Items added on the 6th November 2016 Those added most recently come first

A Visit to the South Devon Diesel Gala
Saturday 5th November, 2016
Roger Salter Andrew Triggs Ron Westwater and Roger Winnen

161105l Its autumn as D6975 Departs Buckfastleigh on the 12.45 to Totnes. Copyright Roger Salter

161105zm D7612 Approaches Hood Bridge on the 14.05 service from Buckfastleigh to Totnes. Copyright Andrew Triggs

161105u Double Headers on the 10.30 Buckfastleigh to Totnes D6975 & D7612 leave Staverton. Copyright Roger Winnen

161105zn D7612 Heads past Bishops Bridge Signal Box with the 14.50 Totnes to Buckfastleigh service on Sat 5th November. Copyright Ron Westwater

A further selection of photographs will appear in the features pages

Langport West
Janet Seaton

We are most grateful to Janet Seaton of the Langport and District History Group for providing this rare picture. If you take look at our section on the Taunton to Yeovil branch you will see that flooding of the line at this location was not uncommon. How modern locomotives would have coped with this level of water is another matter! Copyright

Can you help?
​ Nick Trudgian
​The answer is yes we can - Roy Hart,  Mike Roach and Lewis Slee reply.

​Dear Keith, I have photos of this trip, sadly they are in a loft in Cornwall and I am in Burma, but I can tell you a few things about the event. The stock (3 engines: 1363, 1466 and 6998) were on the Totnes Quay branch, which had closed. The GWS had leased Didcot shed, so Western Region permitted all but 1363, which was not up to it, to run as a train to their new home, carrying as many GWS members as wanted to go.The engines and stock ran down to Laira on the Friday for turning and servicing.The passenger stock consisted of W5952W- a Collett coach in good condition, Auto coach W231W and a dreadnought coach of 1910 with few internal fittings, which had been in departmental use at Newquay. It was quite a cavalcade. I got a ticket (2 quid I think it was!) and journeyed up from Redruth early in the day (a Saturday). Burton Agnes Hall was in the lead, with 1466 behind. We climbed Hemerdon in fine style and stopped for water at Totnes. After being cheered along the sea wall, the next water stop was Exeter, where water columns were still available at St Davids. I left the train at Westbury, where the stop was in the up loop, west of the station and made my way home to Cornwall via Bristol. The GWS special continued on the Berks and Hants and reached Didcot via Reading West Curve. GWS stock left in the Westcountry were engine 1363 and Hawksworth first W7372W. They formed the nucleus of a GWS preservation centre at Bodmin. 1363 was towed west to Bodmin, the move taking place at night , presumably because of the then-prevailing paranoia on BR about steam. I still have fond memories of travelling east on the main line in an auto coach, hauled by a 14XX and a 'Hall'. Not an experience I am likely to repeat. Roy Hart Burma (Myanmar).  Very many thanks indeed Roy for your very detailed account of this movement many years ago. Perhaps sometime when you return to the UK we can see your pictures, we sincerely hope so.  By the way, try looking up Myanmar on Google Earth, there are some fascinating pictures, none of the railway I regret.

Here is a picture taken by Mike Roach on the 2nd December 1967, but where was it taken? Copyright Mike Roach

Can you help Mike Roach with the location of the picture above please?
John Cornelius replies - Morning Keith, The pic of 6998 enroute to Didcot was taken at Taunton, In what is now the main up platform [old platform 7]. the white buildings seen centre left were the office block, which is still in situ and the roof canopy for former platforms 3 & 4 can be seen, as can a building at the top of the centre platform ramp,which was later demolished. Many thanks John

First hand experience - a letter from Lewis Slee  
Dear Keith,
I read with interest the article concerning Burton Agnes Hall and its subsequent move to Didcot along with the other items of the GWS society in 1967.  It brought back a memory for me as  whilst I was not fortunate enough to own a camera at the time, I actually got to have a close up tour of her at Laira.  A friend of mine at high school at the time was a chap by the name of Geoff Roberts and his father was a long time engine driver from Laira shed and also close colleague of my father, Ivor Slee who was a driver at Laira, Millbay and North Road.  My friends father arranged for us to visit Laira after school one afternoon for the purpose of giving us a look around the locomotive.

We arrived at Laira's main entrance on the Embankment Road and met his father who took us in to Laira depot and up on to the locomotive.  She was at this time not in steam and was parked up by the "Mullet pond".  We were able to clamber aboard and Geoff's dad took us around and explained the finer points of the loco to us.  He like my father being a steam man through and through and no doubt if you had cut them half they would have had GWR stamped all the way through!!  I don't recall seeing any of the other stock of the GWS there at the time but the memory I have is that it was a very cold, foggy day and getting a rocket from my Mum when I got home as I was covered in coal dust and grease. Not good for the school uniform.   I do have an old newspaper cutting from the Western Morning News of all of the convoy departing North Road Station on what appeared to be a very grey, drizzly morning.    I just wish I had the foresight to borrow my brother's camera and take some shots of the visit.
              Many thanks for a most interestung letter Lewis.




best wishes




Lew

Dawlish
John Cornelius

Copyright John Cornelius