Meeting Reports - September 2017 - May 2018
Towards a Corporate Identity: A Look at North London Railway station architecture 1850 – 1900 – Jim Connor (17th May)
We were delighted to have a return visit from Jim Connor, whose planned visit on 1st March was thwarted by “The Beast from the East”. As the presentation was to deal with corporate or “house” styles Jim pointed out that the company began life as the East & West India Docks & Birmingham Junction Railway (it made a junction with the London & Birmingham Railway at Chalk Farm) but it thankfully became the N.L.R. in 1853.
Jim began with a very early image of the first Hackney station (1850 – 1870); the second Hackney station being slightly to the west and closed to passengers, along with the part of the North London line east of Dalston Junction, in 1944. The station re-opened in 1980 as Hackney Central and the former buildings are used as a music venue/bar/restaurant, duly visited by Jim on semi-official business. The City Extension from Dalston Junc to Broad St opened in 1865. Broad St – the work of Edwin Horne – marked the start of the corporate image – Portland stone, lots of glazing and terracotta and its French-style rooflines. It was much-loved by Betjeman but its use was to decline in the 20th century in the face of bus, tram and underground competition, and finally closed in 1986. Shoreditch (1865 – 1940) was the first station out of Broad St, elaborately-styled, more so than the plainer Dalston Junction (1865) and which had become dilapidated in the 1960s. Although Jim related how it was the scene of a murder in 1899 it was also used in the film “Look Back in Anger” in 1959. The next station discussed was Victoria Park on the line to Poplar – its first station lasted 10 years, with a second opening in 1866. It formed a junction to Stratford but closed slightly earlier than the other WW2 casualties.
Poplar (1866 – 1944) followed the corporate style i.e. round-arched windows, generally symmetrical and with the station name prominent above the entrance. It also incorporated stationmaster accommodation. Old Ford (1867 – 1944) was a square building, boasting the usual arched windows and prominent name sign but a supporting girder began to give way in 1929 – traffic was suspended until the rear part of the building had been demolished. Haggerston (1867 – 1940) was also in the corporate style, as was Homerton (1868 – 1944) which sold the most workmen’s tickets.
The N.L.R. did not always give credit to the architects who designed its stations, but it seems clear that Horne played a major part despite having no formal architectural training. Also involved was the Company’s Engineer, Thomas Matthews, The N.L.R. station at Bow (1850) was replaced in 1870 by a very grand Horne designed station which included a concert hall and resembled Broad St. Again, it was a WW2 casualty, closing in 1944. Prior to demolition it served as a library and as Salvation Army premises.
The impressive Islington station dates back to 1850 and was also designed by Horne. In 1872 it was reconstructed and became Highbury & Islington. Another Horne building was Caledonian Road & Barnsbury, the next station west on the Richmond line. The last Horne-designed station was at Camden Road (1870.
There were a number of smaller Matthews-designed stations en route to Poplar at Mildmay Park, South Bromley, Kingsland and Maiden Lane, most of which had closed before 1944, but the only surviving Matthews-designed station is at Acton or Acton Central (1853) well to the west.
The fortunes of Messrs Horne & Matthews strongly contrast. Although Horne was a member of the R.I.B.A. from 1875 he went into obscurity after designing a church in Ealing, living in the attic of a terraced house in Dover prior to his death in 1915. He left a paltry £166 in his will. On the other hand, Matthews, the engineer, died in 1905, leaving £23,000 in his will.
As stated above, the stations between Dalston Junction and Poplar closed in 1944. Most unusually, however, the stations remained open until 1945 for sale of tickets for the replacement bus service.
We were delighted to have a return visit from Jim Connor, whose planned visit on 1st March was thwarted by “The Beast from the East”. As the presentation was to deal with corporate or “house” styles Jim pointed out that the company began life as the East & West India Docks & Birmingham Junction Railway (it made a junction with the London & Birmingham Railway at Chalk Farm) but it thankfully became the N.L.R. in 1853.
Jim began with a very early image of the first Hackney station (1850 – 1870); the second Hackney station being slightly to the west and closed to passengers, along with the part of the North London line east of Dalston Junction, in 1944. The station re-opened in 1980 as Hackney Central and the former buildings are used as a music venue/bar/restaurant, duly visited by Jim on semi-official business. The City Extension from Dalston Junc to Broad St opened in 1865. Broad St – the work of Edwin Horne – marked the start of the corporate image – Portland stone, lots of glazing and terracotta and its French-style rooflines. It was much-loved by Betjeman but its use was to decline in the 20th century in the face of bus, tram and underground competition, and finally closed in 1986. Shoreditch (1865 – 1940) was the first station out of Broad St, elaborately-styled, more so than the plainer Dalston Junction (1865) and which had become dilapidated in the 1960s. Although Jim related how it was the scene of a murder in 1899 it was also used in the film “Look Back in Anger” in 1959. The next station discussed was Victoria Park on the line to Poplar – its first station lasted 10 years, with a second opening in 1866. It formed a junction to Stratford but closed slightly earlier than the other WW2 casualties.
Poplar (1866 – 1944) followed the corporate style i.e. round-arched windows, generally symmetrical and with the station name prominent above the entrance. It also incorporated stationmaster accommodation. Old Ford (1867 – 1944) was a square building, boasting the usual arched windows and prominent name sign but a supporting girder began to give way in 1929 – traffic was suspended until the rear part of the building had been demolished. Haggerston (1867 – 1940) was also in the corporate style, as was Homerton (1868 – 1944) which sold the most workmen’s tickets.
The N.L.R. did not always give credit to the architects who designed its stations, but it seems clear that Horne played a major part despite having no formal architectural training. Also involved was the Company’s Engineer, Thomas Matthews, The N.L.R. station at Bow (1850) was replaced in 1870 by a very grand Horne designed station which included a concert hall and resembled Broad St. Again, it was a WW2 casualty, closing in 1944. Prior to demolition it served as a library and as Salvation Army premises.
The impressive Islington station dates back to 1850 and was also designed by Horne. In 1872 it was reconstructed and became Highbury & Islington. Another Horne building was Caledonian Road & Barnsbury, the next station west on the Richmond line. The last Horne-designed station was at Camden Road (1870.
There were a number of smaller Matthews-designed stations en route to Poplar at Mildmay Park, South Bromley, Kingsland and Maiden Lane, most of which had closed before 1944, but the only surviving Matthews-designed station is at Acton or Acton Central (1853) well to the west.
The fortunes of Messrs Horne & Matthews strongly contrast. Although Horne was a member of the R.I.B.A. from 1875 he went into obscurity after designing a church in Ealing, living in the attic of a terraced house in Dover prior to his death in 1915. He left a paltry £166 in his will. On the other hand, Matthews, the engineer, died in 1905, leaving £23,000 in his will.
As stated above, the stations between Dalston Junction and Poplar closed in 1944. Most unusually, however, the stations remained open until 1945 for sale of tickets for the replacement bus service.
An Interrail Experience in 2017 – Chris Mitchell (3rd May)
The Interrail Pass offers unlimited rail travel in up to 30 European countries at your own pace within 1 month. The only excluded European countries appear to be Albania and the Baltic states. Depending on the number of days’ travel inside the 15-day or 1 month period selected, the cost varies from £188 to £459. Chris booked his October travel via the DB and SNCF websites, his destinations being Vienna, Prague and Berlin.
Chris and Sue’s first day’s travel took them from St Pancras to Ulm, the city with the world’s tallest steeple (530’ approx. – Norwich Cathedral is a mere 315’). Mainly Chris saw ICE units but in Ulm a few Class 218s from the 1960s were seen.
Their second day took them to Vienna via Munich, whose signalling centre resembled an aircraft control tower, and Salzburg. Vienna Hauptbahnhof (Hbf) has been rebuilt and although new rail construction is taking place across the city trams are prominent.
Vienna is the former capital of the Austro-Hungarian (Habsburg) Empire and is rich in grand buildings, notably the 300-room Schӧnbrunn Palace with its incredible gardens. Although not on the same architectural scale, Vienna still has its old roundhouse and water tower!
After 3 days in Vienna, Chris and Sue took OBB’s Railjet (their own high-speed train) to Prague (I will refrain from calling the country Czechia as the name has not caught on). Czech locomotives are in a pleasant 2-tone blue livery but its railways seem to be undergoing a Beeching-era simplification in favour of bendy-buses - these and trams (some historic) seem to be the preferred mode of transport. Prague station is a step back in time with an Art-Nouveau main hall (the former main entrance is now an imposing café). They took an excursion to the ancient capital – Kutná Hora – but saw no evidence of railways there.
By comparison with Germany and Austria Czech rolling stock appears dated, but Chris and Sue benefited from a loco-hauled run to Dresden where a Siemens loco took over. Their route did, however, take them past deep gorges with castles above (Saxon Switzerland).
They arrived at Berlin Hbf, something of an architectural and civil engineering tour de force, and which has a number of levels – the top and bottom levels are for the trains with the inevitable shopping levels in between. Chris’s membership of the Institution of Civil Engineers rewarded him with a guided tour of the station, and these snippets should be interesting. The River Spree was diverted for almost a mile, and the proliferation of unexploded bombs held up the construction programme for some 3 years. The station took some 20 years to build from the design stage. Filming of “McMafia” was in progress at the station as well. Chris and Sue naturally visited the Brandenburg Gate, and the Reichstag with its Norman Foster-designed observatory dome. Checkpoint Charlie was highly commercialised, and they also saw a museum devoted to the primitive DDR Trabants. Finally, they saw Chancellor Angela Merkel’s residence where the security appeared very light by our standards.
Thanks to Chris for putting together a Cook’s tour of these European capitals and to Andy Wright for operating the projector.
Growing the East Anglia Network – Railfuture (5th April)
Most members will know of Railfuture, the national campaigning body which aims to enlarge and improve the country’s railway network. For this meeting we were privileged to have no fewer than three leading members of Railfuture’s East Anglia branch to tell us of planned developments and proposals for our region.
Phil Smart began with an overview of issues facing rail in general and East Anglia in particular. His charts showed how passenger numbers continue to rise steeply, while car journeys appear to be levelling off. This might be because of more urban living and the ‘opportunity value’ of time, i.e. being able to work, shop etc on the move when on a train. More passengers and crowded trains are putting severe strain on the network, especially at pinch points like Ely North Jct and the single track East Suffolk Line.
Phil then turned to East West Rail, the major project to restore and revitalise the Oxford – Cambridge route in order to establish a strategic link between East Anglia and Central, Southern and Western England – and, as Phil pointed out, connect the six fastest-growing towns in the UK. The East West Railway Co had been formed late last year by the Secretary of State for Transport “to optimise the delivery of the railway”. As regards the Central (Cambridge – Bedford) Section, Network Rail is collaboratiing with local authorities and rail industry stakeholders to develop possible route options within the preferred corridor, to assess their strategic and economic cases. Phil showed us maps of the 32 options!
Railfuture doesn’t only concern itself with passengers, but also works to get more freight on the railway. Ships arriving at Felixstowe are getting ever bigger – we saw some mind-boggling container vessels – and the Port authority prefers to transfer as much as possible straight to rail rather than to lorry. Phil had been a leading force in identifying the route for the Bacon Factory Curve at Ipswich, which is one of a number of enhancements between Felixstowe and Nuneaton designed to allow trains to reach the West Coast Main Line without travelling over congested lines in the London area. The curve saw its first train in 2014.
After the break it was the turn of branch chairman Peter Wakefield to describe the problems of managing growth in and around Cambridge. The area is seeing huge economic growth, and it was surprising to learn that more working people travel in to Cambridge than out to London.
Cambridge North station opened around a year ago. To cut costs the station layout had been simplified but this now means that trains terminating on the down side take too long to reach the up line for their return journey south. The emerging 'CB4' district around the new station, at present, rather isolated, looks set to be a new city quarter for business, retail and housing developments, as well as a planned 217-bed hotel.
A new Cambridge South station will be situated near Addenbrooke’s Hospital and the biomedical campus, providing access to a major employment site that will support new homes and 16,000 existing and 7,000 new jobs. The signs are that Cambridge South will be delivered soon following encouraging remarks in the Government’s autumn statement. It will be built along with four tracks from Shepreth Branch Junction to Cambridge station in order to provide adequate capacity and reliability approaching Cambridge.
To the north-west, at Wisbech, there is a plan to enlarge the town with a ‘New Garden Town’; if that goes ahead it will strengthen immeasurably the case for reinstating the March – Wisbech rail link. To avoid crossing the A47 Wisbech by-pass with a costly new bridge there has been a proposal to locate Wisbech terminus south of the A47, two miles outside the town, but Peter said that an identified central site would make far more sense.
Finally Peter reminded us of Thameslink, which was now running a limited trial service to and from Cambridge, but where many more trains would start in May, meaning new direct routes between Cambridge and Brighton. From Cambridge you can now reach four major London termini – King’s Cross, St Pancras, Liverpool Street and London Bridge – without changing trains.
Our final speaker was Ian Couzens, who represents Norwich and Norfolk on Railfuture’s East Anglia branch. Ian told us that the Greater Norwich Local Plan envisaged 50,000 new homes being built between 2012 and 2036, and rail would have a major role to play in dealing with the expanded population. Railfuture’s aspirations included three trains per hour on the Breckand Line, with electrification as the ultimate aim. Services on the Wherry Line should be increased to three per hour, and some Yarmouth trains extended beyond Norwich. A half-hourly service on the Bittern Line and a new station at Dussindale were also required, as well as new stations near Long Stratton and Hethersett (“South/West Norwich Parkway”).
