The Night Mail

[br2975]

3 minutes ago, Winslow Boy said:

Just don't turn it upside down.

.

Agreed - hence I avoid anything pineapple related.

[jamie92208]

11 minutes ago, br2975 said:

.

The wife warns me about pineapples whenever we go on a cruise.

My late father worked in Nigeria and came home by ship on furlough.  He and some other bachelor friends used to buy a crate of fresh pineapples before boarding.  The fruit was so juicy they were only allowed to eat them leaning over the stern rail as they sailed to avoid staining the deck. 

 

Jamie

[Canal Digger]

Would you walk on your layout?

 

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1024022185834926

[Tony_S]

9 minutes ago, br2975 said:

.

Agreed - hence I avoid anything pineapple related.

I didn’t know about secret cruise codes. I don’t think I saw anything vaguely pineapple like on our recent cruise, even on the menu. It was to Iceland, perhaps they use a pickled sheep’s head instead of a tropical fruit?

[Tony_S]

12 minutes ago, Canal Digger said:

Would you walk on your layout?

 

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1024022185834926

I once drove (in a Renault Scenic ) over a baseboard I had constructed.. It was a ply and styrofoam constuction. No damage apart from a tyre tread pattern. I have made much less robust ones since, now that I no longer put the car in the garage. 

[Happy Hippo]

15 minutes ago, Canal Digger said:

Would you walk on your layout?

 

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1024022185834926

Walking on the old garden line was not a problem.  It would have been even less if I'd laid the 7.25" gauge track.

[Northmoor]

2 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

And whilst on the subject of unofficial nicknames for pubs: the infamous Brains Trust (made up of of assorted disreputable RMWeb types) now meets at a pub near Waterloo (London, not Belgium) called The Duke of Sussex. Inevitably it is now referred to by the GCOGs (Grumpy Curmudgeonly Old Gits) of the BT as The Ginger Whinger.

I seem to remember meeting at that pub was the end of a team-building exercise some years ago.  It was not a surprise that my manager had chosen a pub; 4pm on a Friday was beer o'clock as far as she was concerned.  These days I work at the other end of the street.

[bbishop]

Re pineapples. They have a bit of metal with a ring attached.  Don't pull.

[bbishop]

1 hour ago, jamie92208 said:

I was a naughty boy at the Broccante (Car Boot) today,  I bought a flatiron. 

 

No not a Midland 0-6-4T but this

A Joueff 12000,  I always liked them when I saw them. 

 

I then needed some change as I only had notes so had to go back and get  two coaches to go with it, they were only €4 each. 

One of the coaches even has lights in it that work.  Emily will love this when she comes next. 

 

Jamie

 

Emily wants the lights working in the other coach as well. 

[Happy Hippo]

Ah Pineapples....

 

 

4 minutes ago, bbishop said:

Re pineapples. They have a bit of metal with a ring attached.  Don't pull.

You can pull and hold it indefinitely should you wish, nothing will happen.

 

After a few minutes you get bored and throw it away, when the handle flies off is the time to duck.

[pH]

3 hours ago, AndyID said:

Ye gods! I was looking for angels share and I found this.

https://www.theglenlivet.com/en-us/articles/angels-share-meaning/

 

GMAFB!

Were you looking for the movie?

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Angels'_Share

 

It has some nice moments.

[br2975]

1 hour ago, Tony_S said:

I didn’t know about secret cruise codes. I don’t think I saw anything vaguely pineapple like on our recent cruise, even on the menu. It was to Iceland, perhaps they use a pickled sheep’s head instead of a tropical fruit?

.

Google is your friend..............or, with an upside down pineapple, on your next cruise, Google won't be your only 'friend'

[Oldddudders]

2 hours ago, jamie92208 said:

 

 

 

Is it having a bad-hair day, Jamie?

[figworthy]

9 hours ago, Oldddudders said:

There was a pub at the other end of Cranbook, near the station, called the Duke of Kent (or York or somewhere) which became known as the Duke of Death, due to less-than-optimum perceived hygiene standards. Nice. 

