Edinburgh, Unchanged I Say....

Hooked!

I'm hooked!

I have been watching these 'cab rides' for days now and cannot get enough of them.

So far this weekend I have been from Kings Cross to Edinburgh via Newcastle, Cannon Street to Hayes (wherever that is?) and Baker Street to Amersham.  This afternoon I travelled in the comfort of my chair all the way from Waterloo to Southampton without once worrying about new people entering the train and annoying me.  How about that!

Now you may say this is all very anorakish and rather silly and I must say you will have a point. However I find train travel very relaxing and these videos, of which there are millions on YouTube, offer similar relaxation.  For one thing as I once travelled regularly on the Kings Cross line it is interesting to see things from the drivers viewpoint, sight seen from the side are different when seen from the front.  As the videos are recorded at different times the scene around you changes as time passes and much of the area I once knew has long since gone.  

The trip allow my mind to wander as it does when in a train (without distractions) and the passing scene offers items to cogitate upon as we travel, it is no different on these videos.  Many topics arise as we hurtle through stations all of which appear to be called 'gentlemen' and the mind muses on the sights seen around the track as we pass through a wide variety of landscapes.  I find myself asking where this or that line curving away leads us to, I ask what are the men in orange suits supposed to be fixing on our line and will the track fail as we pass?  How come trains leaving London and heading south across the river travel over such a complex and messy area while those leaving Kings Cross appear to be in a much tidier part of the line?  The journey from Liverpool Street to Enfield Town does reveal just how filthy London can be if you allow human beings to live there.   

Even trips on the Underground across London reveal sights that while known are different when noted as we leave the tunnel and emerge into the light.  Sights and smells return even if sitting comfortably at home and memories of the stress of London life also rise to greet you as you pass from one area to another, the smiling happy passengers (sorry 'customers') bringing joy into the life around.

Naturally I have done nothing else.

I suppose I can do those things tomorrow...

Frittering Away Friday

Having spent all Wednesday in futile wait for delivery, well at least it arrived so it wasn't actually futile, I spent all day Thursday catching up on things undone.
Friday has been a day where my brain closed down altogether.
Some say no change has been noted.
I tried out my new and exciting (they say) exercise regime and indeed this made a difference.
I woke up, my brain began to work anew, my breathing was considerably deeper and my body responded by aching in all the right places and soon afterwards I fell into a deep slumber.
On waking I found nothing of interest anywhere in the world and have slowly returned to the state of sloth that I found at 07:30 hours this morning.
It's been that sort of a day.

 
I could have read some of the books piled up in various places around the house but did not have sufficient vim to concentrate on them for long.  (By 'vim' I mean 'energy' not the old scouring powder we used to use.)  There was a thought that hoovering the floor might be a good idea, that was soon pushed aside.  Instead I watched a video of a train crossing the country in the snow at a pace that my brain could follow.  

 'Borrowed' from facebook.

How relaxing train journeys can be!  I can really enjoy a trip by rail, provided it is not overcrowded.  I have endured a commuter train on occasion and this was not a pleasant experience, outside that however such travel is comfortable and relaxing.  
Out side the window we see parts of the country we often miss when travel is by car, railways offer country views as well as the rear end of industrial sights which can on occasion offer something to contemplate also.  Comparing the 'Blue Circle' Cement works (If it is still called that) to the view if the Firth of Forth that lies on the other side of the track is worth comprehending.  While cement has its uses the view of the open sea refreshes in a way a concrete bridge never shall.
Quaint country rail stations can be glimpsed often decorated with flowers by the staff.  These are becoming rarer as cost cutting now offers a bare efficient platform and a glorified bus shelter all to often.  When I used Dunfermline station (Lower, not Upper) there was a complete set of buildings on both sides.  Today while the entrance remains extant the far side platform has a bus shelter for the commuters to Edinburgh and while a view can be seen now quite clearly the absence of proper station buildings is disappointing.  I believe Dunfermline Upper is now a  supermarket or a B&Q!
Maybe I ought to get on a train tomorrow, I better check the weather.