This was an absorbing evening, well put together and providing much food for thought. After fielding questions, our speakers invited anyone interested to attend Railfuture’s East Anglia Branch meeting on September 29 at the Friends’ Meeting House, Upper Goat Lane, Norwich NR2 1EW.
(Mike Handscomb)
Most members will know of Railfuture, the national campaigning body which aims to enlarge and improve the country’s railway network. For this meeting we were privileged to have no fewer than three leading members of Railfuture’s East Anglia branch to tell us of planned developments and proposals for our region.
Phil Smart began with an overview of issues facing rail in general and East Anglia in particular. His charts showed how passenger numbers continue to rise steeply, while car journeys appear to be levelling off. This might be because of more urban living and the ‘opportunity value’ of time, i.e. being able to work, shop etc on the move when on a train. More passengers and crowded trains are putting severe strain on the network, especially at pinch points like Ely North Jct and the single track East Suffolk Line.
Phil then turned to East West Rail, the major project to restore and revitalise the Oxford – Cambridge route in order to establish a strategic link between East Anglia and Central, Southern and Western England – and, as Phil pointed out, connect the six fastest-growing towns in the UK. The East West Railway Co had been formed late last year by the Secretary of State for Transport “to optimise the delivery of the railway”. As regards the Central (Cambridge – Bedford) Section, Network Rail is collaboratiing with local authorities and rail industry stakeholders to develop possible route options within the preferred corridor, to assess their strategic and economic cases. Phil showed us maps of the 32 options!
Railfuture doesn’t only concern itself with passengers, but also works to get more freight on the railway. Ships arriving at Felixstowe are getting ever bigger – we saw some mind-boggling container vessels – and the Port authority prefers to transfer as much as possible straight to rail rather than to lorry. Phil had been a leading force in identifying the route for the Bacon Factory Curve at Ipswich, which is one of a number of enhancements between Felixstowe and Nuneaton designed to allow trains to reach the West Coast Main Line without travelling over congested lines in the London area. The curve saw its first train in 2014.
After the break it was the turn of branch chairman Peter Wakefield to describe the problems of managing growth in and around Cambridge. The area is seeing huge economic growth, and it was surprising to learn that more working people travel in to Cambridge than out to London.
Cambridge North station opened around a year ago. To cut costs the station layout had been simplified but this now means that trains terminating on the down side take too long to reach the up line for their return journey south. The emerging 'CB4' district around the new station, at present, rather isolated, looks set to be a new city quarter for business, retail and housing developments, as well as a planned 217-bed hotel.
A new Cambridge South station will be situated near Addenbrooke’s Hospital and the biomedical campus, providing access to a major employment site that will support new homes and 16,000 existing and 7,000 new jobs. The signs are that Cambridge South will be delivered soon following encouraging remarks in the Government’s autumn statement. It will be built along with four tracks from Shepreth Branch Junction to Cambridge station in order to provide adequate capacity and reliability approaching Cambridge.
To the north-west, at Wisbech, there is a plan to enlarge the town with a ‘New Garden Town’; if that goes ahead it will strengthen immeasurably the case for reinstating the March – Wisbech rail link. To avoid crossing the A47 Wisbech by-pass with a costly new bridge there has been a proposal to locate Wisbech terminus south of the A47, two miles outside the town, but Peter said that an identified central site would make far more sense.
Finally Peter reminded us of Thameslink, which was now running a limited trial service to and from Cambridge, but where many more trains would start in May, meaning new direct routes between Cambridge and Brighton. From Cambridge you can now reach four major London termini – King’s Cross, St Pancras, Liverpool Street and London Bridge – without changing trains.
Our final speaker was Ian Couzens, who represents Norwich and Norfolk on Railfuture’s East Anglia branch. Ian told us that the Greater Norwich Local Plan envisaged 50,000 new homes being built between 2012 and 2036, and rail would have a major role to play in dealing with the expanded population. Railfuture’s aspirations included three trains per hour on the Breckand Line, with electrification as the ultimate aim. Services on the Wherry Line should be increased to three per hour, and some Yarmouth trains extended beyond Norwich. A half-hourly service on the Bittern Line and a new station at Dussindale were also required, as well as new stations near Long Stratton and Hethersett (“South/West Norwich Parkway”).
This was an absorbing evening, well put together and providing much food for thought. After fielding questions, our speakers invited anyone interested to attend Railfuture’s East Anglia Branch meeting on September 29 at the Friends’ Meeting House, Upper Goat Lane, Norwich NR2 1EW.
(Mike Handscomb)
Rain, Grain & Grime – Richard Adderson (15th February)
This year sees the 50th anniversary of the end of scheduled steam services on British Railways. Richard Adderson had travelled widely over the UK network between July 1966 and April 1968 to see and photograph steam at work, and his evening’s presentation consisted of around 180 black-and-white pictures. Last year he digitised these negatives, and this was their first outing in presentation format.
A sizeable audience had come, perhaps intrigued by the talk’s Turner-pastiche title. In the mid-1960s Richard started work as a junior, hence he was at the end of the list when it came to choosing holiday dates and ‘Rain’ was the main feature of the months he was left to pick from. ‘Grain’ came from the film in the cameras he used: a box Brownie and an Ilford Sportsman. The former was limited by a 1/25 shutter speed and a lens which rendered photos a little blurred at the edges; the latter had faster shutter speeds but occasionally tore the film. Finally ‘Grime’ – no explanation needed really, given the state of most locos in the late 1960s.
In 1966 Richard had taken a day trip to Basingstoke, walked up the line and spent three hours watching something that had become impossible in East Anglia: a succession of steam-hauled expresses. We saw several shots of rebuilt Bulleid Pacifics tearing past, but the presence of a third rail, as yet unelectrified, indicated that things were about to change.
There was much more variety that summer, thanks to a week-long ‘Freedom of Scotland’ ticket. The main draw for Richard and many others (even your Membership Secretary made the trip that year!) were A4s, including the last of the class, 60034 Lord Faringdon, plying between Glasgow Buchanan Street and Aberdeen. It wasn’t a foolproof schedule though. Richard’s first trip to Aberdeen turned out to be diesel-hauled, but he had the compensation of A2 60532 Blue Peter for the return. Other highlights included ‘Crab’ 42919 at Kilmarnock, J37 64611 on a pick-up goods at Inverkeithing and the unexpected sight of Standard 2-6-4T 80026 on a suburban working out of Edinburgh Waverley. Taking a train from Carlisle to Stranraer in the early hours of the morning behind a Black 5 piloting a Britannia should have provided some sights and sounds to savour, but Richard’s days had been too packed – he fell asleep!
We returned to the Southern for a look at the last days of steam on the Waterloo – Weymouth line. Bournemouth shed always seemed to be in sunshine when viewed from a passing train; how spruce 34089602 Squadron looked on shed there, the last steam loco to receive an Eastleigh overhaul. We also made brief forays to Southern branches: Richard had witnessed, quite by chance, 76010 working the last timetabled steam service on the Swanage branch. He’d also visited the Lymington branch and seen O2 tanks on the Isle of Wight.
From John H Bird’s Southern Steam Surrender, I already knew Richard had witnessed the last weekend of Southern steam working in July 1967, but here was the pictorial proof. He’d visited Bournemouth and Weymouth sheds and, with other enthusiasts, travelled on the very last up working, the 14.07 Weymouth – Waterloo, hauled by 35030 Elder Dempster Lines. His dim – but historic – image of the loco at Waterloo rounded off the Southern sequence beautifully.
As the refreshment interval approached, the tea-makers announced a crisis: no electricity in the kitchen. Fortunately Mike Fordham located the fuse box and saved the day.
And so through 1967 to 1968, the year that was to see steam’s last breath – at least in regular BR service. A number of trips around the north-west provided a wealth of variety, even if some of the locations seemed rather depressing (Preston station especially so) to the youthful photographer. Richard's schedule gave no time for leisurely linesiding, so to get photographs he adopted the practice of travelling in the leading coach and alighting at a station but leaving the door open so that the train could not depart without him. There was much still to see at Carnforth, which had one of the last steam sheds, and where the steady procession of freight, apart from Freightliner traffic, was entirely steam-hauled. A trip from Carnforth to Barrow produced Stanier 2-6-4T 42611 on the front. Another surprise was Britannia 70011 hauling a humble Preston – Crewe stopper, which was photographed alongside a foretaste of things to come: a Class 86 electric. Tebay shed contained only bankers for Shap, such as 75026. A curious backdrop to some Lancaster scenes was provided by the OHL gantries on the Midland route to Morecambe, an electrified route which had closed some two years earlier.
And what could be more appropriate to round off Richard’s most enjoyable retrospective than ‘The End’ – chalked on a Merchant Navy’s open, cold, smokebox door. (Mike Handscomb)
This year sees the 50th anniversary of the end of scheduled steam services on British Railways. Richard Adderson had travelled widely over the UK network between July 1966 and April 1968 to see and photograph steam at work, and his evening’s presentation consisted of around 180 black-and-white pictures. Last year he digitised these negatives, and this was their first outing in presentation format.
A sizeable audience had come, perhaps intrigued by the talk’s Turner-pastiche title. In the mid-1960s Richard started work as a junior, hence he was at the end of the list when it came to choosing holiday dates and ‘Rain’ was the main feature of the months he was left to pick from. ‘Grain’ came from the film in the cameras he used: a box Brownie and an Ilford Sportsman. The former was limited by a 1/25 shutter speed and a lens which rendered photos a little blurred at the edges; the latter had faster shutter speeds but occasionally tore the film. Finally ‘Grime’ – no explanation needed really, given the state of most locos in the late 1960s.
In 1966 Richard had taken a day trip to Basingstoke, walked up the line and spent three hours watching something that had become impossible in East Anglia: a succession of steam-hauled expresses. We saw several shots of rebuilt Bulleid Pacifics tearing past, but the presence of a third rail, as yet unelectrified, indicated that things were about to change.
There was much more variety that summer, thanks to a week-long ‘Freedom of Scotland’ ticket. The main draw for Richard and many others (even your Membership Secretary made the trip that year!) were A4s, including the last of the class, 60034 Lord Faringdon, plying between Glasgow Buchanan Street and Aberdeen. It wasn’t a foolproof schedule though. Richard’s first trip to Aberdeen turned out to be diesel-hauled, but he had the compensation of A2 60532 Blue Peter for the return. Other highlights included ‘Crab’ 42919 at Kilmarnock, J37 64611 on a pick-up goods at Inverkeithing and the unexpected sight of Standard 2-6-4T 80026 on a suburban working out of Edinburgh Waverley. Taking a train from Carlisle to Stranraer in the early hours of the morning behind a Black 5 piloting a Britannia should have provided some sights and sounds to savour, but Richard’s days had been too packed – he fell asleep!
We returned to the Southern for a look at the last days of steam on the Waterloo – Weymouth line. Bournemouth shed always seemed to be in sunshine when viewed from a passing train; how spruce 34089602 Squadron looked on shed there, the last steam loco to receive an Eastleigh overhaul. We also made brief forays to Southern branches: Richard had witnessed, quite by chance, 76010 working the last timetabled steam service on the Swanage branch. He’d also visited the Lymington branch and seen O2 tanks on the Isle of Wight.
From John H Bird’s Southern Steam Surrender, I already knew Richard had witnessed the last weekend of Southern steam working in July 1967, but here was the pictorial proof. He’d visited Bournemouth and Weymouth sheds and, with other enthusiasts, travelled on the very last up working, the 14.07 Weymouth – Waterloo, hauled by 35030 Elder Dempster Lines. His dim – but historic – image of the loco at Waterloo rounded off the Southern sequence beautifully.
As the refreshment interval approached, the tea-makers announced a crisis: no electricity in the kitchen. Fortunately Mike Fordham located the fuse box and saved the day.
And so through 1967 to 1968, the year that was to see steam’s last breath – at least in regular BR service. A number of trips around the north-west provided a wealth of variety, even if some of the locations seemed rather depressing (Preston station especially so) to the youthful photographer. Richard's schedule gave no time for leisurely linesiding, so to get photographs he adopted the practice of travelling in the leading coach and alighting at a station but leaving the door open so that the train could not depart without him. There was much still to see at Carnforth, which had one of the last steam sheds, and where the steady procession of freight, apart from Freightliner traffic, was entirely steam-hauled. A trip from Carnforth to Barrow produced Stanier 2-6-4T 42611 on the front. Another surprise was Britannia 70011 hauling a humble Preston – Crewe stopper, which was photographed alongside a foretaste of things to come: a Class 86 electric. Tebay shed contained only bankers for Shap, such as 75026. A curious backdrop to some Lancaster scenes was provided by the OHL gantries on the Midland route to Morecambe, an electrified route which had closed some two years earlier.
And what could be more appropriate to round off Richard’s most enjoyable retrospective than ‘The End’ – chalked on a Merchant Navy’s open, cold, smokebox door. (Mike Handscomb)
Railway Stations - an Artist’s view – Wrenford Thatcher (1st February)
Wrenford Thatcher’s grandparents were engine drivers, working on the GER and later their successors. As a boy Wrenford lived in Hatfield and spent many lineside hours sketching trains. Once he could afford a ‘box Brownie’ camera he began capturing railway scenes on film but later developed a passion for painting in oils. For this meeting he projected images of his paintings which dealt with the architectural side of railways – but with a good number of locomotives included to keep the gricers happy! Interspersed among the paintings were a few recent photographs of the same stations; Wrenford feels that most C20 changes were for the worse.
