates and there are probably more 'interesting' posts in other threads but I'd like as many people as possible to access this information and hopefully to come to the shows. Every little helps the funds.

Thanks,

IanB47306

 

Once again apologies for the lack of updates. As you can gather I live a rather hectic life and it's not all that often I can squeeze the time in to do the updates before every meeting. If anybody does need info at the last minute regarding anything about one of the meetings please pm me and that might kick me into action. If there are any significant changes I will try to get them updated on here though.

We have now finalised the 2011 schedule of meetings (and most of 2012 in fact) so here's the update...

The 2011 meetings are scheduled as follows:-

20th January - Les Nixon - Fifty Years of Railway Photography Part 3

Another selection from Les' extensive photographic collection - steam, diesel, electric trains - British and foreign.

17th February - Ted Hancock - Reservoir Railways of the Derwent Valley

Ted's research for his book on the railways of the Hope Valley unearthed many interesting pictures and details of the railways used during the construction on the Howden and Derwent Reservoirs (1902 - 1915) and Ladybower Reservoir (1935 - 1943).

17th March - PSOV - Mainline 2010, Video Review of the Year

A DVD review of the year with steam in action on the mainline. Held in conjunction with The Little Midland Society.

21st April - Daryl Moore - British Rail Swansong

A look back at the last 10 years of British Rail before privatisation.

19th May - Mike Greenwood and Trevor Follows - A Mixed Bag from two Leicester Rail Enthusiasts

Mike and Trevor delve into their collections with views from the 1970's and 1980's.

16th June - Richard Booth - The Ashover Light Railway

Richard, Chairman of The Ashover Light Railway Society, gives an insight into the history of this fascinating railway, as well as a look at the plans for the future.

21st July - Chris Jones - King Coal

Coal is a major source of traffic for the railway. A pictorial journey from Thoresby Colliery to West Burton Power Station.

18th August - Peter Crawley - After the Blues - A Special Brew

A look back at the mid 80's and early 90's following BR's 'Blue Period'. A compilation of liveries no longer seen on the network, interspersed with some unusual and memorable special trains working through our area and beyond. Two hours of modern traction nostalgia.

15th September - GB Productions - Steaming Through Britain

A DVD presentation of preserved steam at work around Britain, both on the mainline and on Heritage railways.

20th October - Phil Lockwood and Enid Vincent - Diesels in the Peak District

A show with views throughout the Peak District over a period of thirty five years, 1975 - 2010.

17th November - Tony Vernon - The Yorkshire Engine Company

An illustrated look at this well known company.

15th December - Annual Christmas Social - Details to be advised...

All other details remain the same. Doors open 19:00, presentations start 19:30 and end approx 22:00. We have a short interval for refreshments, toilets etc about the middle of the meeting. Hot/cold drinks and some cold snacks are avialable. Free parking is available on site but there is also a bus service from Chesterfield and Staveley (service 90) that operates - see Derbyshire County Council for further info. Admission is £1.50 for BHESS member and £2.00 for non members.

Hopefully that covers everything but if you have any other questions please feel free to ask.

 

Last post on here for the year I expect....

Just a quick update to say that there is an extra social evening planned for this February to mark 20 years since the depot shut under BR ownership and 20 years since the idea of saving the place was born up. I can't remember the exact date at the time of writing but it is a Wednesday as apposed to the usual Thursday of all the other meetings. This will be a very special evening, we're going to use the fireworks that didn't get let off at the Christmas social, Merv is going to update his Barrow Hill presentation and we're busy working behind the scenes to organise some extra attractions. I cannot confirm prices at the time of writing but everything else should be as per usual unless plans change in the mean time.

Also there should be a mini diesel gala at BH around a similar time - one of the weekends either side of the meeting. This will only be using BH based locos if it does go ahead but it should be an interesting event and it could see the debut of 33035. I suggest you check the website for further updates and I will post news as and when it becomes available.

Finally, Merry Christmas and all the best for 2011 to everyone on behalf of all the people down at BH. Hope to see some new faces down there next year.

 

As I'm still learning on here.... can anybody tell me if it is possible to change the thread title as it is going to be out of date soon!

 

Just a quick update on the social evenings...

There will be an extra meeting on Wednesday 9th February to celebrate 20 years since BR vacated the site. The meeting will take place at the usual time 19:30 - 22:00 approx with a small interval in between times.

The meeting will be presented by Mervyn Allcock and it will be an updated version of his Barrow Hill show - including various then and now shots (which were still being taken last week) and some possible images behind the scenes. Expect an excellent evening with some very interesting stories and possible plans for the future. Just to top it all off we shall be having fireworks to end the evening (weather permitting).

Also as part of the festivities there will be a mini diesel gala the previous saturday (5th February)... please see the thread in the galas/events section.

Also if any readers could tell me how to change the thread title it'd be much appreciated.