BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July

Subject: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 24 Jun 17 - 05:05 PM

My goodness, I haven't seen 46100 Royal Scot since probably 1960!It's due through East Croydon on a circular journey starting and finishing at Victoria!

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Mr Red
Date: 24 Jun 17 - 05:45 PM

1) Don't publish a timetable.
2) find a vantage point outside the track fence

We had the Flying Scotsman come through Stroud this month and all trains were moving slowly because loads of people were standing inside the track limits. The wake from the trains at normal speed would have blown people over. So the the FS was an hour late and the passengers were shouting at the by-standers.

And my camera battery failed at the crucial moment.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 24 Jun 17 - 06:11 PM

1) The timetable is published - times of all steam trips are published, you just have to know where to look!!

2) Bloody right. Better in fact, I always stand on one of the bridges to the south of East Croydon so I can get a head on photo.

Bad luck that your camera battery failed. I managed to get 3 shots when Flying Scotsman came through last month, but only the last was any good unfortunately.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 25 Jun 17 - 08:09 AM

I like to have a head on photo, so that I can change the number!!!!!!

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Mr Red
Date: 25 Jun 17 - 11:37 AM

The FS times were broadcast on local radio! And the Town of Stonehouse (the route) has very little going on other than a football ground that get a crowd of maybe 50 stalwarts. There were more for the FS.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 25 Jun 17 - 01:44 PM

The Victoria/Guildford/E Croydon/Victoria steam trips always have the same timetable!

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 29 Jun 17 - 02:06 PM

Royal Scot 01/07/17

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Senoufou
Date: 29 Jun 17 - 04:08 PM

In the late fifties, I was often put on the train at Kings Cross alone to travel up to Newcastle to stay with my grandmother. I may be mistaken, but could this train have been the Royal Scot, or the Flying Scotsman perhaps? I feel sure I remember my father saying something about it and showing me the engine before I climbed aboard.
I wasn't a bit interested (he was) and indeed rather afraid of the loudly hissing steam coming out from underneath the thing. The massive wheels and tremendous noise of other engines starting off (that 'chooff chooff' racket) weren't very attractive to a little girl.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Will Fly
Date: 29 Jun 17 - 05:29 PM

Sen, the train you travelled on was more likely the Flying Scotsman than the Royal Scot. The Scot was west coast.

My great grandfather was one of the drivers of the Royal Scot - not forgetting that the Scot was a class of locomotives, not just one locomotive. He lived in Horwich and travelled to Crewe as a driver - from where he would drive either to Euston or to Glasgow, stay overnight, and then travel back to Crewe the next day.

When a young boy living in Horwich, my father would run up the road towards the main line bridge near Blackrod and wait for his grandad to drive past. My great grandad would blow the whistle specially for his grandson. Many years later I also stood on the same bridge, watching the steam locomotives run underneath - but my g-g'father was long dead.

When he retired from the main line, he worked in the Horwich locomotive works, shunting parts on the internal factory track. His party piece was to get a worker to hold a walnut against the buffers; he would drive the engine slowly up so that the engine buffers would hold the walnut - and then crack the shell without splitting the nut.

That was skill.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: G-Force
Date: 30 Jun 17 - 05:57 AM

Thanks for the timetable, B3L, but what a bummer - it's going through the town where I live at exactly the time I've got to be at Heathrow to pick up my son and d-i-l.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Senoufou
Date: 30 Jun 17 - 06:04 AM

Thank you Will. I must say, my father was fanatically interested in the engine, but I was more interested in having tea in the dining car en route. There was always a snowy white tablecloth, and the teapot seemed to be silver-plated. A steward served, there were iced buns, and I used to feel like a miniature version of the Queen!

Children then were far more resilient and independent than nowadays. I doubt if a little girl of nine would be shoved on a train for a six hour journey all alone today.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 30 Jun 17 - 04:17 PM

Hopefully I'll get a half decent photo - You have about 10 seconds!

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 01 Jul 17 - 08:29 AM

Cameras ready, off to viewing pitch in an hour!

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 01 Jul 17 - 11:00 AM

There is something about steam contraptions isn't there? But I've seen few.