Those who were present when Wrenford addressed the NRS in February 2013 may recall a panorama of the scene north of King's Cross and St Pancras in 1952. This unusual perspective, impossible unless you’re a bird or in a tethered balloon, is something that he has since developed. He insists on an accurate portrayal of whatever scene he paints, and so to capture a bird’s eye view he researches large-scale OS maps of the appropriate period and then paints them as they would look from an aerial viewpoint – hard to imagine, much harder to accomplish. We saw many of these aerial panoramas as well as conventional views from the ground.
King’s Cross and St Pancras and the area around them fascinate Wrenford. One painting of King’s Cross imagines the scene in the early 1950s with representatives of classes A1, A4, B1, N1 and V2 all present. In another painting Sir John Betjeman, who was instrumental in saving St Pancras station and the Midland Grand hotel, gazes up at Sir Giles Gilbert Scott’s architectural masterpiece - with bricks individually picked out in slightly different shades (the bricks of Cubitt’s terminus next door, we learnt, are of unvarying London yellow clay).
Liverpool Street turns out to be his favourite station – in the 1950s, that is, certainly not today. The complex and far from passenger-friendly layout, the sound of Westinghouse brake pumps and the occasional ray of light through the grimy roof all combined to conjure up the ‘Street’s unique atmosphere. Wrenford had painted one scene of the station suffused by a 1950s fog – not easy to capture – while in another, a J69 pilot stands centre stage capturing the attention of a ‘lady in blue’ – a Thatcher leitmotif – and her companion.
Paintings of Paddington – whose renovation Wrenford found sympathetic to the building’s heritage – majored on the area under the old Bishop’s Bridge, with green ‘Castles’ departing for the West, Hawksworth 15XX tanks scurrying around on carriage duties, and spotters observing every move. The old Euston he found functional rather than architecturally arresting, but the trains’ red livery made up for this somewhat!
We moved out of the capital for the second half. Wrenford’s home station as a boy was Hatfield, where there was once a royal waiting room built specifically for Queen Victoria. He’d perpetuated boyhood memories by painting an A4 at the station, and a scene which reflected his first ever ‘box Brownie’ photo: N7 no.69654 pottering in the yard.
Other once-favourite stations included Newcastle, where the platforms today are shiny and bright but without the character they once had. Here we saw A1 60120 Kittiwake illuminated by shafts of sunlight through the glass roof. York was pictured as it once was, with four through tracks beneath the massive arched roof, and a scene at Derby contained one of the Midland’s unusual ‘flatiron’ 0-6-4 tanks. The original station at Bristol Temple Meads has been reduced to the ignominy of serving as a car park, but there may be plans to re-use it more sympathetically. A scene looking down on Edinburgh Waverley could not be painted today, such is the network of catenaries which obscure the view.
Closer to home, East Anglian scenes included Cromer High ‘from the top of the water tower’, and the yard at nearby Beach station where two of Wrenford’s ancestors appeared in the scene. A brace of paintings of Weybourne showed how the station’s colour scheme differed between 1926 (M&GN) and today (NNR). Wrenford loved the old Jacobean-style building at Wansford on the Nene Valley Railway, but it’s sadly in need of renovation; the NVR is attempting to acquire it.
Questions at the end covered subjects for his future paintings, photography vs. painting, the difficulty of establishing a viewpoint at Marylebone and Broad Street termini, and Wrenford’s amazing ability to visualise a 3D scene from two-dimensional data. Chairman Brian Kirton delivered the vote of thanks.
Andy Sullivan of the Norski Noo Gallery at Dereham, was present at the meeting with some of Wrenford’s works: original oil paintings on canvas, limited edition signed prints and copies of his book The Railway Paintings of Wrenford J. Thatcher: Caught on Canvas. More than one NRS member returned home with a prized purchase. (Mike Handscomb)
Wrenford Thatcher’s grandparents were engine drivers, working on the GER and later their successors. As a boy Wrenford lived in Hatfield and spent many lineside hours sketching trains. Once he could afford a ‘box Brownie’ camera he began capturing railway scenes on film but later developed a passion for painting in oils. For this meeting he projected images of his paintings which dealt with the architectural side of railways – but with a good number of locomotives included to keep the gricers happy! Interspersed among the paintings were a few recent photographs of the same stations; Wrenford feels that most C20 changes were for the worse.
Those who were present when Wrenford addressed the NRS in February 2013 may recall a panorama of the scene north of King's Cross and St Pancras in 1952. This unusual perspective, impossible unless you’re a bird or in a tethered balloon, is something that he has since developed. He insists on an accurate portrayal of whatever scene he paints, and so to capture a bird’s eye view he researches large-scale OS maps of the appropriate period and then paints them as they would look from an aerial viewpoint – hard to imagine, much harder to accomplish. We saw many of these aerial panoramas as well as conventional views from the ground.
King’s Cross and St Pancras and the area around them fascinate Wrenford. One painting of King’s Cross imagines the scene in the early 1950s with representatives of classes A1, A4, B1, N1 and V2 all present. In another painting Sir John Betjeman, who was instrumental in saving St Pancras station and the Midland Grand hotel, gazes up at Sir Giles Gilbert Scott’s architectural masterpiece - with bricks individually picked out in slightly different shades (the bricks of Cubitt’s terminus next door, we learnt, are of unvarying London yellow clay).
Liverpool Street turns out to be his favourite station – in the 1950s, that is, certainly not today. The complex and far from passenger-friendly layout, the sound of Westinghouse brake pumps and the occasional ray of light through the grimy roof all combined to conjure up the ‘Street’s unique atmosphere. Wrenford had painted one scene of the station suffused by a 1950s fog – not easy to capture – while in another, a J69 pilot stands centre stage capturing the attention of a ‘lady in blue’ – a Thatcher leitmotif – and her companion.
Paintings of Paddington – whose renovation Wrenford found sympathetic to the building’s heritage – majored on the area under the old Bishop’s Bridge, with green ‘Castles’ departing for the West, Hawksworth 15XX tanks scurrying around on carriage duties, and spotters observing every move. The old Euston he found functional rather than architecturally arresting, but the trains’ red livery made up for this somewhat!
We moved out of the capital for the second half. Wrenford’s home station as a boy was Hatfield, where there was once a royal waiting room built specifically for Queen Victoria. He’d perpetuated boyhood memories by painting an A4 at the station, and a scene which reflected his first ever ‘box Brownie’ photo: N7 no.69654 pottering in the yard.
Other once-favourite stations included Newcastle, where the platforms today are shiny and bright but without the character they once had. Here we saw A1 60120 Kittiwake illuminated by shafts of sunlight through the glass roof. York was pictured as it once was, with four through tracks beneath the massive arched roof, and a scene at Derby contained one of the Midland’s unusual ‘flatiron’ 0-6-4 tanks. The original station at Bristol Temple Meads has been reduced to the ignominy of serving as a car park, but there may be plans to re-use it more sympathetically. A scene looking down on Edinburgh Waverley could not be painted today, such is the network of catenaries which obscure the view.
Closer to home, East Anglian scenes included Cromer High ‘from the top of the water tower’, and the yard at nearby Beach station where two of Wrenford’s ancestors appeared in the scene. A brace of paintings of Weybourne showed how the station’s colour scheme differed between 1926 (M&GN) and today (NNR). Wrenford loved the old Jacobean-style building at Wansford on the Nene Valley Railway, but it’s sadly in need of renovation; the NVR is attempting to acquire it.
Questions at the end covered subjects for his future paintings, photography vs. painting, the difficulty of establishing a viewpoint at Marylebone and Broad Street termini, and Wrenford’s amazing ability to visualise a 3D scene from two-dimensional data. Chairman Brian Kirton delivered the vote of thanks.
Andy Sullivan of the Norski Noo Gallery at Dereham, was present at the meeting with some of Wrenford’s works: original oil paintings on canvas, limited edition signed prints and copies of his book The Railway Paintings of Wrenford J. Thatcher: Caught on Canvas. More than one NRS member returned home with a prized purchase. (Mike Handscomb)
The Cromford & High Peak Railway – Gordon Bruce(18th January)
Gordon began his presentation by admitting that he’d never actually seen trains on the famous Cromford & High Peak Railway. Old Ordnance Survey maps had sparked his fascination with the line, which once wandered for 33 miles up and down the wilds of north Derbyshire, and in the 1980s he and his father had walked some of the route.
The C&HP was built to carry minerals and goods between the Cromford Canal wharf at High Peak Junction and the Peak Forest Canal at Whaley Bridge. Josias Jessop, the son of William Jessop, built the railway in the manner of a canal, with inclines substituted for flights of locks. On the nine inclined planes, stationary steam engines were used, apart from the final incline into Whaley Bridge, which was worked by a horse capstan. The "fishbelly" rails were supported on stone blocks. It was amazing to learn that a daily passenger service ran between 1874 and 1877 – the journey took over eight hours!
Aided by projected maps and photographs, which showed the railway both in its working life and after closure, Gordon conducted us along the C&HP route beginning at the south-eastern end at High Peak Junction, on the Cromford Canal (although it seems there was some confusion about where the junction actually was). The first part of the line from the wharf to Hurdlow opened in 1830. From the canal it climbed over 1,000ft in five miles by means of four steep inclines: Cromford, Sheep Pasture, Middleton and Hopton. But by the 1870s Hopton Incline's winding engine was worn out, and with locomotive power having improved the chains and engine were removed and the gradients flattened so that the incline became a conventional adhesion railway - at 1 in 14, the steepest in the country.
With such dramatic inclines, runaways could occur, and because of this ‘catchpits’ were built between up and down running lines. And the inclines weren’t the only jaw-dropping feature. Gordon showed some astonishing examples of Victorian civil engineering. The stone-faced embankment at Minninglow impressed Historic England’s predecessor enough to give it Grade II listed status. Of the many tight curves, the most severe were at Longcliffe (3 chains radius) and, Gotham (2½ chains) where the line turned through 80°. Just imagine those flanges squealing! The engine house at Middleton Top has been preserved as a visitor centre; once a month the beam engines which once hauled wagons come to life, but with compressed air.
The line’s motive power was unusual: in the 1930s two ex-North London Railway 0-6-0Ts were brought in and served for many years. and in the 1950s Kitson-built ex-LMS 0-4-0STs operated the section from Sheep Pasture Top to Middleton Bottom. Latterly Austerity tanks (J94) could also be found, two of which, nos. 68006 and 68012, put up a spectacular show on the final day, 30th April 1967.
Ivo Peters, Cam Camwell and the Adams/Whitehouse Railway Roundabout team had all found operations on the line worth filming, and Gordon began the second half of his evening with short films from these revered names. He then continued tracing the route from Parsley Hay. The portion from Hurdlow to Whaley Bridge descended through four more inclines, the steepest being 1 in 7. The highest part of the line was at Ladmanlow, a height of 1,266 feet (almost 100ft higher than Ais Gill summit on the Settle–Carlisle line).
The L&NWR leased the line from 1862 and bought it out in 1887. Some of the more meandering sections were straightened and by 1890 permission had been obtained to connect the line directly to Buxton with a short new line from Harpur Hill. The old north end of the line from Ladmanlow to Whaley Bridge was then abandoned. Gordon found the trackbed still visible in many places; indeed one incline forms part of a public road. The historic significance of the northern terminus, the trans-shipment shed at Whaley Bridge, means that it now bears a Transport Trust plaque.
In the area you can still find working railways today: the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway at Wirksworth, and the 18” gauge Steeple Grange Light Railway; the latter runs along the trackbed of a former C&HP branch and features a 1 in 27 gradient.
Gordon praised Derbyshire County Council and the Peak District National Park Authority for their foresight in converting much of the route into the High Peak Trail, a traffic-free - if hilly - path for walkers and cyclists. Chairman Brian Kirton proposed a vote of thanks to Gordon for a most absorbing evening, which was enthusiastically supported. (Mike Handscomb)
Gordon began his presentation by admitting that he’d never actually seen trains on the famous Cromford & High Peak Railway. Old Ordnance Survey maps had sparked his fascination with the line, which once wandered for 33 miles up and down the wilds of north Derbyshire, and in the 1980s he and his father had walked some of the route.
The C&HP was built to carry minerals and goods between the Cromford Canal wharf at High Peak Junction and the Peak Forest Canal at Whaley Bridge. Josias Jessop, the son of William Jessop, built the railway in the manner of a canal, with inclines substituted for flights of locks. On the nine inclined planes, stationary steam engines were used, apart from the final incline into Whaley Bridge, which was worked by a horse capstan. The "fishbelly" rails were supported on stone blocks. It was amazing to learn that a daily passenger service ran between 1874 and 1877 – the journey took over eight hours!
Aided by projected maps and photographs, which showed the railway both in its working life and after closure, Gordon conducted us along the C&HP route beginning at the south-eastern end at High Peak Junction, on the Cromford Canal (although it seems there was some confusion about where the junction actually was). The first part of the line from the wharf to Hurdlow opened in 1830. From the canal it climbed over 1,000ft in five miles by means of four steep inclines: Cromford, Sheep Pasture, Middleton and Hopton. But by the 1870s Hopton Incline's winding engine was worn out, and with locomotive power having improved the chains and engine were removed and the gradients flattened so that the incline became a conventional adhesion railway - at 1 in 14, the steepest in the country.