 

Normality Returns, Almost.

Theresa met some of her chosen few today in Edinburgh of all places.  They were all Conservative members all invited by email and only certain ones were allowed to ask questions.  The question "Why are we meeting in a closed warehouse? was not asked.  The sheep however applauded, cheered and waved placards as they were told to showing Theresa has learnt much from her studies on Romanian politics. 
Other questions such as "How many more Libyans are walking free?" were not allowed, nor was "Are you fit for purpose?"  There are lots of questions to ask these days but it appears you are not allowed to ask the ones that make her upset.  'Strong and upset' is the watchword.
I note the poncy approach to outrages continues.  A policeman gave out 'felt hearts' to all and sundry in Manchester, something not even considered when the IRA blew up Manchester killing a child, other police have been highlighted dancing with kids, although most police would do this and have always done this at party time, ans the news has been full of people telling their story of bomb and knife.  Maybe it is therapy for them but today people are only too willing, and I mean 'too willing' to tell their story especially if there is trauma involved.
This is not 'Love your neighbour' all this emotional rubbing one another up and down appeals to many but it lacks depth.  Tomorrow we will not be changed, just experienced as we used to say.  We live in a world where our emotions must be publicly shared, and I am one who believes is sharing folks when trouble comes but not in the open, have some regard for people.  Something false is appearing in troubled times, this will not get us through trouble.

Peter Sallis has died, aged 96.  He played 'Clegg' the timorous sharp witted, somewhat cynical observer of the three old men in 'Last of the Summer Wine.' His barbed put downs and cynical answers were always sharp and much the funniest of the three, no matter who the main protagonist happens to be.  I always liked him and his approach to life.  Clegg would be the one who plays me in the film of my life, without the 'Pacamac' raincoat of course.  Clegg, sorry Sallis also gave voice to Wallace in the 'Wallace and Gromit' films.  His gentle delivery, his accent and hint of humour or confusion made the films work for many.  He will be missed by many.

From the late 1960's through the 70's and into the 1990's I travelled frequently by rail from Kings Cross Station to Edinburgh Waverley.  Usually through the day but once I worked out the prices and times, through the night.  How often I sat in the doorway rather on the seats as this was more enjoyable on crowded trains, how interesting the activities at stations during the night hours, how lovely when old coaches with divided compartments from a previous age were used on the almost unknown night train.  All changed now, bar the prices.  In the past theyw ere expensive but often special pre-booked 1st class tickets were available and these were a very nice way to travel, very 1990's.  I expect today the word 'extortionate' is often heard when booking such travel, and that is not for the 1st class either!
For all those travel times I looked out of the window taking in the passing ever changing landscape.  Therefore when I discovered a video taken from the engine itself showing the journey from a drivers perspective I jumped at it and enjoyed the trip even better.  However it is a long trip and two journeys were required, one from Kings Cross to York and a second from York to Edinburgh, I bought both!  Today I have discovered a more modern version of this wonderfully relaxing video, this time from a modern 'Intercity 225' giving a clearer view and while this one only goes to York there must be another somewhere to complete the journey.  See if you enjoy this long rail trip as much as I do.

Boring Again!

Nothing happened twice today.  What with the Easter break the news is quite boring,  folks are either away on holiday or finding things to occupy the kids, and I have been stuck in here ironing a pile of shirts.  This was important as there were no more in the cupboard.  While in Tesco this morning I was tempted to buy another one t save me ironing the rest, the need to spend cash put me off. 

