Innehållsförteckning för September 2021 från Steam World

I started my induction course in the first week of January 1957 and, to be honest, cannot remember much about it other than that I was offered a job in the Chief Commercial Manager’s office at Waterloo – but politely declined as I wanted more experience of the day-to-day railway. By this time, my now wife, Sally, had become important in my life. We first met on Maundy Thursday 1952 when our respective aunts, who lived in Woking and had been firm friends for years, took us to London for the day, a trip on the river and a visit to a West End show and that sort of thing. It was a surprise for me when on my first late turn at Beckenham Junction she turned up with a…

Evidence of the impending move away from steam was everywhere by 1960. Diesel sets had actually appeared as long ago as 1958 on local workings in West Hampshire, although by 1967 diesel would fall victim to all-conquering electric, just as much as steam. At Winchester, platforms were lengthened at the south end in 1965 in preparation for electrification. At Bournemouth, the two centre roads were not needed for electric services, so were removed. As a Down ‘Bournemouth Belle’ raced past Millbrook (Southampton) on April 21 1966, the third-rail was ready to be installed and by June the conductor rails were in place at Sway (New Forest). Rebuilt Bulleid ‘Battle of Britain’ locomotives such as No. 34071 (formerly 601 Squadron) could still be seen at London Waterloo in 1966, having brought…

The British Empire Exhibition of 1924 became the focal point of one of the most important stories in British steam locomotive development. The exhibition itself was organised to galvanise the Empire in the wake of the Great War as Britain’s standing on the world stage was starting to be threatened by rising powers, such as the USA and Japan. But it’s taken on a greater significance for railway enthusiasts because, with LNER ‘A1’ 4-6-2 No. 4472 Flying Scotsman displayed next to GWR ‘Castle’ 4-6-0 No. 4073 Caerphilly Castle, fierce debate arose over which one deserved the title of ‘most powerful’. The result, as we all know, was a series of trials in 1925 where the puny looking ‘Castle’ emerged victorious and Gresley would go on to incorporate many Great Western…

The LNER’s 62nd ‘B17’ 4-6-0 was delivered from the company’s own Darlington workshops at the end of June 1936. This was the final locomotive of the sixth batch of ‘B17s’; it was numbered 2861 and named Sheffield Wednesday, continuing the policy of naming these engines after prominent football clubs. The first ten had come from North British Locomotive Company of Glasgow at the end of 1928, followed by five more batches from Darlington works. The seventh and final batch of 11 locomotives was ordered from Robert Stephenson & Co - also of Darlington - in February 1936. These final locomotives varied from the previous batch by virtue of having steam brakes for the engine and tender, whereas batch six had vacuum brakes for both engine and train. Nevertheless, they were…

Being born in 1944 of a railway family living in Eastleigh, close enough while lying in bed at night to hear goods trains (not ‘freight’ in those far-off days!) chuffing through, no doubt inspired my interest in railways. My first train journey – except I have no memory of it – was being taken as a babe-in-arms by my mother to Stoke-on-Trent to visit relatives. School started in September 1949 at one of the oldest in the town and still gas-lit! Main line trains were just visible from the gate, but there was a driveway across the road which was much better, though strictly out of bounds. I cannot actually remember it but my parents recalled going to London Zoo and hiring a push-chair on a very hot Easter, probably…

send your letters to Steam World, 4 Milnyard Square, Orton South gate, Peterborough PE2 6GX or steamworld@choicemag.co.uk Focus on Bridlington Further to my recent communication on Bridlington, I can add another interesting survivor from the steam age. Platform 1 at Bridlington was demolished in 1961 and yet a small remnant remains visible to this day! The southern end of the platform, beyond Station Road bridge, still remains and at this time of year is virtually covered by vegetation. Attached is a photograph that I took in November 2014, showing not only the surviving remnant and edging slabs, but also a concrete lamp column and the tube lighting with the name ‘Bridlington’ still clearly visible after 60 years! Behind the brick wall were the original coal drops, since demolished to make…

So says Old Dan, in The Titfield Thunderbolt, after the line’s regular ‘14XX’ 0-4-2TNo. 1401, and Wisbech & Upwell carriage, have been wrecked by the rival bus operators. He and co-conspirator Mr. Valentine (played by Stanley Holloway) set out to steal a replacement. Filmed at Oxford shed using No. 1462, the replacement locomotive comes to grief with a large tree on its unorthodox way to Titfield. The filming, in 1951, with No. 1401 still in careworn GWR livery with its initials painted out, used a model built by W.J. Bassett-Lowke of Northampton for the crash scene. The stolen No. 1462 breaks out of its depot through a hoarding after a turntable mishap, and begins a road journey through the town of Woodstock in Oxfordshire. A remarkably convincing ‘14XX’ was built…

Slough might not have been my home town but until I moved to Northamptonshire in 1992, for the first 45 years of my life, home was never far from Slough, so I got to know the station area quite well, though sadly not in steam days. However, most of the steam era infrastructure was still extant until the motive power depot was replaced by a car park and housing. Much as I like John Betjeman’s work, particularly in relation to railways, I have long found his invitation to bomb Slough singularly distasteful. Maybe he didn’t really know the place other than by reputation.…