Sherborne Christmas Carols
Brian Pibworth
Brian Pibworth
Please find attached a selection of pictures of the Railway Touring Company's "Sherborne Christmas Carols Excursion" from London Victoria to Yeovil Junction. The action pic is at Clare Cottage Bridge nr Stowell, Somerset between Templecombe and Sherborne at the top of the gradient. It is a frame capture from video so not up to usual standard and the rest just get worse as the light deteriorated to near darkness at 16.30, so I leave it to your good judgement to throw out the worst. The rest of the shots were taken at Yeovil Steam Centre where volunteers and crew fettled the loco, turned it on their turntable and shunted the loco back onto the train for return to London after picking up the passengers at Sherborne. Larger files if there is anything you like.
You will see that the last Yeovil Junction pic shows a green signal light. This heralded the arrival of my train back to Axminster and so I missed the final departure of 44871. It would have been too dark anyway for a moving shot but the images of fireman and driver in the firebox glow made it worthwhile. Very pleasant people at Yeovil Steam Centre and a chance to exchange fond memories of out late colleague, John Cornelius, who is much missed there.
With kind regards, Brian Pibworth. Many thanks Brian
You will see that the last Yeovil Junction pic shows a green signal light. This heralded the arrival of my train back to Axminster and so I missed the final departure of 44871. It would have been too dark anyway for a moving shot but the images of fireman and driver in the firebox glow made it worthwhile. Very pleasant people at Yeovil Steam Centre and a chance to exchange fond memories of out late colleague, John Cornelius, who is much missed there.
With kind regards, Brian Pibworth. Many thanks Brian
44871 The Sherborne Christmas Carols at Clare Cottage.11th December 2018 Copyright Brian Pibworth
At Yeovil Railway Centre. 44871 is turned 11th December 2018. Copyright Brian Pibworth.
44871 is turned at Yeovil Railway Centre 11th December 2018 Copyright Brian Pibworth
Under a swiftly darkening sky. 44871 ready to depart. 11th December 2018. Copyright Brian Pibworth
Concentration, radio in hand. 44871 Yeovil Railway Centre. 11th December 2018. Copyright Brian Pibworth.
A final shot of the 'Sherborne Christmas Carol' at Yeovil. It's 16.46 on the 11th December 2018. Copyright Brian Pibworth
THROUGH TRAINS AT ST IVES – 2:
THE CORNISH RIVIERA EXPRESS
Roy Hart
THE CORNISH RIVIERA EXPRESS
Roy Hart
The Saturday down ‘Cornish Riviera Express’ was a very different animal from its weekday counterpart. In the 1950s almost the whole train was given over to St Ives, with a small Falmouth portion detached at Truro. This train (14 coaches) departed Paddington (people didn’t need to be told that Paddington was in London then) at 10-30 am and after 1956 was made up entirely of chocolate and cream painted stock. A relief train, also of 14 coaches, left Paddington at 1035: 9 coaches for Penzance, five for Truro and Falmouth. The main (i.e. St Ives) Saturday ‘Limited’ was made up of:
BSK (3); SK (6); SO (dining) 1; K (1); FK (1); CK (1); BCK (1) (FK = first/corridor)
This heavy prestige train was advertised as being non-stop from Paddington to Truro, but in fact there was a stop at Newton Abbot for the King to come off and be replaced by a pair of ‘Halls’. Thus the train proceeded over the South Devon banks.
In the short space between Lipson Junction and Mutley tunnel lay Mannamead signal box. Opened in 1908 to break the incredibly busy section between Laira shed/Plymouth Friary/Laira Yard and North Road East box, Mannamead (6 levers) was said to be one of the busiest boxes in the division! Indeed, the signalman there only had enough headway to lower his down distant signal for one train a week –the down St Ives ‘Limited’ on Saturdays. This arose because, not stopping at North Road for engine change, the signalman would have ‘line clear’ way ahead as far as Devonport.
At Truro the pilot ‘Hall’ came off in order to work the rear section to Falmouth. The train engine proceeded to St Erth with the St Ives set.
At St Erth, with two trains heading west towards them, the signalman and shunters had to be ready to perform some fast footwork. First the 10 coaches for St Ives would arrive: it would promptly reverse over the western crossover and pause in the up main platform for the two 45XX to attach. The signalman then reversed the crossover points and almost immediately had to signal the Relief (Penzance) portion, in addition to obtaining ‘clear’ from St Ives and going down to issue the token to the St Ives ‘Limited’. Within 3 minutes of this operation, the relief for Penzance would come thundering through (if all was well).