 

While I was ironing I played a video on the laptop from youtube.  This featured a 'cab ride' in a diesel engine running at high speed from Colchester to London Liverpool Street some years ago.  As I watched I found it very relaxing and pondered on the many videos of seaside, birds, country areas, rail and I presume aircraft and boats also, a wide and varied array that are available on youtube and elsewhere that normal people would ignore.  I however find such things not only interesting but relaxing.  Maybe it's just my inherited crass stupidity or maybe there is another reason but I enjoy such videos.  Rail cab rides allow you to see the drivers view, really interesting on lines often used personally, and give an understanding of how lines operate.  It is fair to say that since privatisation they operate mostly in similar ways to the past but the profits go to a few and while the service deteriorates the prices go up!  At least those clever folks who make such videos keep their own profit while sharing their videos online today.

    

A railway compartment from the 30's.  While we travelled on them often most people would avoid us as no-one wishes to be trapped with kids on a train so often we were in quiet compartments.  I remember not only the wire like luggage rack above, the strange leather belt contraption that opened the windows but also above the seats three rather boring aged pictures  of Scottish landscapes, aways rather dull I thought.  However when travelling from London in the 80's I used to have a compartment to myself on the Aberdeen train as few realised it stopped at Waverley at three in the morning.  Always an enjoyable trip by myself I remember.   A museum visitor noticed the picture and commented that no-one ever spoke in those compartments. 

A Walk in the Park

In the chill of the day ensuring we all knew Autumn had arrived the sun continued to pretend it was summer and tempted me out onto the zimmer bus.  A trundle into the big city (they call it big) and a walk in the park by the river was on the cards.

The skies above were filled with puffy clouds (or UFO's to those who read the 'Daily Mail') standing out from the attractive blue sky.  Here the sky is seen above the cafe which offered me a decent coffee for only £1:90, far cheaper than those expensive shops that fill all the high Streets in this world.  Not only that the service was attractive, friendly and efficient.  I will use it again when there.   

It is no surprise this well cared for park was busy.  Mums with pushchairs, joggers sweating by, workers on lunch enjoying the air and the occasional duck flapping about in the water.  All in all a good way to spend your lunchtimes and make use of the cafe.  There was a happy relaxed 'feel' about the place which is not always the case in cities, maybe the population had not yet gone for their coffee?  Anyhow it was an enjoyable couple of hours in the sunshine.

During 1842 the Eastern Counties Railway (ECR) arrived at Chelmsford on its very expensive trek towards Ipswich.  Eventually the line reached the destination but only after many money troubles.  I suspect having to build an 18 arch viaduct across what is now Central Park in the town added to their financial care.  The station now stands high above the town, the old signal box has is five story high on the north side, and this magnificent viaduct still carries the daily traffic, taking some 14,000 a day in the London commute.  I constantly find myself admiring brickwork, especially the brickwork involved in creating thousands of Victorian rail bridges both large and small.  No wonder the economy grew?  The desire for railways ensured a demand for bricks, the railways took bare material to factories which turned this into goods which the railways carried away.  The growing economy led to a move to the city, a demand for new housing, a demand for more bricks.  Those simple red bricks help change the nation.  I realise there is a lot more to this than my simple explanation but certainly the arrival of rail changed the world in a way little has until computers landed on our desks.

    
Here we see the Abellio service rushing towards Ipswich (is it my cynicism that makes me wish I had written 'the late running Abellio service?) possibly stopping at the Chelmsford but sometime charging straight through.  A journey of just under an hour into Liverpool Street station has made this a commuter town a favourite for many.  I find it a bit boring but at least all the shops required can be found here, all other activities are catered for and for many young families it meets their needs.  However while the Essex County Cricket side play most of their games in Chelmsford their football team is so far down the leagues that it will take a year before they can join little Braintree and a further year before they can meet the 'big boys.'  Maybe it will be their year this time...

Whether there are any fish in the River Can I know not but this man is moving at my speed today!  In the background can be seen some canoes with slow moving oarsmen paddling along.  The flow goes this way and I hope they can manage to fight the stream all the way back.  Some distance down there is a canoe club which may be where they are heading, possibly they started from there and went up river.  A nice pleasant way to pass a day like today.

