Likewise dear friendsWhat a great weekend talking to all you young trainspotters. May your books never run out
Always good to air the memories to all good friends...as you say....most enjoyable...stay safe allWhat a great weekend talking to all you young trainspotters. May your books never run out
And......One of those kids could have been..............Les Ross....... but then he'd be using his real name.... but often you'd never know names just like you say............we'd have to club together to buy a bottle of lemonade from the cafe !!! so each had a swig !!!!! couldn't do that today in the present scheme of things could we ha haI have no recollection of the cafe at all...didn't have money to spend, just a sandwich. I also recall meeting many of the same kids there, but again, I have no recollection of who they were, they may have been some of you lot!
Dave A
Mike, great shot of Tamworth Field! I think there was a mix of those that went by train and by bike. I went mostly by bike to save the money for something else. Did go by train a few times for the excitement!Chatting to an old friend Barrie Geens of Kings Heath Book fame.... and who has been a friend for ages going back to a time we both have to whisper dates ...ha ha..... both working at the same company and also cycling ventures...it came to light he'd cycled to Tamworth in very early days from his Kings Heath home, whilst I used the train..the easy way !! from out of his photo archive came two photos........one of train spotters in the field and one of the ex turbomotive 46202 Princess Anne later to end it's life in the Harrow Wealdstone crash...... Barrie kindly gave me permission to allow others to see his old Kodak Brownie photos that appeared also in Steam World many years back.... Barrie still involved still in his Stem interest is still putting his time when possible on the Severn Valley, and also appearing in an old film as a policeman in the Robert Powell film of 'The 39 Steps' shot on SVR quite a few years back !!! But thanks to Barrie Geens....here as follows are photos he took in the very early 1950's at Tamworth.
I thanked Barrie very much for allowing me to use his photos..... thank goodness someone like him took such photos, I had some great times in that field and not always good weather...my cycle cape was a good rain shield some days but it didn't deter us did it ?????Mike, great shot of Tamworth Field! I think there was a mix of those that went by train and by bike. I went mostly by bike to save the money for something else. Did go by train a few times for the excitement!
Thank you Barrie for your photos.
No for sure!I thanked Barrie very much for allowing me to use his photos..... thank goodness someone like him took such photos, I had some great times in that field and not always good weather...my cycle cape was a good rain shield some days but it didn't deter us did it ?????
Welcome to the Forum Rogsaddler.....this is a wonderful place with great folks and a plethora of useful information!Hi everyone. I trust that you will permit a Blackcountryman (now exiled in Devon) a few moments of personal nostalgia.
I visited the WCML many times between 1957 and 1962, but living in Walsall, Lichfield, a few miles further down the line was easier to get to than Tamworth. Very occasionally I went to Rugeley. All records lost so for years I have been searching for anything that would give me an idea of what I would have seen on my first day. Incredibly, Vic has provided me with something very close. Thank you Vic. My first visit was 3rd August 1957 and after many fruitless years of searching, Vic has given me not one, but two logs within a month of that date! At least I now have some idea of the mix of classes that I would have seen. It would be incredible if someone out there has a log taken anywhere between Nuneaton and Rugeley on the actual date.
The date also coincided with the World Scout Jamboree being held in Sutton Park and which attracted many extra trains from around the country. A lot of those from the north were routed through my back yard (not quite literally) at Ryecroft Junction. Although I have seen some notes of locos that worked through. I wonder if someone somewhere has more details. Most of my waking hours were spent at Ryecroft and my fondest memory is of 70045 Lord Rowallan coming on to the shed to be serviced, having brought a trainload of dignitaries to Sutton Park for the official opening.
Welcome Rogsaddler....always good to see old spotters around....... and all the memories we are so very lucky to have.....though did we at that time realise just how lucky we were ???Welcome to the Forum Rogsaddler.....this is a wonderful place with great folks and a plethora of useful information!
Enjoy!
Yes welcome indeed! to a very diversified and wonderful group of people (that I've never met) Trainspotting was very representative of our age group and defined our love of motive power. For me, it was foremost in my ability to travel around the UK. Everywhere I went was tied to trainspotting...BHF is a wonderful place to share our fond memories of steam and the satisfaction that came with the copp!Welcome Rogsaddler....always good to see old spotters around....... and all the memories we are so very lucky to have.....though did we at that time realise just how lucky we were ???
Chris, that is a wonderful piece of history and GREAT train spotting!This might be relevant to Tamworth or to Trent Valley, Lichfield (where there was a similar field) – or to both.
On the 27th July 1936 my nearly-14 year old brother did two things: he biked to the West Coast main line and saw wonderful sights; and, probably on the same evening after he had got home, he started his trainspotting record. (No Ian Allan booklets then). This book was maintained and added to for some time thereafter. I have just been looking at it.