 

There used to be an Italian restaurant near here called Il somethingorother that was referred to in some quarters as Il Botulism for similar reasons.

 

Adrian

[Dave Hunt]

Well, that's the end of a good railway themed week. After two days on the Keighley & Worth Valley looking at the start of a bridge replacement at Howarth and some developments at Keighley and Oakworth we went up to Culgaith and had a few days looking at the Settle & Carlisle. Once back home I was joined by a railway modelling mate and we went yesterday to the Guildex at Stafford. As usual we didn't get to spend much time watching layouts as every few yards we bumped into friends and acquaintances and stopped for some serious gum bashing but despite looking in all the nooks and crannies didn't see Bill. I managed to spend a bit more of the kids' inheritance then spoilt it all by reversing the car into the corner of a stone wall and modifying the shape of the back end somewhat. Poo. So it's off to the garage and a phone call to the insurance company tomorrow.

 

Dave

[Tony_S]

33 minutes ago, br2975 said:

.

Google is your friend..............or, with an upside down pineapple, on your next cruise, Google won't be your only 'friend'

Our next booked cruise is to Norway in November 2025. Also not pineapple or flamingo (I did Google cruise codes) territory. 

[BSW01]

Goodnight everyone 

[PhilJ W]

[Happy Hippo]

13 minutes ago, PhilJ W said:

Crap design, no workshop!

[AndyID]

1 hour ago, figworthy said:

 

There used to be an Italian restaurant near here called Il somethingorother that was referred to in some quarters as Il Botulism for similar reasons.

 

Adrian

 

There's a "Texas Roadhouse" here but I have a habit of referring to it as "Texas Roadkill"

 

(It's actually quite good but very noisy.)

[PupCam]

Evening!

 

The ERs amongst us will be aware that I went for a little train ride yesterday which involved being an Early Riser.    Being on Hitchin station platform at 7:25am on a Saturday when you are retired is just plain cruel.  

However it was worth it as this was the train we caught.

 

 

Some were interested in photographs to show details but as they would mostly be of railway related objects there would have been risk to life and limb from low flying awls so I thought I'd post a few here instead.

 

 

On 07/09/2024 at 09:06, iL Dottore said:

If that's what I think it is, all I can say is...

 

You lucky, jammy b****r!

 

Not really it's what credit cards were invented for.

 

On 07/09/2024 at 09:06, iL Dottore said:

I hope you'll post some photos of the interior 

 

 

 

 

 

On 07/09/2024 at 10:30, southern42 said:

 

Booked for later in the year!

 

 

Fantastic!  We loved it, I hope you do too!

 

On 07/09/2024 at 10:32, Grizz said:

Wow @PupCam great photo. 
 

Erm if it is not too much trouble…. please could you get a few photos of the data panels / marking on the ends of the MK3 coaches. Strangely, only yesterday, I was asked to assist in gauge clearances for this particular HST set, and the first thing I need to know is if they have Long Swing Link (LSL) or Short Swing Link (SSL) bogies. The data on the ends of the coaches should show this. 
 

Many thanks. Have a great day. 
 

ATB Grizz

 

Sorry Grizz, I didn't see your post until I was reading ERs this morning otherwise I would have done so but sorry I can't help.   

 

Having said that I was talking to one of the stewards who said they've actually got four sets so it maybe that there's a mix? 🤔   You might need to hedge your bets and consider both cases.

