The Night Mail

[PhilJ W]

3 minutes ago, jamie92208 said:

I also concur, I was once a regular operator on Hungerford.  Was bei g the the operative word after I sunpbstituted Turbo motive for a King on the Ocean Liner Express,  it was at the AGM of the Green  engine study group.  I couldn't see a problem. 

 

Jamie

How did you escape the lynch mob?

[Tony_S]

This video was recommended to me for some reason.

 

[jamie92208]

1 hour ago, PhilJ W said:

How did you escape the lynch mob?

I smiled sweetly at them and used my Inate charm.

 

The back story is that most of my fellow operators were scared to run the fiddle yard and the fiddle yard operator selected which trains went out.  I had the Em gauge Turbo motive in my bag and swapped it at an opportune moment when a lot of retired drivers from St Phillips Marsh were sitting on chairs along the front. As the cuckoo emerged their Jaws all dropped as the loco passed them.  One of them said,  "What's that". I replied, "It's what Stanier would have built if he'd stayed at Swindon".. I thought it was hilarious. 

 

Jamie

[iL Dottore]

4 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

I can concur with this statement.

 

I would also point out that any claims that if it's not Midland Railway, it doesn't count is simply not true.

 

The honourable gentleman has, in the past, produced rather sublime kits of locomotives originating from the Great Western Railway, so he cannot possibly be a biased and miserable old bigot.

 

And that was a paid-for political announcement sponsored by the Dave Hunt “be red or be dead” election campaign..

[Happy Hippo]

4 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

And that was a paid-for political announcement sponsored by the Dave Hunt “be red or be dead” election campaign..

I put money on you writing something like that with Paddypower.

 

Kerrching!

[Adam88]

On 27/06/2024 at 11:53, Dave Hunt said:

We once stayed at an hotel in Madeira where they had a 90 something year old Galapagos tortoise in the grounds. He was called Columbo and was about three feet in diameter, or maybe even a bit more. He could spot a carrot from fifty paces and his rate of progress towards it was remarkable.

 

Dave

 

Two of our tortoises were called Twiss and Bannister, a third was Peggotty because it looked rather like an upside-down boat.

[Adam88]

On 25/06/2024 at 07:15, iL Dottore said:

P.S. it has just occurred to me that the UK TOCs - never adverse to trousering large wodges of dosh - have never created specific timetabled “luxury” services  (like the TEE did or the Matterhorn Gotthard Express or Glacier Express in Switzerland today - both rather profitable and prestigious).
 

A dedicated two- or three-car EMU, luxuriously appointed (perhaps an all First Class service?), with business amenities (e.g. WiFi), an included top-notch lunch and a non-stop service (London Edinburgh, London-Manchester) could be a winner, especially given that now to fly from A to B in the UK is both tedious and time consuming.
 

A good service, aimed at the business market (where cost is a secondary issue), with fairly priced tickets would attract the environmentally conscious business traveller. And with suitable timings could provide a reliable city centre to city centre service with only marginally longer travel times than going by plane (as is the case of travelling from Basel to Paris by air or by TGV)

 

Of course, there is the teeny tiny matter of a) getting the unions to buy in; b) choosing a suitable EMU to serve as the starting point for a customised train-set; and c) getting the DfT to agree to the modifications of both train-set and service (I’m not sure which of the three would be the major stumbling block).

 

What EMU would you use as a basis of a such a service?

 

 

 

Not quite the Glacier Express, but one company seems to be trying.

[iL Dottore]

1 hour ago, Happy Hippo said:

I put money on you writing something like that with Paddypower.

 

Kerrching!

Always happy to help out the impecunious….

[Dave Hunt]

2 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

And that was a paid-for political announcement sponsored by the Dave Hunt “be red or be dead” election campaign..

 

You're behind the times Flavio, that was my last campaign slogan. Today's is, "Go Scaleseven - the only way to heaven."

 

Dave 

[iL Dottore]

8 minutes ago, Dave Hunt said:

 

You're behind the times Flavio, that was my last campaign slogan. Today's is, "Go Scaleseven - the only way to heaven."

 

Dave 

A splinter group!!!

[Hroth]

4 hours ago, Tony_S said:

This video was recommended to me for some reason.