With such dramatic inclines, runaways could occur, and because of this ‘catchpits’ were built between up and down running lines. And the inclines weren’t the only jaw-dropping feature. Gordon showed some astonishing examples of Victorian civil engineering. The stone-faced embankment at Minninglow impressed Historic England’s predecessor enough to give it Grade II listed status. Of the many tight curves, the most severe were at Longcliffe (3 chains radius) and, Gotham (2½ chains) where the line turned through 80°. Just imagine those flanges squealing! The engine house at Middleton Top has been preserved as a visitor centre; once a month the beam engines which once hauled wagons come to life, but with compressed air.
The line’s motive power was unusual: in the 1930s two ex-North London Railway 0-6-0Ts were brought in and served for many years. and in the 1950s Kitson-built ex-LMS 0-4-0STs operated the section from Sheep Pasture Top to Middleton Bottom. Latterly Austerity tanks (J94) could also be found, two of which, nos. 68006 and 68012, put up a spectacular show on the final day, 30th April 1967.
Ivo Peters, Cam Camwell and the Adams/Whitehouse Railway Roundabout team had all found operations on the line worth filming, and Gordon began the second half of his evening with short films from these revered names. He then continued tracing the route from Parsley Hay. The portion from Hurdlow to Whaley Bridge descended through four more inclines, the steepest being 1 in 7. The highest part of the line was at Ladmanlow, a height of 1,266 feet (almost 100ft higher than Ais Gill summit on the Settle–Carlisle line).
The L&NWR leased the line from 1862 and bought it out in 1887. Some of the more meandering sections were straightened and by 1890 permission had been obtained to connect the line directly to Buxton with a short new line from Harpur Hill. The old north end of the line from Ladmanlow to Whaley Bridge was then abandoned. Gordon found the trackbed still visible in many places; indeed one incline forms part of a public road. The historic significance of the northern terminus, the trans-shipment shed at Whaley Bridge, means that it now bears a Transport Trust plaque.
In the area you can still find working railways today: the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway at Wirksworth, and the 18” gauge Steeple Grange Light Railway; the latter runs along the trackbed of a former C&HP branch and features a 1 in 27 gradient.
Gordon praised Derbyshire County Council and the Peak District National Park Authority for their foresight in converting much of the route into the High Peak Trail, a traffic-free - if hilly - path for walkers and cyclists. Chairman Brian Kirton proposed a vote of thanks to Gordon for a most absorbing evening, which was enthusiastically supported. (Mike Handscomb)
Railways of the Netherlands (Chairman’s Address) - Brian Kirton (4th January)
You’ve only got to glance at Brian’s model display cabinet to see that Dutch railways have great appeal for him. His wide-ranging knowledge of the country and its transport systems were much in evidence in his Chairman’s Address which began our 2018 meeting programme.
17 million people - and around the same number of bicycles - live in the Netherlands, whose population density is exceeded only by Bangladesh, South Korea and Taiwan. There’s a lot of green space in the country however, Brian reassured us. To get there you have to use rail, ship or air. Brian showed some pictures of the Harwich - Hoek van Holland sea route (inaugurated in 1893, and now operated by Stena), and Eurostar, which plans to begin daily direct services between St Pancras and Amsterdam this Easter.
Today’s Dutch track appears to feature many scissors crossovers and reversible lines. It came as a surprise to me to learn that the first line, Amsterdam – Haarlem – Rotterdam was built on an unusual broad gauge of 1,945 mm; that’s just over 6 ft 4 in and thus a few inches below Brunel’s favoured gauge. Needless to say, conversion to standard gauge occurred before long.
Rotterdam suffered badly from aerial bombardment by the Luftwaffe on 14 May 1940. Much was flattened but St. Lawrence church, though heavily damaged, survived as the only reminder of Rotterdam's medieval architecture. Today the city’s varied architectural landscape includes sky-scrapers, which are uncommon in other Dutch cities. The city’s Centraal Station, featuring a giant concave façade, opened in 1957 but was replaced by a new structure in 2014.
Brian then turned to the country’s ‘Sites of Railway Interest’, most of which he’s visited over the years. Best known is the Stoomtram Hoorn – Medemblik, a favourite with tour operators; visitors often combine a ride on the tram with a boat trip from Medemblik to Enkhuizen. More impressive from a steam enthusiast’s viewpoint is theVeluwsche Stoomtrein Maatschappij (Veluwsche Steam Train Company) whose main-line red-wheeled beasts originate in the main from the Deutsche Bundesbahn and the Deutsche Reichsbahn; Brian showed an awe-inspiring sextuple-header which rounded off one VSM gala. At IJmuiden, North Holland, Tata Steel lets the Hoogovens Stoom IJmuiden group run an operation similar to what we’re familiar with at Scunthorpe; a smart lined-green 0-6-0T hauls passengers around the steelworks on the last Sunday of the month. Back at Rotterdam, the loco depot of the Stoom Stichting Nederland (Dutch Steam Foundation) is the base for the SSN’s numerous special trains throughout Holland and also doubles up as a museum where a large collection of German and Dutch steam locos may be viewed.
The country’s national railway museum is to be found in Utrecht, behind the original Maliebaan station building. Brian illustrated several of the star exhibits, which included:
A replica of 2-2-2 De Arend (‘The Eagle’), one of the two first steam locomotives in the Netherlands, built in England by R. B. Longridge and Co. of Bedlington, Northumberland.
A 2-4-0 built by Beyer Peacock & Co in 1864, and withdrawn for preservation as early as 1913.
4-6-0 no. 3737 known as ‘Jumbo’, built by Werkspoor, Amsterdam, in 1911.
WD Austerity 2-10-0 73755 Longmoor. This was the 1000th British-built locomotive to be shipped to mainland Europe in support of the Allied forces.
A class DE-1 railcar. These single-car streamlined units were built in the 1950s in Rotterdam and dubbed Blauwe Engelen (Blue Angels) on account of their livery.
After the break we moved from heritage sites to aspects of the main-line scene.
In the 1990s the Netherlands government opened the rail market to competing firms and Lovers, a tour-boat operator on the Amsterdam and Utrecht canals, formed Lovers Rail. It instituted train services between Amsterdam and IJmuiden, Lisse and Haarlem but they were not a success and the firm folded in 1999.
The Netherlands are connected to the European high-speed rail network with one dedicated high-speed line, HSL-Zuid, and improved traditional rail. In 2009 an international high-speed rail service called ‘Fyra’ began between the Netherlands and Belgium using Italian-built AnsaldoBreda V250 trains. After much-publicised technical difficulties which raised reliability and safety concerns, the service was permanently halted after less than two months.
The prevalence of canals and rivers and the low-lying nature of the country mean that railway engineers have had to use a lot of ingenuity. Brian showed examples of train ferries and bridges, both conventional and lifting. One river crossing even features a ‘catenary gap’ requiring a train driver to coast between electrified sections. In Friesland a major causeway the Afsluitdijk (Enclosure Dam), was constructed between 1925 and 1932 over a length of 32 kilometres and a width of 90 metres, some 7.25 metres above sea level. Space was left for a railway, but NS never built a line for reasons of cost and relative lack of benefits. In the 1970s the reservation and abutments for the rail line became a second carriageway, transforming the causeway into a four-lane motorway. Another large-scale enterprise was the Frisian Lakes project, co-funded by the EU and completed in 2015. It aimed to increase employment and attract more businesses to Fryslân, through improved road traffic flow and shorter waiting times for bridges and locks.
Unguarded level crossings are being phased out - fortunately so, in view of the collision at Dalfsen level crossing in February 2016. A passenger train collided with a slow-moving tracked vehicle, resulting in one fatality and six people were injured.
We looked at several of the country’s larger and more interesting stations. Hoek van Holland Haven opened in 1893 and once offered services to Germany and beyond, but international train services have ceased and the station is being reconstructed to serve metro trains. Rotterdam Centraal has been completely rebuilt to a dramatic angular design; the previous station, with its distinctive 1950s concave frontage and congested passenger tunnel, became too small to handle the growing number of passengers. The Netherlands’ only station in art nouveau style is Haarlem, and Brian showed some fascinating views of the delightful ornate interior. The country’s largest and busiest station is Utrecht Centraal, rebuilt recently as part of a general redevelopment of the area with the station entrance replaced by a new glass structure.(Modellers should note that Eurospoor 2018, Europe’s largest model railway show, will be held in Utrecht from 9 - 11 November).
To round off an absorbing evening Brian outlined the current strategy of Nederlandse Spoorwegen. In the coming years NS will focus on three core activities: improving services on the main rail network and high-speed rail link, taking care of stations and improving door-to-door travel. The company plans to invest more than three billion euros in the next five years in trains, station facilities, better travel information and new payment methods. It’s interesting to note that NS will no longer bid on regional rail concessions in the Netherlands and has already sold its Qbuzz bus operations to Busitalia.
Vice-chairman Warren Wordsworth led the meeting and delivered a richly-deserved vote of thanks to Brian. It was good to see a smattering of new faces in the audience, all of whom had accompanied Brian and Velma on holidays throughout Europe and Worldwide.
You’ve only got to glance at Brian’s model display cabinet to see that Dutch railways have great appeal for him. His wide-ranging knowledge of the country and its transport systems were much in evidence in his Chairman’s Address which began our 2018 meeting programme.
17 million people - and around the same number of bicycles - live in the Netherlands, whose population density is exceeded only by Bangladesh, South Korea and Taiwan. There’s a lot of green space in the country however, Brian reassured us. To get there you have to use rail, ship or air. Brian showed some pictures of the Harwich - Hoek van Holland sea route (inaugurated in 1893, and now operated by Stena), and Eurostar, which plans to begin daily direct services between St Pancras and Amsterdam this Easter.
Today’s Dutch track appears to feature many scissors crossovers and reversible lines. It came as a surprise to me to learn that the first line, Amsterdam – Haarlem – Rotterdam was built on an unusual broad gauge of 1,945 mm; that’s just over 6 ft 4 in and thus a few inches below Brunel’s favoured gauge. Needless to say, conversion to standard gauge occurred before long.
Rotterdam suffered badly from aerial bombardment by the Luftwaffe on 14 May 1940. Much was flattened but St. Lawrence church, though heavily damaged, survived as the only reminder of Rotterdam's medieval architecture. Today the city’s varied architectural landscape includes sky-scrapers, which are uncommon in other Dutch cities. The city’s Centraal Station, featuring a giant concave façade, opened in 1957 but was replaced by a new structure in 2014.
Brian then turned to the country’s ‘Sites of Railway Interest’, most of which he’s visited over the years. Best known is the Stoomtram Hoorn – Medemblik, a favourite with tour operators; visitors often combine a ride on the tram with a boat trip from Medemblik to Enkhuizen. More impressive from a steam enthusiast’s viewpoint is theVeluwsche Stoomtrein Maatschappij (Veluwsche Steam Train Company) whose main-line red-wheeled beasts originate in the main from the Deutsche Bundesbahn and the Deutsche Reichsbahn; Brian showed an awe-inspiring sextuple-header which rounded off one VSM gala. At IJmuiden, North Holland, Tata Steel lets the Hoogovens Stoom IJmuiden group run an operation similar to what we’re familiar with at Scunthorpe; a smart lined-green 0-6-0T hauls passengers around the steelworks on the last Sunday of the month. Back at Rotterdam, the loco depot of the Stoom Stichting Nederland (Dutch Steam Foundation) is the base for the SSN’s numerous special trains throughout Holland and also doubles up as a museum where a large collection of German and Dutch steam locos may be viewed.
The country’s national railway museum is to be found in Utrecht, behind the original Maliebaan station building. Brian illustrated several of the star exhibits, which included:
A replica of 2-2-2 De Arend (‘The Eagle’), one of the two first steam locomotives in the Netherlands, built in England by R. B. Longridge and Co. of Bedlington, Northumberland.
A 2-4-0 built by Beyer Peacock & Co in 1864, and withdrawn for preservation as early as 1913.
4-6-0 no. 3737 known as ‘Jumbo’, built by Werkspoor, Amsterdam, in 1911.
WD Austerity 2-10-0 73755 Longmoor. This was the 1000th British-built locomotive to be shipped to mainland Europe in support of the Allied forces.
A class DE-1 railcar. These single-car streamlined units were built in the 1950s in Rotterdam and dubbed Blauwe Engelen (Blue Angels) on account of their livery.
After the break we moved from heritage sites to aspects of the main-line scene.
In the 1990s the Netherlands government opened the rail market to competing firms and Lovers, a tour-boat operator on the Amsterdam and Utrecht canals, formed Lovers Rail. It instituted train services between Amsterdam and IJmuiden, Lisse and Haarlem but they were not a success and the firm folded in 1999.
The Netherlands are connected to the European high-speed rail network with one dedicated high-speed line, HSL-Zuid, and improved traditional rail. In 2009 an international high-speed rail service called ‘Fyra’ began between the Netherlands and Belgium using Italian-built AnsaldoBreda V250 trains. After much-publicised technical difficulties which raised reliability and safety concerns, the service was permanently halted after less than two months.
The prevalence of canals and rivers and the low-lying nature of the country mean that railway engineers have had to use a lot of ingenuity. Brian showed examples of train ferries and bridges, both conventional and lifting. One river crossing even features a ‘catenary gap’ requiring a train driver to coast between electrified sections. In Friesland a major causeway the Afsluitdijk (Enclosure Dam), was constructed between 1925 and 1932 over a length of 32 kilometres and a width of 90 metres, some 7.25 metres above sea level. Space was left for a railway, but NS never built a line for reasons of cost and relative lack of benefits. In the 1970s the reservation and abutments for the rail line became a second carriageway, transforming the causeway into a four-lane motorway. Another large-scale enterprise was the Frisian Lakes project, co-funded by the EU and completed in 2015. It aimed to increase employment and attract more businesses to Fryslân, through improved road traffic flow and shorter waiting times for bridges and locks.