I was somewhat surprised to see outside the shopping centre table tennis tables, 'Wiff Waff' to some of us of course, and is that a chess set laid out for use?  It all looks to energetic for me, a quick trip to the butcher for '3 for £10 chicken' then off to catch the zimmer bus, admire old folks bus passes with another zimmer bus user and rest my knees.

Letting off Steam

A Mill, A Bull, A Pond and A Church

Townsford Mill stands on a spot used by mills of many types going back centuries.  It is thought grain was first milled here in the midst of agricultural land but over the years weaving became the norm.  Samuel Courtauld, one of a family of Unitarians, became sole owner in 1825, one of many mills he was to possess, and soon developed a powerful steam worked silk mill one of the biggest in the country.  However by 1850 foreign competition hit deep into his output this led to a development of Black Crepe often used in funerals, which with a stroke of luck brought him much profit when prince Albert died.  With Victoria descending into deep mourning the nation followed on and Courtauld's Black Crepe was in much demand.  The Mill soon employed over 1400 women using a thousand looms.  Weaving of one sort or another continued until 1982 and soon after the closure the antiques people moved in and what a success this has become.

 
Where once a thousand looms deafened the girls working them now a variety of units peddle items some of which my family still put to good use.  Imaging how many items now considered 'antique' are still lying abode the abode?  There is a restaurant in the bottom and two floors of junk valuable items much of what I found very interesting and a great deal of it not too expensive either.  If I had money and wall space I could have gone for several pictures and the number of books on show tempted me, I kept telling myself to go back to charity shops for them.  After wandering I retrieved my bag from reception, they somehow did not trust me, and asked the young lady about the gun she had by her side.  A rifle of great age lay there which she said she kept for troublesome customers. she waved it in the direction of her friend who ran for it.  However  it turns out to be a toy!  An expensive toy for a young lad 150 years or more ago I suspect.  I decided not to buy as getting on a bus these days with a rifle gets funny looks from others I find.

These two houses are part of a row which Samuel Courtauld built for his workers.  He was not penny pinching when he asked George Sherrin to build them in 1883 was he?  I suspect the more loyal workers with their families were placed in here.  Courtauld employed 70 men and boys as well as the women, many of those rescued from London's workhouses and offered jobs in Essex.  Long hard hours for seven shillings and sixpence may not seem much now but it was better than a life on the street which was the future for many of the girls otherwise at that time.  The weavers cottages from yesterday were probably built by him for his workers also.

     
 Amazing how dingy clearish brown water runs up to the mill but on the other side the river is overgrown all the way along.  Reed clutter the river bed and had I the energy I would have walked along for a few miles to see a bit of countryside.  Instead I came upon this bedraggled old building once a hive of industry and now awaiting its fate.

Originally part of the railway yard this large double sized building looks derelict and rather sad at the moment.  This is a reflection on how important railways were to industry in times past as the goods yard was big for such a town and business must have been brisk.  Today little remains although one or two station building have been reused, however I suspect few under seventy remember the line in operation.

Some folks like it however.  Three windows had such a bird taking ownership of the place.  Plenty large windows to go round for everybody.

As I avoided spilling my lunch in the Bull Inn I gazed at the thick aged beams that hung above me.  These may have been part of the original building when created in the 1400's.  Imagine, in spite of adaptions and renovations over the years, imagine how many have supped here over the past seven centuries?  Impossible to miss at the bottom of the hill the bridge over the river is outside the door and I wonder if any careless driver or runaway horse and cart have clattered into the Bull?  I can see many drivers of both horse and car doing so.  

  
Waiting at the door for the taxi to come through...

 
The public gardens are well maintained by the excellent council workforce and here the memorial to the lost of WW2 is found.  A small four sided plinth is engraved with the names of the lost and the gardeners have created this magnificent Lancaster Bomber as tribute to the airmen who lost their lives.  Apparently this is the second Lancaster, the year before that a Glider was made.  I see this as a magnificent gesture and who knows what they have in mind for the next one. 
Well done to the council gardeners!