I believe I did get to touch the Flying Scotsman when it came into Shrewsbury for something when I was very young - can have been no later than 1966 and me b 1960 but memory is foggy and see Will's comments re Royal Scot engine and the class.

Childood memory really is a different engine and class again, Oliver Cromwell at Bressingham.

I (in 17 years of living in the area) keep meaning to go on the light Bure Valley line and of course when I lived in Wales, there was the Ffestiniog Railway for one... Maybe one day I'll get round to one of these scenic journeys, hopefully hauled by steam.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 01 Jul 17 - 11:29 AM

Children then were far more resilient and independent than nowadays. I doubt if a little girl of nine would be shoved on a train for a six hour journey all alone today.

Probably more about fear from adults (and maybe the law?) about what can go wrong, rather than the resilience of children I'd think. But my mother used to get "packed off" to a sunny holiday in Birstall for 2 weeks in the holidays with her aunt/uncle from very rural borders Shropshire. main thing she talks about re that is the grime in that area of Yorkshire then, train journey was looked after, relations were great but it wasn't her home countryside.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Will Fly
Date: 02 Jul 17 - 04:40 AM

The Bluebell Railway is quite close to us in Sussex, and runs from Sheffield Park to East Grinstead via Horsted Keyens and Kingscot. Always a great day out - especially in the bluebell weeks in May.

Just along to the east, there's the Kent & East Sussex Railway, which runs from Tenterden to Bodiam via Northiam, Wittersham and Rolvenden. Not forgetting the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway, which runs from Dungeness to Hythe via Romney Sands, New Romney, Romney Warren, St. Mary's Bay & Dymchurch.

I'm not particularly a railway buff, but I always enjoy a day out on one of these lines.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Senoufou
Date: 02 Jul 17 - 05:41 AM

Ah Jon, we've been on the Bure Valley train lots of times. It's handy to park in Wroxham and take the tiny red train to Aylsham for the Aylsham Show, end of August.

I'm not sure about 'resilience' of children nowadays, but of course there is much more awareness now of predatory nasty men etc.

Most of my nine year-old pupils would have sobbed their eyes out if plonked on a train like that and told to get on with it. They seem very 'precious snowflake' these days. There was often a 'kind lady' in my carriage who had a chat and we'd go to have the tea at the same time. But far from feeling nervous, I was thrilled. And loved to be on the watch for Durham Cathedral passing on the starboard bow.

I found the very air in Newcastle to be dirty and polluted. The shipyards were in full swing, huge cranes dominated the skyline and the Geordie accent was beyond my comprehension. But it was all a great adventure. These experiences are character-forming in my opinion.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 02 Jul 17 - 08:13 AM

I've thought in terms of doing it the other way, S. A plan from here (near Cromer) would be park in Aylsham and try to combine the other end with a boat trip on the broads (something else I've meant to do but never done...).

I've only got to the Aylsham show (at least I think that the one at Blickling) once but it was an enjoyable afternoon out.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 02 Jul 17 - 09:21 AM

Royal Scot approaching East Croydon 2017.07.01

Not a good photo day! A couple of minutes before said steam train arrived, a couple of passers by came and spoke to me (really nice folks for Croyon!) but interrupted my 3 camera procedure!! iphone video was set to time lapse instead of video by mistake, 2nd camera wouldn't fire for distance shots, then 6 photo burst with main camera were greatly under exposed - sun disappeared just at the wrong time!! So a rescue job in Photoshop was necessary.

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 02 Jul 17 - 04:26 PM

Well done, anyway! Thank you for letting us see that, Bonzo3legs!

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 03 Jul 17 - 05:26 AM

My pleasure, it was a grand sight to see that wonerful steam loco after all these years!

Subject: RE: BS: Royal Scot to visit Croydon 1 July
From: Rusty Dobro
Date: 04 Jul 17 - 03:36 AM

As a schoolboy of around 13 or so, I would go up to London on the train with friends, and 'bunk' the sheds at Willesden, Camden, Kentish Town, Nine Elms, Kings Cross, Stratford and Old Oak Common by finding holes in the fences and avoiding the shed foreman. 'Royal Scots' were likely to be encountered at the first two; Health and Safety were unlikely to be encountered anywhere.