There are pages in this book which make you green with envy. Amongst them are the "Famous Expresses" which he saw on various dates in that same summer and also the following year. This is how he recorded them (but unfortunately without telling us exactly what was hauling them):
View attachment 157408
The July 1937 clocking of Coronation Scot almost certainly coincides with a short clip of cine film which I still have, taken by him at the time, having borrowed his father's cine camera.
Also in the booklet is his tally of Princess class locomotives – 12 out of the 13 possible. (No. 6203 was presumably unnamed. It was a prototype which, later on, was rebuilt, named Princess Anne and almost certainly didn't survive the Harrow and Wealdstone disaster). It seems he only missed out on 6207, Princess Arthur of Connaught.
View attachment 157407
On another page are the first Coronations he saw - their construction had only recently started.
What a sight and sound these things must have been, in their LMS livery, pounding along the main line at top speed , northward and southward!
Chris
(Source: JRCM family archive)
Belated agreement that these two photographs are great both to see and to discuss; certainly, photographs of 46202 after its rebuilding and being named "Princess Anne", are scarce indeed.Chatting to an old friend Barrie Geens of Kings Heath Book fame.... and who has been a friend for ages going back to a time we both have to whisper dates ...ha ha..... both working at the same company and also cycling ventures...it came to light he'd cycled to Tamworth in very early days from his Kings Heath home, whilst I used the train..the easy way !! from out of his photo archive came two photos........one of train spotters in the field and one of the ex turbomotive 46202 Princess Anne later to end it's life in the Harrow Wealdstone crash...... Barrie kindly gave me permission to allow others to see his old Kodak Brownie photos that appeared also in Steam World many years back.... Barrie still involved still in his Steam interest is still putting his time when possible on the Severn Valley, and also appearing in an old film as a policeman in the Robert Powell film of 'The 39 Steps' shot on SVR quite a few years back !!! But thanks to Barrie Geens....here as follows are photos he took in the very early 1950's at Tamworth.
Brilliant....started his own Ian Allan spotting ref....how about that ????Chris, that is a wonderful piece of history and GREAT train spotting!
A couple of brilliant photos. The first one of 46202 must rank as one of the few pics taken of it in action. Such a pitifully short life for a potentially very intriguing loco. Outshopped in August 1952 (I think) and smashed up on October 8th 1952. It was a hybrid, being a Princess boiler atop a Duchess chassis and cylinders, but still with Princess driving wheels. The result was the UK pacific with the highest tractive effort at 41535 lb. Such a shame it didn't survive longer so that we could have seen how it performed.Chatting to an old friend Barrie Geens of Kings Heath Book fame.... and who has been a friend for ages going back to a time we both have to whisper dates ...ha ha..... both working at the same company and also cycling ventures...it came to light he'd cycled to Tamworth in very early days from his Kings Heath home, whilst I used the train..the easy way !! from out of his photo archive came two photos........one of train spotters in the field and one of the ex turbomotive 46202 Princess Anne later to end it's life in the Harrow Wealdstone crash...... Barrie kindly gave me permission to allow others to see his old Kodak Brownie photos that appeared also in Steam World many years back.... Barrie still involved still in his Steam interest is still putting his time when possible on the Severn Valley, and also appearing in an old film as a policeman in the Robert Powell film of 'The 39 Steps' shot on SVR quite a few years back !!! But thanks to Barrie Geens....here as follows are photos he took in the very early 1950's at Tamworth.
Ken, glad you got your priorities in orderI gave up train spotting when I left school aged 15. 44 hours a week on a building site was a bit too much. I also discovered girls which I found to be far more attractive that trains.
I understand entirely; I too discovered girls, beer and cars (not necessarily in that order), but it wasn't just that that turned me away from railways (at least for a while!) It was the dieselisation that really depressed me.I gave up train spotting when I left school aged 15. 44 hours a week on a building site was a bit too much. I also discovered girls which I found to be far more attractive that trains.
And those were the real locos! The smell of the steam, smoke and all that shaking!I understand entirely; I too discovered girls, beer and cars (not necessarily in that order), but it wasn't just that that turned me away from railways (at least for a while!) It was the dieselisation that really depressed me.
I was spotting on Nuneaton station in mid 1959 and I was waiting with bated breath for a Duchess on the down "Royal Scot" at about 11.30 or so, when what should come into view but this 'orrible green box numbered D200 & something. AAARGH! However, things got better as the relief to the Royal Scot came through about 10 minutes later with a Duchess in charge. I'll never forget how the platform shook as it thundered through at 70-80 mph.