 

 

Terrifying!

 

I preferred the town before the Telfs took over...

 

 

[polybear]

18 minutes ago, Hroth said:

 

Terrifying!

 

I preferred the town before the Telfs took over...

 

 

Is any of that left or has it all been flattened?

[Tony_S]

1 hour ago, polybear said:

Is any of that left or has it all been flattened?

Google Maps shows a few places from that film including

[Dave Hunt]

2 hours ago, polybear said:

......has it all been flattened?

 

Only the bits that HH has visited.

 

Dave

[J. S. Bach]

Night Owl from the Piedmont.

[jjb1970]

It has pained me to observe the sorry state of affairs at home, and the dire state of British politics. I have therefore decided to offer my services to lead a government of national unity, to restore faith in politics and to make Britain great again.

 

Clearly, at a time like this, and as a government of national unity my focus will be on non-controversial, pragmatic and measured policies which will bring the country together. My first act will be a law to strengthen democracy, democracy is the bed rock of the country and must be protected. In all future elections ballot papers will be inspected before being put in the ballot box to ensure only sensible votes are counted. Foolish individuals abusing their sacred right to vote and squandering our most precious resource - freedom - will be sent to labour camps where they can reflect on their crimes and hopefully recognize their sinful behaviour and repent. Remember, freedom is precious, and as such a precious thing it must be respected and rationed.

 

My second act will be to address the political failures of the establishment which has led me to having to waste time saving Britain at a time when, frankly, I have better things to do. So all MPs still alive will be held to account and receive the punishment they deserve for their failures. I want to make absolutely clear, for avoidance of doubt and counter to vicious lies being promulgated by my enemies, that I do not propose shooting them all. There is a cheaper alternative involving a bit of rope which is quieter and won't annoy any passers by with lots of noise.

 

Thirdly, we must root out the aberrant behaviours and more malaise which has afflicted our great country. Anyone modelling in OO, using RTR models or with an interest in LNER will be shot. After much reflection, and in an act of generosity and magnanimous spirit for which I am known those modelling EM will be sent to labour camps where they will be allowed to prove they have repented their evil crimes and recognize that only P4 provides a path to true enlightenment and may be released after a reasonable period, say 10 or 20 years.

 

Finally on the economy, we must restore state finances to a sustainable footing and improve productivity. The first step will be to privatize the NHS, followed by tax reforms to introduce progressive taxation where those earning more pay less, to incentivize hard work and reward those who pull their fingers out and make an effort in life.

 

To help in this noble task my dear friend Kim Jong Un has kindly agreed to send over 100,000 technical advisers wanting nothing more in return than that we let him base a few missiles in Kent. He's a splendid chap, salt of the earth. The sooner I can start the sooner we can save Britain. That said I am getting increasingly annoyed by nuisance calls from some woman called Ursula begging me to help somewhere called the European Union (no, I've never heard of it either) too, intolerable woman.

[Flying Fox 34F]

Point of Order,

 

Remember, in public all political parties slag each other off and MP’s shout at each other in Parliament, but they all retire to the Commons bar to enjoy a drink together!

 

Paul

[AndyID]

2 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

It has pained me to observe the sorry state of affairs at home, and the dire state of British politics. I have therefore decided to offer my services to lead a government of national unity, to restore faith in politics and to make Britain great again.

 

Clearly, at a time like this, and as a government of national unity my focus will be on non-controversial, pragmatic and measured policies which will bring the country together. My first act will be a law to strengthen democracy, democracy is the bed rock of the country and must be protected. In all future elections ballot papers will be inspected before being put in the ballot box to ensure only sensible votes are counted. Foolish individuals abusing their sacred right to vote and squandering our most precious resource - freedom - will be sent to labour camps where they can reflect on their crimes and hopefully recognize their sinful behaviour and repent. Remember, freedom is precious, and as such a precious thing it must be respected and rationed.

 

My second act will be to address the political failures of the establishment which has led me to having to waste time saving Britain at a time when, frankly, I have better things to do. So all MPs still alive will be held to account and receive the punishment they deserve for their failures. I want to make absolutely clear, for avoidance of doubt and counter to vicious lies being promulgated by my enemies, that I do not propose shooting them all. There is a cheaper alternative involving a bit of rope which is quieter and won't annoy any passers by with lots of noise.