 

Well, what can I say?   It was a fantastic experience and a great, if long and tiring, day out.     You can go either as just a first class passenger (with complementary refreshments; coffee/tea/biscuits and other things to nibble)  and free to bring as much or as little food and alcohol with you as you wish or for the full-scale dining experience where you are plied with what seemed likely to be an almost continuous round of posh nosh whilst seated in the train (~5 hours there, 5 hours back).   As we don't eat a huge amount of food normally we thought we'd not be able to do the posh nosh, dining experience anything like justice.   As the full-dining was an extra £200 EACH that would have made for an expensive day out (the fare was £198 +£25 each facing single seat supplement) which we cash-strapped pensioners baulked at 😉.  Sorry @iL Dottore!  Actually what would have been really good would be to say just have a really good, Pullman style dinner on the return journey for a slightly more modest supplement and we could then enjoy the Pullman dinning experience but wouldn't end up feeling completely pigged out by huge quantities of unnecessary food.    In the end we didn't eat any of the stuff we'd brought from home, had a couple of bacon rolls from the buffet as breakfast and ate perhaps a 1/3 of the nibbles provided and went out for a light lunch in Carlisle.   We didn't stave and didn't feel bloated.   This is the top layer of the Morning Nibbles box.   There was another one in the afternoon.

 

 

And as for the trip?    A marvellous run up the ECML picking up at various points up to Retford.   Up to Doncastor then made our way across country south of Leeds to Hellifield and hence to Settle.   At the start of this section the dull grey conditions had changed to really dull fog with very poor visibility and we were thinking "Well this going to be great, we're going to miss the spectacular scenery" but we needn't have worried.   As we went west the fog lifted, the dull grey turned to grey and then even a hint of brightness and by Hellifield although not wall-to-wall blue sky and sunshine more than good enough to admire the view.  And of course, what a view!  

 

 

 

Funny enough whenever I pass through Dent going north I'm reminded of a 1960s(?) Railway Modeller article by David Jenkinson featuring his model of the "station on the curve".   It might not have been up to modern  finescale standards back then but it sure captured the essence of the place which I didn't see for real but recognised instantly until some 50 years later.   

 

 

 

And so on to Carlisle.   ~3 hours to spend so we had lunch, a mooch around the streets and a trip into the Cathedral.   The Cathedral was very nice with some lovely stained glass windows.  Whilst mooching the streets  Puppers eagle eye spied a sign saying "Model Railway shop - Upstairs".   It would have been rude not to go upstairs ....   A small but apparently very well crammed establishment!

 

Then back on the train for the 4:26 departure home, this time heading east as soon as we left Carlisle along the Tyne valley.  That's very nice too.    I did look to see if Bob & Paul were fishing but I didn't spot them.   If they were there maybe Bob's still having trouble with gravity and had fallen over in the long grass 🤣    As an aside, that's a great TV series isn't it?  Can't wait for the next programmes.

 

We aimed for Newcastle but just missed as we took the junction  for the south and then back down the ECML to home to complete a very memorable day.   To round it off beautifully we were greeted on the platform at Hitchin unexpectedly by Junior Puppers and the eldest (6 years old) Junior Junior Puppers which was a lovely surprise.

 

I have to say I think the preservation, modification to Pullman standard and painting in the old Blue Pullman scheme of these 125 sets is inspired.     If you get the chance, do have a go.

 

Alan

 

Edited September 9 by PupCam
Added note about £25 single seat supplement

[J. S. Bach]

1 hour ago, PupCam said:

Evening! ...snip...

 ...snip...

Alan

That alone would almost make it worth my trip; if I lived over there!

[J. S. Bach]

Night Owl from the Piedmont.

[SM42]

5 hours ago, figworthy said:

 

There used to be an Italian restaurant near here called Il somethingorother that was referred to in some quarters as Il Botulism for similar reasons.

 

Adrian

 

The Wisteria Tea Room in Crouch End ( Crew shond if you were posh)  was known to some of my acquaintances as the Listeria Tea Room. 

 

Despite this it was very nice. 

 

I don't think it exists now

 

Andy

[jjb1970]

The Tyne Valley Line has some lovely stretches, it's a very under appreciated railway. Very good service too, it may not be the fastest service in the country but trains are pretty regular and it's a very usable service.

The other overlooked scenic gem in that part of the world is the Cumbrian Coast line which is stunning in places.