The gardeners also maintain the excellent pond which has found favour with several ducks.  So happy are they that mum has produced at least four chicks who stumble around the pond searching for lunch.  Kids are always hungry, at least when it suits them.

Not far from the pond stand the disused Holy Trinity Church.  The architect one Sir George Gilbert Scott a man famous for many buildings such as the Midland Hotel, The Foreign & Commonwealth Office and the Albert memorial.  This was one of his earlier works in 1843/44 and now stands bare and rather sad.  The outside is impressive but as almost everything relevant has been removed the building is in the care of The Churches Conservation Trust.

It was as I turned and looked down the nave that I suddenly became rather depressed by the disconsolate appearance a disused church has.  It matters not that this was a 'High Church' in times past (It appears a golden cross was offered  for processions and some objected, possibly the protestant types. This cross soon disappeared and was later found bent over in the River Colne.  It was returned to the vicar in 1911 and soon back in use.)  

One of the few remaining items is the Great War Memorial which appears to be still made use off.

Some people have not been forgotten.

 

Scott had a sense of humour it seems to me.  Just what encouragement these faces high above every pillar in the church gave I am unsure.  There was a variety of faces and I winder if he had someone in mind for each of them?  Were they posed I wonder?

 
OK, you can wake up now.  No more from Halstead that I will show.

This is Good!

 

How lovely to see the steam, the smoke, the grime of the nineteen fifties, 

although I am not actually sure when this film was made! 

Flying Scotsman

Something Famous

Museum Railways

Today was the first of three half days at the museum.  The usual Tuesday went in the way of the usual Tuesday, busy one minute, quiet the next.  All went reasonably well until a teacher of a visiting school asked a question about a question on the paperwork the kids were going through.  The question asked 'When did the railway arrive here?' but the notice with the answer has gone! I began scribbling a notice to erect in a noticeable place but instead fell asleep as I often do in the late afternoon.  '1848' is the answer you are looking for by the way.  The railways were the reason the UK expanded during the 19th century, with such improved traffic factories could send their goods directly into towns, foodstuffs arrived in towns and cities within hours rather than days improving peoples health as the vegetables were fresher, coal was transported by rail to home and factory ensuring improved production and warmth, and goods were taken direct to the docks for forwarding around the world.  The economy grew because of the railways as did peoples time off, one day holidays took folks to the seaside for a new outlook or a hedonistic few hours, seaside resorts became popular and more so as holiday times lengthened.  Our railway station still has an hourly service to Liverpool Street and this ought to be improved in many folks minds, whether it will be is a question however.
The fact that we have a beautifully made model of a 'Britannia' Class 700014 'Iron Duke' shows that railways were important, even if that engine never ran near here, it would be too big in any case, but the leaflet I made for it is wrong anyway!  I mentioned it occasionally ran as the 'Golden Arrow' and for some reason wrote 'Green Arrow,' naturally rail buffs have pointed this out!  That needs rewritten also. 

The steam engine and two carriages seen in this 1955 film is typical of the type of train that trundled along our local lines for many years.  The connection to the main line brought local people within an hour or two of the big city or slightly less of the coast.   

.

Tired & Weary I Give up...

The sun shone again, I noticed it when I went for the sausages and veg.
I ate a bacon sandwich.
This wore me out so I returned to bed.
I then ate sausages and mashed sweet potatoes.
I then fell asleep.
I then ate chicken nuggets.
I am now falling asleep.
Nothing else has been done.
My weekend is so glamorous.
Tomorrow it will rain.

Woopee...

Let's catch a train... 

Thalatta! Thalatta!

"Thalatta! Thalatta!" "The sea! The sea!"
The cry of Xenophon and the ten thousand when the saw the Black Sea for the first time. To the sea faring Greeks this meant they would make it home from their expedition against Persia where they had been dragged into the wrong war and on the wrong side. It was also the cry that rent the air when I stood next to the great deep and breathed in the brine and rejoiced in the sun glimmering on the endless waves. Getting there however was not as straightforward as I hoped. 