Unguarded level crossings are being phased out - fortunately so, in view of the collision at Dalfsen level crossing in February 2016. A passenger train collided with a slow-moving tracked vehicle, resulting in one fatality and six people were injured.
We looked at several of the country’s larger and more interesting stations. Hoek van Holland Haven opened in 1893 and once offered services to Germany and beyond, but international train services have ceased and the station is being reconstructed to serve metro trains. Rotterdam Centraal has been completely rebuilt to a dramatic angular design; the previous station, with its distinctive 1950s concave frontage and congested passenger tunnel, became too small to handle the growing number of passengers. The Netherlands’ only station in art nouveau style is Haarlem, and Brian showed some fascinating views of the delightful ornate interior. The country’s largest and busiest station is Utrecht Centraal, rebuilt recently as part of a general redevelopment of the area with the station entrance replaced by a new glass structure.(Modellers should note that Eurospoor 2018, Europe’s largest model railway show, will be held in Utrecht from 9 - 11 November).
To round off an absorbing evening Brian outlined the current strategy of Nederlandse Spoorwegen. In the coming years NS will focus on three core activities: improving services on the main rail network and high-speed rail link, taking care of stations and improving door-to-door travel. The company plans to invest more than three billion euros in the next five years in trains, station facilities, better travel information and new payment methods. It’s interesting to note that NS will no longer bid on regional rail concessions in the Netherlands and has already sold its Qbuzz bus operations to Busitalia.
Vice-chairman Warren Wordsworth led the meeting and delivered a richly-deserved vote of thanks to Brian. It was good to see a smattering of new faces in the audience, all of whom had accompanied Brian and Velma on holidays throughout Europe and Worldwide.
Members’ Evening (21st December)
The customary Christmas Evening always provides surprises and this one was no exception.
Peter Cooke opened proceedings with two readings from “Men of Steam”. The first was a poem about the record-breaking exploits of A3 Flying Fox in LNER days, suitably embellished of course. The second poem was loosely based on Kipling’s “If” but themed on the finer arts of train-planning.
John Peat gave a very amusing account of Peat’s Railtours, a project going back to 2005 when he set himself the target of travelling over all passenger routes. This year, he and some friends had covered East Anglia and its heritage lines using mainly Anglia Plus Day Rangers. One of the worst problems occurred on a bus replacement from Sheringham to Cromer when the bus driver did not seem to realise that the “disabled” steps needed to be raised as well as lowered and the bus itself needed to be replaced!
Robert Scarfe’s high-quality video concentrated on the “big” engines – Tornado, Oliver Cromwell, Union of South Africa & Flying Scotsman – on railtours and special services mainly at various locations across Norfolk.
Mike Handscomb has been using ebay to dispose of the late Bernard Harrison’s slide collection, with help from David Pearce and Richard Adderson on the scanning. The “Top Ten” slides so far sold in value terms were truly a mixed bag. No. 10 - a Class 47 on a down Norwich passing Ilford Car Sheds in the 1970s – made £15.49 whereas no. 1 was from April 1987 and showed an EMU (a Class 309) approaching Norwich with the first trial electric working. This fetched an amazing £37.99, and no doubt the occasion helped.
Alan Thurling contributed a most interesting chapter from the 1958 “Railway Roundabout” DVD showing the activity on the 1 in 37 Lickey Incline with trains being banked from Bromsgrove to Blackwell. Jubilees and Class 5s hauled the trains whilst a 9F, a 42xx 2-8-0T, Panniers and Jinties provided assistance. The signalling was tailored to most situations. Descending freight trains needed particular care.
Coincidentally Malcolm Wright had raided the same DVD set, choosing a 1959 sequence from Devon featuring the Brent – Kingsbridge (for Salcombe) branch. The branch was called “The Primrose Line” for obvious reasons and camping coaches were parked at two of the intermediate stations. This charming line was worked by 4500 or 4575 2-6-2Ts on “B” sets and it survived just long enough to be dieselised before closing from 16th September 1963. Even main-line Brent only managed another year. Today, virtually nothing remains, and it was interesting to learn that it might have been an early preservation candidate. Sadly, B.R. removed the track before a deal could be struck.
Still in Devon, Edward Mann read a letter from the Daily Telegraph published in May 1955 lamenting the imminent closure of the Princetown branch (this happened in March 1956). This breather allowed Andy Wright to change projection modes and make his own contribution.
Andy recalled the Society visit to the railways within the Scunthorpe Steelworks complex made in July (see NRS/NL 62/4 p.6) by showing some imaginative images of an incomprehensible site. He then turned his attention to the “Peak Sandwich” as a Class 45 and a 46 made their way home between a Class 50 and a 31. The attraction of the autumn RHTT workings could never be the clean locos – every 66 seen was absolutely filthy! Yarmouth was in the throes of remodelling but the various views of the Class 37s and their short sets looked very attractive in the low sun.
Finally, we move on to what might be sub-titled “the dog-walker’s report”. Chris & Sue have recently become dog owners, and it must be taken for walks! But first, the Borders Railway is running some 3 times ahead of passenger expectations and the already-large car park at Tweedbank is being extended. Various combinations of Class 158s are being used to augment the services. It was pleasing to learn that the Scottish government has commissioned reports on extending the line to Hawick, even though the former Waverley route crosses thinly-populated country around Belses, as well as on improving the A7/A68. Chris then looked at the route of “The Innocent Railway” which was a coal-carrier and which entered the city from the south (Dalkeith). This had its terminus at St Leonard’s which lasted only until 1847 when Waverley opened. Some goods sheds have survived.
We then saw something of the Bath end of the route of the Somerset & Dorset line, closed in 1966. Both Devonshire Tunnel & the lengthy Combe Down Tunnel were used by cyclists and (dog) walkers. Interpretation boards recall the line’s history. It was a fascinating close to an excellent evening.
Thanks to Andy Wright for operating the projector and to everyone who brought refreshments.
The customary Christmas Evening always provides surprises and this one was no exception.
Peter Cooke opened proceedings with two readings from “Men of Steam”. The first was a poem about the record-breaking exploits of A3 Flying Fox in LNER days, suitably embellished of course. The second poem was loosely based on Kipling’s “If” but themed on the finer arts of train-planning.
John Peat gave a very amusing account of Peat’s Railtours, a project going back to 2005 when he set himself the target of travelling over all passenger routes. This year, he and some friends had covered East Anglia and its heritage lines using mainly Anglia Plus Day Rangers. One of the worst problems occurred on a bus replacement from Sheringham to Cromer when the bus driver did not seem to realise that the “disabled” steps needed to be raised as well as lowered and the bus itself needed to be replaced!
Robert Scarfe’s high-quality video concentrated on the “big” engines – Tornado, Oliver Cromwell, Union of South Africa & Flying Scotsman – on railtours and special services mainly at various locations across Norfolk.
Mike Handscomb has been using ebay to dispose of the late Bernard Harrison’s slide collection, with help from David Pearce and Richard Adderson on the scanning. The “Top Ten” slides so far sold in value terms were truly a mixed bag. No. 10 - a Class 47 on a down Norwich passing Ilford Car Sheds in the 1970s – made £15.49 whereas no. 1 was from April 1987 and showed an EMU (a Class 309) approaching Norwich with the first trial electric working. This fetched an amazing £37.99, and no doubt the occasion helped.
Alan Thurling contributed a most interesting chapter from the 1958 “Railway Roundabout” DVD showing the activity on the 1 in 37 Lickey Incline with trains being banked from Bromsgrove to Blackwell. Jubilees and Class 5s hauled the trains whilst a 9F, a 42xx 2-8-0T, Panniers and Jinties provided assistance. The signalling was tailored to most situations. Descending freight trains needed particular care.
Coincidentally Malcolm Wright had raided the same DVD set, choosing a 1959 sequence from Devon featuring the Brent – Kingsbridge (for Salcombe) branch. The branch was called “The Primrose Line” for obvious reasons and camping coaches were parked at two of the intermediate stations. This charming line was worked by 4500 or 4575 2-6-2Ts on “B” sets and it survived just long enough to be dieselised before closing from 16th September 1963. Even main-line Brent only managed another year. Today, virtually nothing remains, and it was interesting to learn that it might have been an early preservation candidate. Sadly, B.R. removed the track before a deal could be struck.
Still in Devon, Edward Mann read a letter from the Daily Telegraph published in May 1955 lamenting the imminent closure of the Princetown branch (this happened in March 1956). This breather allowed Andy Wright to change projection modes and make his own contribution.
Andy recalled the Society visit to the railways within the Scunthorpe Steelworks complex made in July (see NRS/NL 62/4 p.6) by showing some imaginative images of an incomprehensible site. He then turned his attention to the “Peak Sandwich” as a Class 45 and a 46 made their way home between a Class 50 and a 31. The attraction of the autumn RHTT workings could never be the clean locos – every 66 seen was absolutely filthy! Yarmouth was in the throes of remodelling but the various views of the Class 37s and their short sets looked very attractive in the low sun.
Finally, we move on to what might be sub-titled “the dog-walker’s report”. Chris & Sue have recently become dog owners, and it must be taken for walks! But first, the Borders Railway is running some 3 times ahead of passenger expectations and the already-large car park at Tweedbank is being extended. Various combinations of Class 158s are being used to augment the services. It was pleasing to learn that the Scottish government has commissioned reports on extending the line to Hawick, even though the former Waverley route crosses thinly-populated country around Belses, as well as on improving the A7/A68. Chris then looked at the route of “The Innocent Railway” which was a coal-carrier and which entered the city from the south (Dalkeith). This had its terminus at St Leonard’s which lasted only until 1847 when Waverley opened. Some goods sheds have survived.
We then saw something of the Bath end of the route of the Somerset & Dorset line, closed in 1966. Both Devonshire Tunnel & the lengthy Combe Down Tunnel were used by cyclists and (dog) walkers. Interpretation boards recall the line’s history. It was a fascinating close to an excellent evening.
Thanks to Andy Wright for operating the projector and to everyone who brought refreshments.
Film night: Oh, Mr Porter! and Overture One-Two-Five - Edward Mann (December 7th)
Yes, you’re right: ‘Film Night’ didn’t appear in our Working Timetable event listings, for the very good reason that it was a last-minute arrangement put in place to cover the absence of our planned speaker.
The evening should have seen us addressed by Les Bird, Traincrew Development Director for MTR Corporation (Crossrail) Limited. Les would have updated us on the Class 345 Bombardier ‘Aventra’ units which are coming into operation on London’s new Elizabeth Line (Crossrail). Unfortunately Les has been seriously ill, and so Edward Mann pulled a couple of rabbits out of the hat in the shape of two very different films.
Jimmy Perry, co-creator of Dad’s Army, has written that the trio of Captain Mainwaring, Corporal Jones and Private Pike was inspired by watching Oh, Mr Porter! (1937). For those who’ve not seen it, the plot centres on William Porter (Will Hay), an inept railway worker whose pushy relative gets him promoted to stationmaster at the remote and ramshackle station of Buggleskelly, on the fictional Southern Railway of Northern Ireland and close to the border with the then Irish Free State.
Porter's staff consists of the elderly Harbottle (Moore Marriott) and an insolent young porter, Albert (Graham Moffatt). Stationmaster Porter tries to rejuvenate the station in several ways, including halting the passing express much to its guard’s displeasure, and organising an excursion to Connemara. He unwittingly agrees to transport a group of gun-runners - but then their train disappears, and Porter gets the sack. To make amends he puts Gladstone, the station’s shunting loco, in steam so that he, Harbottle and Albert can set off down a long-forgotten branch to look for the missing train. As suspected, the train and criminals have gone to ground inside a tunnel. After some fisticuffs and a hair-raising escape on windmaill sails, the Buggleskelly trio manage to couple Gladstone to the carriages containing the gun-runners and haul them away from the border at full speed, burning everything they can find to keep the loco going. Once the authorities have been alerted to their plight, the entire railway system goes into action, with lines closed and other trains re-routed. Finally the train crashes into a siding where police are waiting to arrest the gun-runners. Poor old Gladstoneexplodes after its hectic journey, whereupon Porter, Harbottle and Albert lower their hats in respect.
The film credits assistance from both the LNER and the Southern Railway. The former appears only in the opening sequence, where Porter, then a lowly wheeltapper, causes havoc at the naming ceremony for an A4 Pacific. The other outdoor scenes were filmed on the SR. Buggleskelly station was Cliddesden, a wayside stop on the Basingstoke – Alton Light Railway where passenger services had ceased five years earlier. The valiant Gladstone was in reality Northiam, one of two Hawthorn, Leslie 0-4-2Ts delivered to the Rother Valley Rly (forerunner of the K&ESR) in 1899 and used on various Colonel Stephens’ lines until being scrapped with her sister in 1941. The express which Porter stops is hauled by a SR 4-6-0; in a close-up of the loco’s cabside the oval Southern Railway worksplate appears, with ‘of Northern Ireland’ neatly added underneath. The final high-speed romp was filmed – and obviously speeded up – on the Southern between Southampton and Waterloo.
The evening’s second feature was quite different - and, at just 6½ minutes, a lot shorter. Overture One-Two-Five, the last complete production to be shot on 35mm film by British Transport Films, was made in 1978 to mark the introduction of Inter-City 125 HST services between Paddington and Bristol. Scenes on the production line were followed by views, on board the train, from the lineside and the air, all designed to showcase a new age of comfortable high-speed travel. There was no commentary, just a musical sound track, specially composed by David Gow.
