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CONSIDERABLE interest was aroused by the account I published last week of my late father’s 1961 rail travels in Wales so, for what will hopefully prove to be one of my final lockdown retrospectives, this is a look through his lens at steam action in Gloucestershire during the early 1960s.

As in Wales, closures across the county began well before Dr Beeching published his infamous report in March 1963, with the routes to Kingham and Andover Junction having already succumbed by the time The reshaping of British Railways was released, as seen in the chronological list below of lost railway routes and stations. Continue reading “Gloucestershire steam in the 1960s”

During this week 59 years ago my late father, Trefor David, embarked on a remarkable week-long tour of Wales from his home near Cheltenham Spa, using a Freedom of Wales ticket that cost him £5 and an Area 9 Runabout ticket, giving unlimited travel between Cheltenham, Newport and Hereford, for 25/- (£1.25).

Just as I have done on more recent rail travels around the UK and Europe, he kept a written record and a photo album of his journeys, most of which were by steam, and covering many routes that would very soon succumb to closure.

In transcribing his diary and scanning some of his photos it is interesting to see how many of the lines he travelled closed well before the infamous Beeching Report was published in March 1963, with the last day of the previous year (31 December 1962) looking like a particularly bleak day for the Principality’s railway network. Continue reading “Freedom of Wales in June 1961”

EXACTLY one year ago today (Saturday, 1 June 2019) the era of mainline HST operation across the West of England drew to a final close, with a special farewell tour of the GWR network by a set formed of power cars 43002/198, the former having been repainted in its original British Rail blue and white livery.

Having long ago become fascinated by a train that literally transformed the fortunes of British Rail in the 1970s, I decided to briefly witness this final run at delightful Moreton-in-Marsh, a place I had also visited just two weeks previously to witness the last day of scheduled HST operation on the GWR network. Continue reading “HST swansong at Moreton-in-Marsh”

After last week’s look at mechanical signalling on the Buxton Line and at Peak Forest, it is now time to hop aboard the Hope Valley stopping service from Manchester Piccadilly to Sheffield take a look at three of the four semaphore-signalled locations on this busy, charming, and scenic route.

Our first stop on this 29 July 2017 visit comes just half an hour after leaving Piccadilly aboard a Class 142-worked stopping service at New Mills Central. From here to New Mills South Junction is a brisk 25-minute walk, with fine views over the valley to Furness Vale, barely a mile away (and featured in part 1). Continue reading “Buxton & Hope Valley semaphores: part 2”

After last month’s features on semaphore signalling along the wonderful Furness and Cumbrian Coast Lines, it is now time to take a trip to another significant outpost of mechanical signalling in North-West England, with a two-part look at the Buxton and Hope Valley lines.

For those unfamiliar with this corner of England, there is some dramatic scenery and old industrial towns to appreciate, with a fairly regular flow of passenger traffic along the Hope Valley route, substantial leisure patronage of the Buxton line and the remarkable oft-photographed quarry backdrop at Peak Forest. Continue reading “Buxton & Hope Valley semaphores: part 1”

Shortly before 21.00 hrs. on Friday, 19 May 2017, a piece of railway history was made when the two 1960-vintage Class 121 “Bubble Cars” that had been in service with Chiltern Railways completed their last ever run from Princes Risborough to Aylesbury.

Paying my respects to the 57 year-old machines on Thursday, 11 May 2017, just eight days before the end, there were already a good number of enthusiast passengers travelling the 7½-mile branch line, on a day when services were in the hands of BR green-liveried W55034 (121034), seen above awaiting departure from Aylesbury. Continue reading “May 2017 and the Bubble Cars bow out”

Among the many memorable outings I had while researching my signalling book during 2017, one of the most enjoyable was a day spent visiting four semaphore-signalled locations along the delightful Tyne Valley line between Carlisle and Newcastle.

Highlights for me of that day (19 June 2017) were seeing the two remarkable and Grade II Listed over-line signal boxes at Hexham and Wylam, visiting a remote station whose signal box had been routinely “switched out” for decades (since closed), and the kind invitation from a lady signaller into one of Britain’s oldest working signal boxes. Continue reading “Semaphores in the Tyne Valley”