To begin with all went well, the train was on time, the carriage was quiet, the sun shone on the green and pleasant land as we flashed along and even better nobody made use of mobile phones.

The change at Stratford would have been smooth if I could understand how to work the ticket machine, when things are simplified they are always harder to comprehend and I found that technology was not on my side this week.  Eventually however I sat in a tube train full of happy Londoners, cheerful, kind and ...oops, sorry I was deluded for a moment.  However I reached the station that French presidents try not to arrive at and boarded the train where a youthful London lass equipped with all the social graces of a nineteen year old Londoner sat next to me working on her texting.  Joy abounded!  

We moved, the five coach and therefore overcrowded train slowly made its way out of the platform.  The sun shone in our window, no-one spoke in the quiet carriage, an occasional bleep from a mobile or tablet was heard and we settled down for a happy journey.  The train slowly made it's way to Clapham Junction station where it ground to a halt five minutes after departure.  Enter the guards voice from the depth of the Tannoy, "A person has been hit by a train at Surbiton so there will be a hold up as both lines are blocked.  (This occurred at 11:34, one minute before we left.)  This usually takes about an hour or so."  Apologies were made, and resignation ran through the train.  Being the quiet coach we are not allowed to riot.

Having sat at Clapham for almost an hour we moved suddenly and without warning.  No-one believed all was well.  It wasn't.  We parked ourselves at Wimbledon station because it appeared we stood in the way of some 19 trains that could depart and avoid Surbiton, we could not.  The crowded masses on the platforms at Waterloo waiting for their trains did not bother us one bit but must have been a nightmare for the staff.  Here we sat watching the station staff run around like headless chickens, a very interesting experience as I, like you, have been involved in similar situations when nobody has a clue as to what is happening, information does not arrive and customers have steaming heads.  So it was fun to watch others suffer, in love obviously.

Was this an accident that a 75 'hit a train?'  That happened last week on the Tube.  Or was it suicide?  Now it peeves me that people kill themselves by throwing themselves in front of trains not for them so much as for the trouble their action causes others.  The train driver may well be traumatised by this.  He may get a day or two off work but will have to pass this way again and some folks find such things hard to dismiss from their minds.  He may suffer guilt for doing his job and being responsible for another's death even if he is not in truth responsible.  Then there are those who have the job of collecting the pieces from the track who may not be too happy about it either, let alone the thousands who are delayed by this action.  Indeed this is a selfish approach to suicide.  

The late arrival led to confusion at the other end but soon I reached the happy home where we sat scoffing while the birds hammered away at the fat balls in the garden.  What can be better than a small enclosed garden?  Well one by the sea I suppose.  Everybody ought to have one, humans need it!  However it is very difficult to get a decent shot through a window, especially when the brutes will not  stay in the sunny bit while flitting from one seed type to another!  This shot shows a really magnificent example of a fat ball!  I have also numerous pictures of blurred Blackbirds and the rear end of Blue Tits if that's your thing. 

How lovely to be able to sit in another's house and feel at home?  l don't often get that as I am usually kicked out but I did relax here and began to enjoy it greatly.  My second family who I owe much to and I realised I have known for a mere 44 years.  I should add that eating properly for a change helped a good deal, the food in this house is cooked by a  lovely woman, as indeed it should be!  Nothing in this home got burnt, not even when three of us men cooked Pizza all by ourselves!  

We also watched, in spite of murmurings from the corner, Bournemouth football club getting themselves promoted by beating Bolton 3-0.  Jolly good for this little club even though a cynical female woman failed to appreciate the magnitude of the occasion.  Such women still get to vote mind!  Think about that next Thursday!