Overture One-Two-Five served to remind us of the wealth of titles produced by British Transport Films between 1949 and 1982.Snowdrift at Bleath Gill, East Anglian Holiday, Fully Fitted Freight (recently broadcast on Talking Pictures TV), Blue Pullman, Operation London Bridge….. there’s no shortage of titles when we next have to arrange a meeting at short notice!
Our thanks to Edward for stepping into the breach and entertaining us - and, as ever, to Andy Wright for making it happen on the screen.
Yes, you’re right: ‘Film Night’ didn’t appear in our Working Timetable event listings, for the very good reason that it was a last-minute arrangement put in place to cover the absence of our planned speaker.
The evening should have seen us addressed by Les Bird, Traincrew Development Director for MTR Corporation (Crossrail) Limited. Les would have updated us on the Class 345 Bombardier ‘Aventra’ units which are coming into operation on London’s new Elizabeth Line (Crossrail). Unfortunately Les has been seriously ill, and so Edward Mann pulled a couple of rabbits out of the hat in the shape of two very different films.
Jimmy Perry, co-creator of Dad’s Army, has written that the trio of Captain Mainwaring, Corporal Jones and Private Pike was inspired by watching Oh, Mr Porter! (1937). For those who’ve not seen it, the plot centres on William Porter (Will Hay), an inept railway worker whose pushy relative gets him promoted to stationmaster at the remote and ramshackle station of Buggleskelly, on the fictional Southern Railway of Northern Ireland and close to the border with the then Irish Free State.
Porter's staff consists of the elderly Harbottle (Moore Marriott) and an insolent young porter, Albert (Graham Moffatt). Stationmaster Porter tries to rejuvenate the station in several ways, including halting the passing express much to its guard’s displeasure, and organising an excursion to Connemara. He unwittingly agrees to transport a group of gun-runners - but then their train disappears, and Porter gets the sack. To make amends he puts Gladstone, the station’s shunting loco, in steam so that he, Harbottle and Albert can set off down a long-forgotten branch to look for the missing train. As suspected, the train and criminals have gone to ground inside a tunnel. After some fisticuffs and a hair-raising escape on windmaill sails, the Buggleskelly trio manage to couple Gladstone to the carriages containing the gun-runners and haul them away from the border at full speed, burning everything they can find to keep the loco going. Once the authorities have been alerted to their plight, the entire railway system goes into action, with lines closed and other trains re-routed. Finally the train crashes into a siding where police are waiting to arrest the gun-runners. Poor old Gladstoneexplodes after its hectic journey, whereupon Porter, Harbottle and Albert lower their hats in respect.
The film credits assistance from both the LNER and the Southern Railway. The former appears only in the opening sequence, where Porter, then a lowly wheeltapper, causes havoc at the naming ceremony for an A4 Pacific. The other outdoor scenes were filmed on the SR. Buggleskelly station was Cliddesden, a wayside stop on the Basingstoke – Alton Light Railway where passenger services had ceased five years earlier. The valiant Gladstone was in reality Northiam, one of two Hawthorn, Leslie 0-4-2Ts delivered to the Rother Valley Rly (forerunner of the K&ESR) in 1899 and used on various Colonel Stephens’ lines until being scrapped with her sister in 1941. The express which Porter stops is hauled by a SR 4-6-0; in a close-up of the loco’s cabside the oval Southern Railway worksplate appears, with ‘of Northern Ireland’ neatly added underneath. The final high-speed romp was filmed – and obviously speeded up – on the Southern between Southampton and Waterloo.
The evening’s second feature was quite different - and, at just 6½ minutes, a lot shorter. Overture One-Two-Five, the last complete production to be shot on 35mm film by British Transport Films, was made in 1978 to mark the introduction of Inter-City 125 HST services between Paddington and Bristol. Scenes on the production line were followed by views, on board the train, from the lineside and the air, all designed to showcase a new age of comfortable high-speed travel. There was no commentary, just a musical sound track, specially composed by David Gow.
Overture One-Two-Five served to remind us of the wealth of titles produced by British Transport Films between 1949 and 1982.Snowdrift at Bleath Gill, East Anglian Holiday, Fully Fitted Freight (recently broadcast on Talking Pictures TV), Blue Pullman, Operation London Bridge….. there’s no shortage of titles when we next have to arrange a meeting at short notice!
Our thanks to Edward for stepping into the breach and entertaining us - and, as ever, to Andy Wright for making it happen on the screen.
“The Greater Anglia Franchise” – Chris Mitchell & “A View of Community Rail Partnerships” – David Pearce (16th November)
Chris began by reminding us that Abellio had been awarded the GA franchise for 13 years on a 9 year + 2 year + 2 year basis. He then produced a familiar-looking map which is produced bi-monthly and which shows all the franchisees/train operating companies. There are 25 franchises and 2 concessions, the latter being the Elizabeth Line and the DLR/London Orbital routes. Private sector funding will amount to £20Bn over 20 years, of which 72% is foreign money – 21 of the franchises are foreign-owned.
Moving on to Abellio-specific matters, they prefer new trains to refurbished ones, which will mean the eventual phasing-out of the 153s & 156s. It is overseeing £3Bn worth of new trains for Scotrail, West Midlands and GA. Its local priorities include the Ely North resignalling, re-doubling between Ely and Soham, the replacement of Trowse swingbridge with a double fixed-link and 3 trains per hour between Norwich & Liverpool St. A new traincare depot is under construction at Brantham on the north side of the R. Stour, which will maintain the Class 745s used on the Norwich – London, Stansted – London and regional services. We saw a mock-up of the cab of a 745, where the driver sits centrally, as well as the passenger seating arrangements.
For his sins, Chris is Secretary of the Wherry Lines Community Rail Partnership (CRP). He said the infrastructure was “long in the tooth” with e.g. semaphore signalling and labour-intensive level-crossings in need of replacement. Work has begun with remodelling at Yarmouth, followed by remodelling at Lowestoft, then Reedham Junc through to completion in Spring 2019. Brundall will also be extensively remodelled. The investment will total some £68M.
Thanks to Chris for bringing us up to date.
After the break, it was the turn of David Pearce to expound on CRPs which, in a sort of way, could be traced back to the Titfield Thunderbolt (1952) when a community was prepared to run a local service. Greater Anglia has a vested interest in CRPs as the DfT has laid down a number of principles – increasing revenue, increasing community involvement, and supporting social and economic development.
David – with 2 others – became a “Station Adopter” at Gunton in the early 2000s, being attracted by a friend who told him that he would get a free pass to travel on the Bittern Line! Initially he didn’t do much, the station building on the opposite platform being in private hands, until he reported the absence of a litter bin on “his” platform. Slowly things began to happen – the station’s “Direction of Travel” sign received much-needed cleaning, for example. It was all about bringing some T.L.C. to unstaffed stations. The GA area boasts some 130 adopters at 80 stations, but station adoption is different from CRPs, who have a wider brief.
There are 2 CRPs in Norfolk (Bittern & Wherry) but there could be more – e.g. Heart of Norfolk (Norwich – Ely) although some stations on this line already have adopters. Whilst the main supporter of CRPs is GA there are some strange bedfellows – local bus companies, CAMRA, RSPB and the Broads Authority.
David said the Bittern line had been a CRP since 1997, but he was unaware of the work of CRPs until about 5 years ago. Unsurprisingly they have been formed into an Association which meets to exchange ideas etc. Figures show that 3,200 community rail volunteers give over 250,000 hours’ support which has been costed @ £3.4M. Where there is a CRP it has been shown to give 2.8% additional growth over non-CRP lines.
Thanks to David for lifting the lid on station adoption and CRPs, and to Andy Wright for operating the projector.
Chris began by reminding us that Abellio had been awarded the GA franchise for 13 years on a 9 year + 2 year + 2 year basis. He then produced a familiar-looking map which is produced bi-monthly and which shows all the franchisees/train operating companies. There are 25 franchises and 2 concessions, the latter being the Elizabeth Line and the DLR/London Orbital routes. Private sector funding will amount to £20Bn over 20 years, of which 72% is foreign money – 21 of the franchises are foreign-owned.
Moving on to Abellio-specific matters, they prefer new trains to refurbished ones, which will mean the eventual phasing-out of the 153s & 156s. It is overseeing £3Bn worth of new trains for Scotrail, West Midlands and GA. Its local priorities include the Ely North resignalling, re-doubling between Ely and Soham, the replacement of Trowse swingbridge with a double fixed-link and 3 trains per hour between Norwich & Liverpool St. A new traincare depot is under construction at Brantham on the north side of the R. Stour, which will maintain the Class 745s used on the Norwich – London, Stansted – London and regional services. We saw a mock-up of the cab of a 745, where the driver sits centrally, as well as the passenger seating arrangements.
For his sins, Chris is Secretary of the Wherry Lines Community Rail Partnership (CRP). He said the infrastructure was “long in the tooth” with e.g. semaphore signalling and labour-intensive level-crossings in need of replacement. Work has begun with remodelling at Yarmouth, followed by remodelling at Lowestoft, then Reedham Junc through to completion in Spring 2019. Brundall will also be extensively remodelled. The investment will total some £68M.
Thanks to Chris for bringing us up to date.
After the break, it was the turn of David Pearce to expound on CRPs which, in a sort of way, could be traced back to the Titfield Thunderbolt (1952) when a community was prepared to run a local service. Greater Anglia has a vested interest in CRPs as the DfT has laid down a number of principles – increasing revenue, increasing community involvement, and supporting social and economic development.
David – with 2 others – became a “Station Adopter” at Gunton in the early 2000s, being attracted by a friend who told him that he would get a free pass to travel on the Bittern Line! Initially he didn’t do much, the station building on the opposite platform being in private hands, until he reported the absence of a litter bin on “his” platform. Slowly things began to happen – the station’s “Direction of Travel” sign received much-needed cleaning, for example. It was all about bringing some T.L.C. to unstaffed stations. The GA area boasts some 130 adopters at 80 stations, but station adoption is different from CRPs, who have a wider brief.
There are 2 CRPs in Norfolk (Bittern & Wherry) but there could be more – e.g. Heart of Norfolk (Norwich – Ely) although some stations on this line already have adopters. Whilst the main supporter of CRPs is GA there are some strange bedfellows – local bus companies, CAMRA, RSPB and the Broads Authority.
David said the Bittern line had been a CRP since 1997, but he was unaware of the work of CRPs until about 5 years ago. Unsurprisingly they have been formed into an Association which meets to exchange ideas etc. Figures show that 3,200 community rail volunteers give over 250,000 hours’ support which has been costed @ £3.4M. Where there is a CRP it has been shown to give 2.8% additional growth over non-CRP lines.
Thanks to David for lifting the lid on station adoption and CRPs, and to Andy Wright for operating the projector.
“East – West Rail” – Patrick O’Sullivan* (2nd November)
Without Chris Mitchell’s industry contacts we would be scratching our heads to bring you a speaker on this important subject. As it was, Patrick had a long drive to reach us (and another long drive home) and we were grateful that he was able to begin his presentation punctually. His EWR association began in 2006 after being involved with the re-opening of the Airdrie – Bathgate line, and the building of lines overseas.
We soon learned that the Cambridge – Oxford line (closed at both ends from 1st January 1968) had a chequered beginning – it was authorised by an Act of 1846, and the Engineer was the eminent Robert Stephenson. What emerged at an early stage was that the original Act could not be relied upon for the reconstruction of the line because (inter alia) it had actually been constructed outside the permitted “limits of deviation” at a significant point, perhaps to appease the local nobility. The reconstruction proposal has also generated a plethora of reports, studies etc and will continue to do so!
Patrick made some telling historical points: Beeching recommended its retention but the line closed some 5 years later because it was incurring losses of £80,000 p.a. and that there were too many wayside stations. He could probably have added that the timetable was “customer-unfriendly”.
A full funding package was agreed in 2012, and the EWR Consortium includes numerous local authorities. The railway is divided into 3 sections – Western, Central and Eastern, although the Eastern section, beginning at Cambridge, would use mainly existing railway.
The Western section’s financial estimates are startling: £135M increase to GDP in the South-East annually; £62M additional tax receipts annually; £2.13 BN+ national Gross Value Added impact over 30 years of which £978M would be local GVA impacts. It also has the advantage of serving most north-south routes, will avoid travel into and out of London, and relieve pressure on the road network. Bicester is likely to double in size and deliver many new jobs.
So far as the physical railway is concerned, Chiltern Railways already run services from Oxford, via Bicester Village to Marylebone. Bicester Village to Claydon is freight-only; Claydon to Bletchley is “mothballed” and Bletchley to Bedford has never closed. As well as Chiltern’s Oxford – Bicester Village service, this section is effectively ready for EWR services.
The next step will be to obtain a Transport & Works Order with work planned to begin in 2019. It is expected that new services will start in 2022 – Bedford – Bletchley – Bicester Village – Oxford – Reading (1 train each way per hour taking just over an hour). The existing Marston Vale services (Bedford – Bletchley) are unlikely to be revised. Also due to start in 2022 is a Milton Keynes – Bletchley – Bicester – Oxford – Reading service (1 train each way per hour taking just over 40 minutes), with an hourly Milton Keynes – Bletchley – Aylesbury – High Wycombe – Marylebone service starting in 2024 and taking just over half-an-hour.