 

Thirdly, we must root out the aberrant behaviours and more malaise which has afflicted our great country. Anyone modelling in OO, using RTR models or with an interest in LNER will be shot. After much reflection, and in an act of generosity and magnanimous spirit for which I am known those modelling EM will be sent to labour camps where they will be allowed to prove they have repented their evil crimes and recognize that only P4 provides a path to true enlightenment and may be released after a reasonable period, say 10 or 20 years.

 

Finally on the economy, we must restore state finances to a sustainable footing and improve productivity. The first step will be to privatize the NHS, followed by tax reforms to introduce progressive taxation where those earning more pay less, to incentivize hard work and reward those who pull their fingers out and make an effort in life.

 

To help in this noble task my dear friend Kim Jong Un has kindly agreed to send over 100,000 technical advisers wanting nothing more in return than that we let him base a few missiles in Kent. He's a splendid chap, salt of the earth. The sooner I can start the sooner we can save Britain. That said I am getting increasingly annoyed by nuisance calls from some woman called Ursula begging me to help somewhere called the European Union (no, I've never heard of it either) too, intolerable woman.

 

I'm happy to be your second-in-command for a mere million quid a year (tax-free of course.) I should also point out that as a former Boy Scout I'm pretty handy with rope. In fact on many occasions people have suggested I get knotted.

[Northroader]

Local bus driver from Dawley was Walter Hart, so as kids:

”Walter Hart’s bin ‘ad up”

”what’s e dun?”

”E dropped a woman by the Cock”

 

[Hroth]

3 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

It has pained me to observe the sorry state of affairs at home, and the dire state of British politics. I have therefore decided to offer my services to lead a government of national unity, to restore faith in politics and to make Britain great again.

 

Clearly, at a time like this, and as a government of national unity my focus will be on non-controversial, pragmatic and measured policies which will bring the country together. My first act will be a law to strengthen democracy, democracy is the bed rock of the country and must be protected. In all future elections ballot papers will be inspected before being put in the ballot box to ensure only sensible votes are counted. Foolish individuals abusing their sacred right to vote and squandering our most precious resource - freedom - will be sent to labour camps where they can reflect on their crimes and hopefully recognize their sinful behaviour and repent. Remember, freedom is precious, and as such a precious thing it must be respected and rationed.

 

My second act will be to address the political failures of the establishment which has led me to having to waste time saving Britain at a time when, frankly, I have better things to do. So all MPs still alive will be held to account and receive the punishment they deserve for their failures. I want to make absolutely clear, for avoidance of doubt and counter to vicious lies being promulgated by my enemies, that I do not propose shooting them all. There is a cheaper alternative involving a bit of rope which is quieter and won't annoy any passers by with lots of noise.

 

Thirdly, we must root out the aberrant behaviours and more malaise which has afflicted our great country. Anyone modelling in OO, using RTR models or with an interest in LNER will be shot. After much reflection, and in an act of generosity and magnanimous spirit for which I am known those modelling EM will be sent to labour camps where they will be allowed to prove they have repented their evil crimes and recognize that only P4 provides a path to true enlightenment and may be released after a reasonable period, say 10 or 20 years.

 

Finally on the economy, we must restore state finances to a sustainable footing and improve productivity. The first step will be to privatize the NHS, followed by tax reforms to introduce progressive taxation where those earning more pay less, to incentivize hard work and reward those who pull their fingers out and make an effort in life.

 

To help in this noble task my dear friend Kim Jong Un has kindly agreed to send over 100,000 technical advisers wanting nothing more in return than that we let him base a few missiles in Kent. He's a splendid chap, salt of the earth. The sooner I can start the sooner we can save Britain. That said I am getting increasingly annoyed by nuisance calls from some woman called Ursula begging me to help somewhere called the European Union (no, I've never heard of it either) too, intolerable woman.

 

Good lord!  The cure is worse than the disease!

 

You'd better be in-country by Wednesday....

 

[iL Dottore]

This is SO typical of fringe politicians!

 

You start off with being sensible….