  

Thalatta at last!  A trip over the chain ferry at Sandbanks to sit and stare at the sea, what more could you ask?  Well sunshine for a start and an end to the chill in the wind!  Running since 1926 and secured from the tide by two tough chains the ferry runs back and forth across the short distance  saving motorists a 25 mile trip round Poole Harbour. To one side stands the huge harbour area where a mass of sailing vessels and some very big Channel ferries base themselves, to the other side lies the Solent and out into what the English call the 'English Channel.'  Humble eh?  This is one of the delights of this area.  The views are fantastic and I find this sort of thing refreshes the mind.  Air, sea, breezes, sand and a few boats of various designs all combine to relax the heart.  That is why folks sit in the car at the parking bay and stare out to sea.  That is why others, braver than some, walk no matter the weather along the shore.  There is something about the sea that humanity requires daily, no wonder I miss it.  Of course some people do not like water, they will sit in the car muttering while the brave scout for dangerous fish, illegal immigrants or flotsam & jetsam.   None were found here as the water was clean as indeed are the beaches.  The area is quite upmarket, a house here would set you back from £2 - 10 million, but they are well done up.  I do not have one - yet!

At Studland two brave souls wandered down the slope to the tea stall situated, as such things always are, at the far end.  In summertime when the heat is on and the beach huts crowded with revelers, while kids drown one another in the sea or bury dad in the sand this place must be mobbed.  It is not large but when crowded it would be a place to avoid!  Today however the chill reduced the numbers and we watched while this crow (or is it rook?) waited while the lass at the table fed him chunks of her lunch.  Usually timid he was keen enough to jump on to and off the table quickly while grabbing his portion.  Her wee dog considered grabbing him but she would not allow that.

  

I could have taken a thousand pictures here, often of the same subject but in different ways however some people muttered about 'having a life' and we moved on.  All told I did take 190 fotos although not all were a success and you lucky people will be spared having all of them shoved down the throat.  A hundred would be enough.  What's that you said...?  Oh!  Anyway, that's enough for now.  I have been forced to walk hundreds of miles, OK, well two at least and some of that up slopes, and my knees will not stop moaning, and I canny bide folks who moan.  So I am off to bed to rest up!          

East Anglian Railway Museum

What better way to tire yourself out than to wander round a railway yard!  In fact what appeared at first sight to be a small railway sidings became larger with each turn that appeared.  A siding here a building to visit there, in the end I was pooped!  A wonderful display of static railway stock, most of course concerned with East Anglia and the Great Eastern Railway, but not all.
This 'heritage Railway' arose in the years after Dr Beeching's famous report that closed hundreds of what he claimed were loss making lines throughout the UK. The lines around this one were closing and by 1970 is was intended to end the Marks Tey to Sudbury line and the station at 'Chappel and Wakes Colne' was leased in 1970.  By 1986 the site became fully operational as a museum. However the line to Sudbury did not close and plans to run trains was abandoned as the line refused to die! One train of two coaches runs back and forth at hourly intervals to this day and very useful it is too!  This is very much a working museum in which visitors can walk through the shops where coaches and engines undergo renovation.  On 'operating days' engines run on the short line using diesel or steam as available.   Also a miniature railway operates and other attractions for adults and kids are on offer. 

 

   
The signal box allows the chance to operate the levers, heavy enough when not connected to anything, imagine if working daily on these?  Almost everything in the past involving physical labour appears to have been designed to increase the heart rate.  The station offices have been returned, if they ever left it, to a time when such lines were common throughout the nation.  Railways had a place for many people until the arrival of the cheap bus after the first world war. These buses ran up to the door, or near enough in small villages thus taking away the long walk to the nearest station.  Goods traffic however continued for many years after that in spite of the abundance of ex-army lorries on the streets.

The man in the signal box had a somewhat lonely existence some think but the responsibility was great. One mistake and it could lead to two trains meeting unexpectedly!  This line, quiet today, was however carrying passengers and goods for some distance there fore it could be very busy.  The man in the box was however kept warm and fed by the heating and cooking arrangements provided.  Coal on offer from passing engines and water from many sources.  A pub stood outside the gate at the time so he was well cared for!