HS2, which has now received the necessary Parliamentary approval, will pass beneath EWR near Steeple Claydon. Certain re-alignments have been authorised and a construction depot (later an infrastructure maintenance depot) is planned nearby. HS2 will also pass beneath the Aylesbury – Princes Risborough branch at Little Kimble.
On the Central section, which is Bedford – Cambridge, EWR and NR are working together to establish the best routes out of Bedford, around Sandy (ECML) and on to Cambridge as some of the trackbed has been lost to housing and other developments. There was a possibility that the route might head south to Luton and then north again, but this has been rejected because of its impact on journey times.
The final route is planned to open in 2031!
A lively Q & A session followed, and we learned that the Bletchley Flyover is in poor condition. There was consensus that the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre will remain
.
The Chairman thanked Patrick for coming to talk to us, and he is prepared to give a “progress report” to us in some 2 years’ time. Thanks to Andy Wright for operating the projector and to Chris Mitchell for his help.
* Patrick O’Sullivan is EWR Consortium Rail Consultant.
Without Chris Mitchell’s industry contacts we would be scratching our heads to bring you a speaker on this important subject. As it was, Patrick had a long drive to reach us (and another long drive home) and we were grateful that he was able to begin his presentation punctually. His EWR association began in 2006 after being involved with the re-opening of the Airdrie – Bathgate line, and the building of lines overseas.
We soon learned that the Cambridge – Oxford line (closed at both ends from 1st January 1968) had a chequered beginning – it was authorised by an Act of 1846, and the Engineer was the eminent Robert Stephenson. What emerged at an early stage was that the original Act could not be relied upon for the reconstruction of the line because (inter alia) it had actually been constructed outside the permitted “limits of deviation” at a significant point, perhaps to appease the local nobility. The reconstruction proposal has also generated a plethora of reports, studies etc and will continue to do so!
Patrick made some telling historical points: Beeching recommended its retention but the line closed some 5 years later because it was incurring losses of £80,000 p.a. and that there were too many wayside stations. He could probably have added that the timetable was “customer-unfriendly”.
A full funding package was agreed in 2012, and the EWR Consortium includes numerous local authorities. The railway is divided into 3 sections – Western, Central and Eastern, although the Eastern section, beginning at Cambridge, would use mainly existing railway.
The Western section’s financial estimates are startling: £135M increase to GDP in the South-East annually; £62M additional tax receipts annually; £2.13 BN+ national Gross Value Added impact over 30 years of which £978M would be local GVA impacts. It also has the advantage of serving most north-south routes, will avoid travel into and out of London, and relieve pressure on the road network. Bicester is likely to double in size and deliver many new jobs.
So far as the physical railway is concerned, Chiltern Railways already run services from Oxford, via Bicester Village to Marylebone. Bicester Village to Claydon is freight-only; Claydon to Bletchley is “mothballed” and Bletchley to Bedford has never closed. As well as Chiltern’s Oxford – Bicester Village service, this section is effectively ready for EWR services.
The next step will be to obtain a Transport & Works Order with work planned to begin in 2019. It is expected that new services will start in 2022 – Bedford – Bletchley – Bicester Village – Oxford – Reading (1 train each way per hour taking just over an hour). The existing Marston Vale services (Bedford – Bletchley) are unlikely to be revised. Also due to start in 2022 is a Milton Keynes – Bletchley – Bicester – Oxford – Reading service (1 train each way per hour taking just over 40 minutes), with an hourly Milton Keynes – Bletchley – Aylesbury – High Wycombe – Marylebone service starting in 2024 and taking just over half-an-hour.
HS2, which has now received the necessary Parliamentary approval, will pass beneath EWR near Steeple Claydon. Certain re-alignments have been authorised and a construction depot (later an infrastructure maintenance depot) is planned nearby. HS2 will also pass beneath the Aylesbury – Princes Risborough branch at Little Kimble.
On the Central section, which is Bedford – Cambridge, EWR and NR are working together to establish the best routes out of Bedford, around Sandy (ECML) and on to Cambridge as some of the trackbed has been lost to housing and other developments. There was a possibility that the route might head south to Luton and then north again, but this has been rejected because of its impact on journey times.
The final route is planned to open in 2031!
A lively Q & A session followed, and we learned that the Bletchley Flyover is in poor condition. There was consensus that the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre will remain
.
The Chairman thanked Patrick for coming to talk to us, and he is prepared to give a “progress report” to us in some 2 years’ time. Thanks to Andy Wright for operating the projector and to Chris Mitchell for his help.
* Patrick O’Sullivan is EWR Consortium Rail Consultant.
“1996 – A Momentary Lapse in Motion” – David Pearce (19th October)
With any of David’s presentations two things can be taken as given – imagination and an eye for an image. He began by announcing that the refreshment break would be at the end of June (i.e. halfway through the show).
It appeared that David’s late father collected philatelic first-day covers which David posted as soon as they were issued and David used these to introduce the different months of 1996. He had also collated news items and – to the astonishment of the old fogeys on the front row – regaled us with contemporary #1 singles and popular albums. Let’s just say country music and jazz was conspicuously absent!
I will not dwell on the news items, save that the well-known artist Terence Cuneo passed away on 5th January. The North Walsham tanks featured most months, often due to David’s work patterns, but we also saw the fledgling MNR when it was running services between Rash’s Green and Yaxham. We were also to see several views of the remains of Broadwater Viaduct between Parham and Framlingham and the Leiston nuclear flask workings.
There was a brief cold snap at the end of January, when Class 37s were engaged on relaying in the Wroxham area. Images of Rugby in the February snow were followed by one of Castlethorpe showing the old water tower that supplied the adjacent water-troughs.
In the March we saw the old Res depot at Cambridge and 70000 Britannia at Attleborough, plus Felixstowe FLT. April was particularly interesting with a Class 60 at Trowse (David was able to wander freely then) and a Eurostar set at Eastfield, Peterborough, during its time on ECML services. Other doors to open for David gave him the chance to to visit Reedham swingbridge and box. He got to Eastleigh to see a “Merchant Navy” on a VSOE Pullman set. May gave him the chance to ride to Nottingham in the cab of a Class 158, and he also made forays to Ais Gill and Dent Head.
June was a month without a first day cover, but he went to County School, not much changed today, and the G.E. celebrations which saw Britannia working between Bury St Edmunds & Ipswich. For July, we saw some of the early Freightmaster volumes. David also captured the mid-evening mail train which used to run from Norwich, the North Walsham tanks, a trackless Dereham station, Felixstowe Beach & North, much changed today, and the B12 “brewing up” at Weybourne. “Johnny Foreigner” even crept in with visits to the large marshalling yards at Le Mans and Tours, not forgetting the bucolic charm of Cognac station.
An August visit to family friends in Cantabria (Northern Spain) enabled trips to be made to see dmus at Llanes, freight at Unquera and more marshalling yards at Bordeaux and Limoges. September saw David at Loughborough for events to mark the 30th anniversary of the G.C. closure, with a Class 44 prominent. Little-known places also visited included Frodsham, Cheadle Hulme and Northenden (waste disposal). The NNR Gala was naturally “snapped”, and on a visit to Crown Point he found the “Inter City Cleaners Cage” (it remains a mystery). He also visited the SVR Gala and had a cab ride to London in an 86.
October yielded a visit to Evesham, once the site of two adjacent stations, and also to the Bluebell where 3442 The Great Marquess was seen at Kingscote. As November was first day cover-free David resorted to that month’s railway magazines – was it 8? December was significant – apart from a visit to remote Blotoft on the GN/GE “Joint” between Sleaford & Spalding, David became a father for the first time on the 13th. After a fortnight learning how to change nappies he ventured as far as Reedham & Cantley.
Thanks to David for his excellent show, to Andy Wright for operating the projector, and to Suzy, David’s long-suffering wife, for permitting so many diversions and excursions.
With any of David’s presentations two things can be taken as given – imagination and an eye for an image. He began by announcing that the refreshment break would be at the end of June (i.e. halfway through the show).
It appeared that David’s late father collected philatelic first-day covers which David posted as soon as they were issued and David used these to introduce the different months of 1996. He had also collated news items and – to the astonishment of the old fogeys on the front row – regaled us with contemporary #1 singles and popular albums. Let’s just say country music and jazz was conspicuously absent!
I will not dwell on the news items, save that the well-known artist Terence Cuneo passed away on 5th January. The North Walsham tanks featured most months, often due to David’s work patterns, but we also saw the fledgling MNR when it was running services between Rash’s Green and Yaxham. We were also to see several views of the remains of Broadwater Viaduct between Parham and Framlingham and the Leiston nuclear flask workings.
There was a brief cold snap at the end of January, when Class 37s were engaged on relaying in the Wroxham area. Images of Rugby in the February snow were followed by one of Castlethorpe showing the old water tower that supplied the adjacent water-troughs.
In the March we saw the old Res depot at Cambridge and 70000 Britannia at Attleborough, plus Felixstowe FLT. April was particularly interesting with a Class 60 at Trowse (David was able to wander freely then) and a Eurostar set at Eastfield, Peterborough, during its time on ECML services. Other doors to open for David gave him the chance to to visit Reedham swingbridge and box. He got to Eastleigh to see a “Merchant Navy” on a VSOE Pullman set. May gave him the chance to ride to Nottingham in the cab of a Class 158, and he also made forays to Ais Gill and Dent Head.
June was a month without a first day cover, but he went to County School, not much changed today, and the G.E. celebrations which saw Britannia working between Bury St Edmunds & Ipswich. For July, we saw some of the early Freightmaster volumes. David also captured the mid-evening mail train which used to run from Norwich, the North Walsham tanks, a trackless Dereham station, Felixstowe Beach & North, much changed today, and the B12 “brewing up” at Weybourne. “Johnny Foreigner” even crept in with visits to the large marshalling yards at Le Mans and Tours, not forgetting the bucolic charm of Cognac station.
An August visit to family friends in Cantabria (Northern Spain) enabled trips to be made to see dmus at Llanes, freight at Unquera and more marshalling yards at Bordeaux and Limoges. September saw David at Loughborough for events to mark the 30th anniversary of the G.C. closure, with a Class 44 prominent. Little-known places also visited included Frodsham, Cheadle Hulme and Northenden (waste disposal). The NNR Gala was naturally “snapped”, and on a visit to Crown Point he found the “Inter City Cleaners Cage” (it remains a mystery). He also visited the SVR Gala and had a cab ride to London in an 86.
October yielded a visit to Evesham, once the site of two adjacent stations, and also to the Bluebell where 3442 The Great Marquess was seen at Kingscote. As November was first day cover-free David resorted to that month’s railway magazines – was it 8? December was significant – apart from a visit to remote Blotoft on the GN/GE “Joint” between Sleaford & Spalding, David became a father for the first time on the 13th. After a fortnight learning how to change nappies he ventured as far as Reedham & Cantley.
Thanks to David for his excellent show, to Andy Wright for operating the projector, and to Suzy, David’s long-suffering wife, for permitting so many diversions and excursions.
“The Great Northern Railway – Not Just Stirling Singles (3rd and Final Part)” - Allan Sibley (5th October)
Allan’s presentation was divided into 3 parts, and he began by looking at the Denison family. Edmund Denison (1787-1874) was the railway’s Vice-Chairman & later its Chairman. A no-nonsense Yorkshireman, he got the G.N. built in the face of strong opposition from both George Hudson (Midland) & Mark Huish (LNWR) because it would abstract their traffic. It is interesting that King’s Cross was built for less than the cost of the Euston Arch! As was customary then, the father’s name passed down the line to the son, who was known as E.B. Denison (1816-1905). He was a Q.C., as well as a noted architect and horologist (he designed the “Big Ben” clock and the one at King’s Cross station), as well as two churches in Doncaster. He also paid for the rebuilding of part of St Alban’s Cathedral, where the statue of St Matthew has E.B. Denison’s face!
Allan next turned his attention to Farringdon station, which opened in 1863 as the terminus of the original Metropolitan Railway as trains were not allowed into the City of London (they were later extended to Moorgate). He showed various engravings and numerous views of the station, which was very complex underground. It went through various name changes but, although the passenger station was Metropolitan, Farringdon Street Goods was G.N. It will be recalled that suburban services went underground (at King’s Cross) via York Road and came up via the Hotel Curve. [Looking back at my Summer 1962 Timetable, for example, there were through trains from Dunstable/Luton Bute St to King’s Cross and peak-hour services from the outer London suburbs calling at York Road, KX (Met), Farringdon & Aldersgate to Moorgate – Ed.] As stated, Farringdon St Goods was G.N. and in its heyday 26 goods trains ran in/out – it was close to the important meat and vegetable markets. It was badly bombed during WW2, and final closure came as late as 1956. Again it clung on, used by NCP for car parking, until demolished in 1988. However, in the words of the Bachman-Turner Overdrive song: “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet” – when the Elizabeth Line opens late next year there will be connecting services north, south, east and west from Farringdon’s brand-new station.