4 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

Clearly, at a time like this, and as a government of national unity my focus will be on non-controversial, pragmatic and measured policies which will bring the country together. My first act will be a law to strengthen democracy, democracy is the bed rock of the country and must be protected. In all future elections ballot papers will be inspected before being put in the ballot box to ensure only sensible votes are counted. Foolish individuals abusing their sacred right to vote and squandering our most precious resource - freedom - will be sent to labour camps where they can reflect on their crimes and hopefully recognize their sinful behaviour and repent. Remember, freedom is precious, and as such a precious thing it must be respected and rationed.

 

My second act will be to address the political failures of the establishment which has led me to having to waste time saving Britain at a time when, frankly, I have better things to do. So all MPs still alive will be held to account and receive the punishment they deserve for their failures. I want to make absolutely clear, for avoidance of doubt and counter to vicious lies being promulgated by my enemies, that I do not propose shooting them all. There is a cheaper alternative involving a bit of rope which is quieter and won't annoy any passers by with lots of noise.

 

Then you rapidly descend into the perverse abyss of ideological purity….

4 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

Thirdly, we must root out the aberrant behaviours and more malaise which has afflicted our great country. Anyone modelling in OO, using RTR models or with an interest in LNER will be shot. After much reflection, and in an act of generosity and magnanimous spirit for which I am known those modelling EM will be sent to labour camps where they will be allowed to prove they have repented their evil crimes and recognize that only P4 provides a path to true enlightenment and may be released after a reasonable period, say 10 or 20 years.

Before going completely off the rails and go barrelling into a fantasy world of delusion, wishful thinking, absurdity and twisted surrealism….

4 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

To help in this noble task my dear friend Kim Jong Un has kindly agreed to send over 100,000 technical advisers wanting nothing more in return than that we let him base a few missiles in Kent. He's a splendid chap, salt of the earth. The sooner I can start the sooner we can save Britain.

Anyone with even a minimal connection to the real world, knows that Kim Jong Un is about as useful as a chocolate teapot when it comes to European affairs. No, the only sane and sensible option would be to allow that nice Mr Putin to place his ICBMs in Wales and Scotland (purely for ceremonial purposes, of course) And his orange friend, as next US president, will be happy with this as well.

 

And then, finally, there is a return to sanity….

4 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

That said I am getting increasingly annoyed by nuisance calls from some woman called Ursula begging me to help somewhere called the European Union (no, I've never heard of it either) too, intolerable woman.

At least parts of your manifesto has a grasp on reality; although, and let’s be honest here, the sensible bits of this manifesto have been lifted - verbatim - from the manifesto of iD’s Conservative and Progressive National Independence Freedom, Justice and Reform People’s Liberation Alliance Party (which will be officially published once iD can be ***** to get out of the pub).

 

Edited June 29 by iL Dottore
Missing word

[Happy Hippo]

10 hours ago, Hroth said:

 

Terrifying!

 

I preferred the town before the Telfs took over...

 

 

In reality, none of the pictures are of Telford.

 

They are all of the small towns and villages that were subsumed into the new town

 

The Forest Glen, which is seen at the very beginning of the film was in the road that ran between the Ercall Woods and the Wrekin.

 

When it was demolished it was taken to Blists Hill and re erected in the lower part of the Victorian town.

 

 

There is also a fleeting glimpse of the  old Windmill at Hadley Castle, which is close to where I live.

 

All the surrounding houses have long since gone, but the windmill still survives as a residence.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Happy Hippo]

1 hour ago, Northroader said:

Local bus driver from Dawley was Walter Hart, so as kids:

”Walter Hart’s bin ‘ad up”

”what’s e dun?”

”E dropped a woman by the Cock”

 

I suppose it was nominally better than picking a man up from the same location.

[iL Dottore]

15 hours ago, Tony_S said:

This video was recommended to me for some reason.

 

Thanks to that most inspiring film clip, I shall now, and forever more, give Telford an extremely wide berth…

[Dave Hunt]

I would have thought that Captain Cynical could make good use of some of the knuckle draggers that infest Telfland. Not only would that provide him with cannon fodder but would benefit the rest of us who occasionally are forced to enter the Telfs’ environment by their absence.

 

Dave