The station master had an office to himself with a much better fire than that in the signalbox, as indeed he would have said it ought to be.  Working on the railways was a job for life then and well worth it as a good pension was on offer. Families would follow on for generations on the railway, throughout the land they would be loyal to their company.  Here it was the GER, Great Eastern railway, and like the others everything was embossed with their name.   Shame about the old queen mind.  Or is that paper boy just late?

The waiting rooms were decent enough in those days of yore but why were the ticket offices always seen through a small opening?  I remember Edinburgh Waverley also having large brown wooden ticket offices approached behind a barrier with only a small opening to speak through, not that I ever did, that's what dad's are for.  The GER have an opening only a foot high and a couple of inches for allowing cash to pass through.  Were they so scared of robbery or tantrums from passengers then I wonder?  I admit they remain behind glass today but at least you can see them!

Like most such places the EARM attempts to save items that no longer run on the lines.  The rusty green train is the last of those electric trains that carried millions of commuters in days of old.  One day it will be restored to its finest livery.  Sugar beet was a large part of agricultural output in this region and this wagon reflects the sights often noticed on the lines in the sugar beet heyday.  

These coaches provide adequate comfort, better than some today and the first class had the luxury no longer on offer of a compartment, often to oneself!  How the rich lived, kept apart from the peasants.  

It became the thing for disused coaches to be turned into camping holidays for many.  These died out during the 60's but some are still available in coastal regions.  While the coach looks a bit austere today many folks came from homes a lot less luxurious than an ex-railway coach turned into a tidy sleeping area.  I like the idea and would try one if I were rich enough.  In the past many old railway wagons could be seen in gardens used as huts, sometimes old coaches also.  This appears to happen less today possibly because of the reuse of materials and a stricter control of the staff!

Onwards through the crossing gates, past the shunter 'John Peel' into the shed where engines, coaches and anything else is restored to pristine condition.  I will save you the technical details and I don't understand them.  If I get involved in anything technical it breaks so I move on.  The greenish bulk in front is a railbus undergoing slow restoration.  One day this will transport folks on the short line, one day. 



 

The renovation of tank engine No 11 shows how efficient the workers are. Some of these men, mostly retired, have been working here for forty years.  Friendly, enthusiastic and highly efficient they all appear to enjoy their work.  You can see 'Thomas the Tank Engine,' a must in all such places, being worked on at the rear.  The Reverend Wilbert Awdry who wrote the original books understood how railways worked and his books always kept to railway procedure.  Once he, or his descendent's sold out to the BBC the stories were not always as accurate as they ought to be. 

Ah the days when milk was transported by such containers and dropped off at each station.  Tesco would bring it back if it was cheaper!  The cattle trucks are used less today, except when football specials are on order.

The variety of equipment, all operational or soon to be operational, is fantastic.

The view from the small office once used by the man in charge of coal is delightful, when it doesn't rain. He would be charged with caring for the income and outgoings of all coal deliveries, and probably others also.  Coal was used by industry and home until the late sixties and it is hard to imagine the stour hanging over the streets darkening the houses when all and sundry lit their fires. The first page or two of Charles Dickens 'Bleak House' shows the effect of rain mixed with chimney smoke as folks moved about London in his day.  Worth reading just that page.  Edinburgh was not called 'Auld Reekie' for nothing and I remember the blackened buildings showing the effects of a society dominated by smoke!  It is unusual now to see smoke coming from a chimney and the smell is somewhat romantic, even though it chokes you.

Fancy driving an electric train?  This heritage centre does offer the chance to drive a steam engine on occasions.  I just mention this when you are next wondering what to do with your charity money....

And where do you go to after a hard days work?  The pub, well the English working man does anyway.

And after that...?

That was a great day out!  This is a well run operation with many good plans for the future.  Many attractions are planned and hoped for to attract people to see their heritage, know and understand their history and have a good time also.  Good people with a lot of care for their past and much to tell the generation today.

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