Finally, Allan turned his attention to the North London Railway and its connections to the G.N. and others, running some 14 miles from Poplar Docks to Broad Street. It was surprising that the N.L.R. had running rights over the G.N. to Peterborough and Cambridge, though these were never exercised. In the Poplar area, all sorts of running rights existed to enable the G.W., G.N., L.N.W.R. & Midland to reach their respective yards and depots, the G.N. having their goods depot at Royal Mint Street and their coal depot adjacent to Poplar Dock. Allan showed some excellent images from official N.L.R. glass slides which would be hard to better today. In 1903 there was a proposal to electrify the G.N. suburban system. Dick Kerr & Co carried out a feasibility study, but the scheme was dropped after N.L.R. objections. If N.L.R. 4-4-0Ts at the southern end of the G.N. main line hauling 2 sets of 4-wheel carriages looked antiquated even by the 1920s it was surprising to see both “Jinties” and Stanier 2-6-2Ts on North London services from Broad St to Potters Bar. There was an elegant station at Canonbury (on the Broad St – Richmond route) but this has since been reduced to “basic” form; from here the G.N. main line could be joined at Finsbury Park. Allan concluded with lines from John Betjeman’s “Thoughts on the Diary of a Nobody”, which is the only occasion the G.N. featured in a poem: And chuffs the Great Northern train/For Alexandra Palace bound!
Thanks, once again, to Allan for his excellent and varied presentation, and to Andy Wright for operating the projector.
Editor’s Note: If your eyes glaze over at the complexity of lines around Poplar, Joe Brown’s London Railway Atlas is probably the best for unravelling them, and anywhere else in London besides.
Allan’s presentation was divided into 3 parts, and he began by looking at the Denison family. Edmund Denison (1787-1874) was the railway’s Vice-Chairman & later its Chairman. A no-nonsense Yorkshireman, he got the G.N. built in the face of strong opposition from both George Hudson (Midland) & Mark Huish (LNWR) because it would abstract their traffic. It is interesting that King’s Cross was built for less than the cost of the Euston Arch! As was customary then, the father’s name passed down the line to the son, who was known as E.B. Denison (1816-1905). He was a Q.C., as well as a noted architect and horologist (he designed the “Big Ben” clock and the one at King’s Cross station), as well as two churches in Doncaster. He also paid for the rebuilding of part of St Alban’s Cathedral, where the statue of St Matthew has E.B. Denison’s face!
Allan next turned his attention to Farringdon station, which opened in 1863 as the terminus of the original Metropolitan Railway as trains were not allowed into the City of London (they were later extended to Moorgate). He showed various engravings and numerous views of the station, which was very complex underground. It went through various name changes but, although the passenger station was Metropolitan, Farringdon Street Goods was G.N. It will be recalled that suburban services went underground (at King’s Cross) via York Road and came up via the Hotel Curve. [Looking back at my Summer 1962 Timetable, for example, there were through trains from Dunstable/Luton Bute St to King’s Cross and peak-hour services from the outer London suburbs calling at York Road, KX (Met), Farringdon & Aldersgate to Moorgate – Ed.] As stated, Farringdon St Goods was G.N. and in its heyday 26 goods trains ran in/out – it was close to the important meat and vegetable markets. It was badly bombed during WW2, and final closure came as late as 1956. Again it clung on, used by NCP for car parking, until demolished in 1988. However, in the words of the Bachman-Turner Overdrive song: “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet” – when the Elizabeth Line opens late next year there will be connecting services north, south, east and west from Farringdon’s brand-new station.
Finally, Allan turned his attention to the North London Railway and its connections to the G.N. and others, running some 14 miles from Poplar Docks to Broad Street. It was surprising that the N.L.R. had running rights over the G.N. to Peterborough and Cambridge, though these were never exercised. In the Poplar area, all sorts of running rights existed to enable the G.W., G.N., L.N.W.R. & Midland to reach their respective yards and depots, the G.N. having their goods depot at Royal Mint Street and their coal depot adjacent to Poplar Dock. Allan showed some excellent images from official N.L.R. glass slides which would be hard to better today. In 1903 there was a proposal to electrify the G.N. suburban system. Dick Kerr & Co carried out a feasibility study, but the scheme was dropped after N.L.R. objections. If N.L.R. 4-4-0Ts at the southern end of the G.N. main line hauling 2 sets of 4-wheel carriages looked antiquated even by the 1920s it was surprising to see both “Jinties” and Stanier 2-6-2Ts on North London services from Broad St to Potters Bar. There was an elegant station at Canonbury (on the Broad St – Richmond route) but this has since been reduced to “basic” form; from here the G.N. main line could be joined at Finsbury Park. Allan concluded with lines from John Betjeman’s “Thoughts on the Diary of a Nobody”, which is the only occasion the G.N. featured in a poem: And chuffs the Great Northern train/For Alexandra Palace bound!
Thanks, once again, to Allan for his excellent and varied presentation, and to Andy Wright for operating the projector.
Editor’s Note: If your eyes glaze over at the complexity of lines around Poplar, Joe Brown’s London Railway Atlas is probably the best for unravelling them, and anywhere else in London besides.
Members’ Summer Reports – 21st September
A few loyal souls had brought disks or memory sticks to mark the traditional start to our autumn programme.
Ken Mills had been very busy, transferring many of his 1950s photographs to a disk, and for the traditionalists it was a joy to see so many old classes. Local shots naturally abounded and there were quite a few from Beccles. He also went west – to Penzance, and took in the Gunnislake branch and long-closed Plymouth Friary. Views of Wadebridge produced Pacifics and the 0298 class of well-tanks (30585-87), and to Gwinear Road, once junction for Helston. There were sobering views of Brent (for Kingsbridge) – everything has gone now, but then it was busy. The Brixham branch train at Churston and the “right-angled” Looe branch at Liskeard were added for good measure. The S. & D. was represented by one of its 2-8-0s and an ancient Midland 0-4-4T at Bath Green Park.
And then we moved to Northampton & Bedford, a “Jubilee” at Willesden and Stanier Pacifics at Camden. The Society had visited both Ipswich & Parkeston Quay where a Westinghouse-fitted J39 made an unusual sight.
Ken didn’t forget Scotland with V1s at Bridgeton Cross and Milngavie, C16s at Dundee, an older C15 on the Craigendoran – Arrochar push-pulls, and Forres and Inverness depots. The Isle of Man also featured – all its lines were still open then.
Some sombre sights were 04s awaiting their last call at Gorton, N5s at Agecroft and several Stanier 0-4-4Ts out of use at Buxton.
After the break, Brian Kirton tested your scribe’s knowledge with a detailed look at Buckinghamshire’s railways, beginning at Quainton Road which has acquired the station building from Oxford Rewley Road - HS2 will eventually pass nearby. Quainton Road was the junction for the Brill branch, and the “Mud” trains regularly run to the Calvert waste disposal complex. There will be a HS2 infrastructure depot just north of Calvert. The Bicester – Bletchley line ran just north of here, and is currently “mothballed”, but when Winslow station is reopened it will be in a different location. Some nice topiary was visible at Swanbourne, near Bletchley, and if advocates of the line as an East Coast ports – South Wales freight route in the 1950s had been successful there would have been a “white elephant” of a marshalling yard nearby (cf. Carlisle/Perth). Bedford – Bletchley retains its passenger service and at Ridgmont station there is a small heritage museum.
It was good to have a contribution from the well-travelled Malcolm Wright, who began with the various types of tram that could be seen in Delft. He also visited the NNR’s Diesel Gala, where “Peaks” were prominent, along with the L.T.-liveried Class 20 and the Class 101 d.m.u. We also saw 60009 Union of South Africa on the MNR. The next venue was the South Devon Railway, and several HSTs and Voyagers were seen at Totnes, before G.W. locos were noted on the adjacent heritage line. The sole surviving broad-gauge locomotive - Tiny - is in the museum at Buckfastleigh after a long spell on display at Newton Abbot station, whilst Newton Abbot’s G.W.R./Town Museum was also visited. Finally, we saw something of the Spa Valley Railway (Eridge – Tunbridge Wells West), including a very odd-liveried Class 31.
Mike Handscomb had sold some of the late Bernard Harrison’s black & white slides, although the prices obtained were disappointing (first-generation diesels fared better). These included a D16 at Heacham on the last day of the Wells branch, Cromer Links Halt on its last day, and Mundesley, complete with camping coaches. The rebuilding of Melton Constable’s turntable, a Thetford – Swaffham branch train, an F5 at Norwich, and an N7 at Thorpe-le-Soken were other local items. Further afield, a gas-turbine near Paddington, and shots of Barking’s rebuilding were interesting. He concluded with a 1959 view of a Class 26 (a Hornsey one, presumably) coming off the Wensum Curve with a coast-bound special.
“More Summer Madness” was, inevitably, a David Pearce “short” and it was full of interest. He was on hand when 2 x 08s were delivered to replace withdrawn counterparts from Crown Point. We saw Classes 37 & 68 at Lowestoft, and the impressive results from his Panoramic Smartphone. Trips to France had produced images of a nondescript Dieppe but more interesting images of the better-used stations at Nice Airport and Cannes. It came as no great surprise that David and his wife were fans of the Impressionist movement, and that they had visited Monet’s garden at Giverny, west of Paris. Back home, he had been to Warrington, to Hale (just beyond the Manchester Metrolink) and to the Churnet Valley Railway. Visits to the NNR had produced 92203 Black Prince and the S. & D. 2-8-0 in tandem and the two Y7s on the Mid-Suffolk. He concluded with some excellent views of Railmotor 93 on the MNR.
Thanks to all of our contributors, and to Andy Wright for operating the projector.
A few loyal souls had brought disks or memory sticks to mark the traditional start to our autumn programme.
Ken Mills had been very busy, transferring many of his 1950s photographs to a disk, and for the traditionalists it was a joy to see so many old classes. Local shots naturally abounded and there were quite a few from Beccles. He also went west – to Penzance, and took in the Gunnislake branch and long-closed Plymouth Friary. Views of Wadebridge produced Pacifics and the 0298 class of well-tanks (30585-87), and to Gwinear Road, once junction for Helston. There were sobering views of Brent (for Kingsbridge) – everything has gone now, but then it was busy. The Brixham branch train at Churston and the “right-angled” Looe branch at Liskeard were added for good measure. The S. & D. was represented by one of its 2-8-0s and an ancient Midland 0-4-4T at Bath Green Park.
And then we moved to Northampton & Bedford, a “Jubilee” at Willesden and Stanier Pacifics at Camden. The Society had visited both Ipswich & Parkeston Quay where a Westinghouse-fitted J39 made an unusual sight.
Ken didn’t forget Scotland with V1s at Bridgeton Cross and Milngavie, C16s at Dundee, an older C15 on the Craigendoran – Arrochar push-pulls, and Forres and Inverness depots. The Isle of Man also featured – all its lines were still open then.
Some sombre sights were 04s awaiting their last call at Gorton, N5s at Agecroft and several Stanier 0-4-4Ts out of use at Buxton.
After the break, Brian Kirton tested your scribe’s knowledge with a detailed look at Buckinghamshire’s railways, beginning at Quainton Road which has acquired the station building from Oxford Rewley Road - HS2 will eventually pass nearby. Quainton Road was the junction for the Brill branch, and the “Mud” trains regularly run to the Calvert waste disposal complex. There will be a HS2 infrastructure depot just north of Calvert. The Bicester – Bletchley line ran just north of here, and is currently “mothballed”, but when Winslow station is reopened it will be in a different location. Some nice topiary was visible at Swanbourne, near Bletchley, and if advocates of the line as an East Coast ports – South Wales freight route in the 1950s had been successful there would have been a “white elephant” of a marshalling yard nearby (cf. Carlisle/Perth). Bedford – Bletchley retains its passenger service and at Ridgmont station there is a small heritage museum.
It was good to have a contribution from the well-travelled Malcolm Wright, who began with the various types of tram that could be seen in Delft. He also visited the NNR’s Diesel Gala, where “Peaks” were prominent, along with the L.T.-liveried Class 20 and the Class 101 d.m.u. We also saw 60009 Union of South Africa on the MNR. The next venue was the South Devon Railway, and several HSTs and Voyagers were seen at Totnes, before G.W. locos were noted on the adjacent heritage line. The sole surviving broad-gauge locomotive - Tiny - is in the museum at Buckfastleigh after a long spell on display at Newton Abbot station, whilst Newton Abbot’s G.W.R./Town Museum was also visited. Finally, we saw something of the Spa Valley Railway (Eridge – Tunbridge Wells West), including a very odd-liveried Class 31.
Mike Handscomb had sold some of the late Bernard Harrison’s black & white slides, although the prices obtained were disappointing (first-generation diesels fared better). These included a D16 at Heacham on the last day of the Wells branch, Cromer Links Halt on its last day, and Mundesley, complete with camping coaches. The rebuilding of Melton Constable’s turntable, a Thetford – Swaffham branch train, an F5 at Norwich, and an N7 at Thorpe-le-Soken were other local items. Further afield, a gas-turbine near Paddington, and shots of Barking’s rebuilding were interesting. He concluded with a 1959 view of a Class 26 (a Hornsey one, presumably) coming off the Wensum Curve with a coast-bound special.
“More Summer Madness” was, inevitably, a David Pearce “short” and it was full of interest. He was on hand when 2 x 08s were delivered to replace withdrawn counterparts from Crown Point. We saw Classes 37 & 68 at Lowestoft, and the impressive results from his Panoramic Smartphone. Trips to France had produced images of a nondescript Dieppe but more interesting images of the better-used stations at Nice Airport and Cannes. It came as no great surprise that David and his wife were fans of the Impressionist movement, and that they had visited Monet’s garden at Giverny, west of Paris. Back home, he had been to Warrington, to Hale (just beyond the Manchester Metrolink) and to the Churnet Valley Railway. Visits to the NNR had produced 92203 Black Prince and the S. & D. 2-8-0 in tandem and the two Y7s on the Mid-Suffolk. He concluded with some excellent views of Railmotor 93 on the MNR.
Thanks to all of our contributors, and to Andy Wright for operating the projector.