The WTT for 1959 states that the empty stock from St Ives would be worked back direct to Ponsandane, but I can recall occasions when it served as a local to St Erth (presumably when things were not to plan).
The 1957 WTT shows a through evening train from St Ives to Par, 7 pm from St Ives. This train ran on weekday evenings and came as a through train from Penzance.
Many thanks indeed Roy
BSK (3); SK (6); SO (dining) 1; K (1); FK (1); CK (1); BCK (1) (FK = first/corridor)
This heavy prestige train was advertised as being non-stop from Paddington to Truro, but in fact there was a stop at Newton Abbot for the King to come off and be replaced by a pair of ‘Halls’. Thus the train proceeded over the South Devon banks.
In the short space between Lipson Junction and Mutley tunnel lay Mannamead signal box. Opened in 1908 to break the incredibly busy section between Laira shed/Plymouth Friary/Laira Yard and North Road East box, Mannamead (6 levers) was said to be one of the busiest boxes in the division! Indeed, the signalman there only had enough headway to lower his down distant signal for one train a week –the down St Ives ‘Limited’ on Saturdays. This arose because, not stopping at North Road for engine change, the signalman would have ‘line clear’ way ahead as far as Devonport.
At Truro the pilot ‘Hall’ came off in order to work the rear section to Falmouth. The train engine proceeded to St Erth with the St Ives set.
At St Erth, with two trains heading west towards them, the signalman and shunters had to be ready to perform some fast footwork. First the 10 coaches for St Ives would arrive: it would promptly reverse over the western crossover and pause in the up main platform for the two 45XX to attach. The signalman then reversed the crossover points and almost immediately had to signal the Relief (Penzance) portion, in addition to obtaining ‘clear’ from St Ives and going down to issue the token to the St Ives ‘Limited’. Within 3 minutes of this operation, the relief for Penzance would come thundering through (if all was well).
The WTT for 1959 states that the empty stock from St Ives would be worked back direct to Ponsandane, but I can recall occasions when it served as a local to St Erth (presumably when things were not to plan).
The 1957 WTT shows a through evening train from St Ives to Par, 7 pm from St Ives. This train ran on weekday evenings and came as a through train from Penzance.
Many thanks indeed Roy
Totnes 'Baby Warship' of The North British Locomotive Co
Geoffery Hurrell
Geoffery Hurrell
Totnes Baby Warship early 60's Copyright Geoff Hurrell
I have attached just one other (rather poor) photograph, that of a (North British) class 2 ‘Baby Warship’ acting, I presume, as Dainton banker. BR, in their wisdom, allowed the western region to build their stock of Class 22s as diesel hydraulics with MAN engines by the North British Locomotive in Glasgow. The North British Company built a similar loco as a considerably heavier diesel electric. Either way neither was successful and were poor substitutes for the tried and trust 5101/6100 steam locos. I managed to tick every single one of the two ‘Warship Class’ locos, but my heart always sank whenever our holiday train appeared thus powered rather than by a Castle or King. I can vividly recall seeing D805 'Benbow' bounce alarming over the facing points onto the up platform loop at Totnes. Oliver Nock said that the only time he was ever really frightened on the footplate of any locomotive was on a Warship! At that time everything was tested over the ferocious Devon Banks. Among the highlights I saw was the Brown-Boveri gas turbine loco (nicknamed Kerosene Castle by some wag). I say ‘saw’, but I was playing cricket on Coronation Park next to the station at the time and the first I heard was the extraordinary sound it made as the driver opened up for the climb up Rattery. I am also willing to swear an oath that I saw the first of the ‘Western’ class locos (D1000 Western Enterprise) in grey primer before it was given its original and short-lived desert sand livery – in my innocence I wrote ‘silver’ next to it in my Ian Allen combined volume. I wish I had taken more pictures and more notice of those events; memories can easily disappear without trace unless preserved by an organisation such as the Cornish Railway Society. I commend you for your continuing efforts. Kind regards. Geoff Hurrell. Copyright
Winnen's Westerns
Night at Penzance
Roger Winnen
Night at Penzance
Roger Winnen
D1070 Western Gaunlet at Penzance. A night time photo. 10th October 1976 Copyright Roger Winnen