Monday 17th May 2010Steaming Through BritainGraham Briggs – GB Productions
The last meeting of the current season hosted Graham Briggs of GB Productions with his DVD show “Steaming through Britain”. The first half covered preserved steam out on the main line in superb scenic locations. As could be expected locomotives to the fore were 46115, 70013, and 60163 all being fresh out in 2009. The Top Gear special was featured with 60163 and an array of old Faithfull’s were also seen throughout the length and breath of the British Isles. Some shots were taken in snowy locations giving a different aspect to the scene. An unusual shot depicted streamlined 6229 being towed to York after construction at Tyseley. In the second half we visited no less than eighteen preservation locations, some not so familiar, with a wide and interesting variety of power on display. A notable shot was of a mail pick up at speed on the Great Central at Quorn. The show provided something for everyone in covering both the main line and the preservation aspect thus enabling a wide variety of motive power to be recorded. The 2010-2011 season commences in September.
Monday 19th April 2010Light Rail in France – The Current SceneGraham Jellett
On 19th April Graham Jellett came to Coventry to present a comprehensive illustrated talk on “Light Rail in France-The Current Scene”. He first showed a number of transparencies with an overhead projector summarising details and facts on the various systems. This highlighted recent extensive developments of light rail and metro systems in France and it may have come as surprise to many that in 2006 97.6km of line in nine towns were opened that in 2007 88.4km opened in eleven locations. A schedule showing towns now building tramways showed a further total of 154.1 km due to open from 2010 to 2015. The various methods of current collection, mostly at 750v, were covered. This is predominantly overhead but there many sections of third rail set in the centre of the track and in one case of a town with tyred trams are powered by battery enabling them to run off rail. As could be expected the majority are constructed by Alstom mostly of their Citadis type. A schedule showed a total of 793 steel wheeled units and 75 of rubber-tyred type. Graham illustrated his talk with slides of trams in fourteen locations showing both interior and exterior views and the various liveries used. Graham packed a wealth of information in his talk and also provided handouts detailing items covered in his talk which introduced us to a subject not often covered.
Monday 15th March 2010The Welsh HighlandDave Kent
At the Branch meeting in Coventry on 15th David Kent from the Welsh Highland Railway presented a slide show of the restoration of the twenty-five mile two foot gauge route from Caernarfon to Porthmadog. The initial section to Dinas runs on the tracked of the LNWR route closed in 1964 from where the WHR proper started. The WHR closed in 1937 and consequently presented a daunting task for the volunteers who assumed the task of clearing the route of some sixty years of debris and restoring it to traffic. Dave, a volunteer from the outset, showed then and now slides starting at Caernarfon in the shadow of the castle and following the route as work progressed down to Porthmadog. The slides emphasised the extremely derelict state of the line with river bridges needing renewal or replacement and the long tunnel near Beddgelert requiring considerable work. Another major task was the flat crossing of the former Cambrian line and the approach along the street to the terminus and interchange station with the Ffestiniog. The crossing had to be prepared by Network Rail engineers who supervised the volunteer staff. It was fortunate that amongst the volunteers were a Civil Engineer and legal eagles, amongst others, who could take on the massive enterprise. From May this year the line will be open to Pont Croesor with the rest expected in 2011.
Saturday 6th March 2010Warwickshire Railway Society annual meeting
On 6th March the branch manned a stand at the annual meeting of the Warwickshire Railway Society held at Kidderminster railway Museum on the Severn Valley. Messrs Morris, Smith, and Walker were in attendance.
Monday 15th February 2010My Life in RailwaysDewi Jones
At Coventry on the 15th February Dewi Jones, Traffic Manager with the Severn Valley Railway, presented at show entitled “My life in railways”. Dewi commenced with an outline of his early interest and subsequent career in Railways. The earliest event, related to him by his mother, was of being found on the track of the Vale of Rheidol in Aberystwyth line which ran at the rear of his home. Dewi was then aged two! His interest took him around the country and he began his working life as a Clerk the London Midland offices at Crewe. After some eight years he left for the South Eastern division of the Southern Region which was then privatised under Connex. Not being happy in his position he noticed an advert for Traffic Manager on the SVR and successfully applied for the position which he now holds. He his responsible for all traffic movement and timings on the line but probably his most testing period was after the severe floods in June and July 2007. To illustrate this Dewi showed a comprehensive series of pictures taken of the damage caused and the major undertaking needed to restore the line ready to reopen in March 2008. The storm damage closed all but the four miles between Kidderminster and Bewdley. The remaining 12 miles were severed in forty-five places, track being left suspended in mid-air, ballast and earthworks swept into the Severn, and adjoining properties having to be vacated due to danger of being swept away by mud slides. All the damage was extensive but major breaches occurred at Highley and in the area of the Victoria Bridge. The planned opening of the Engine House at Highley had to be postponed. Remedial work cost some £2.8 million with support being given by other Preserved lines, Network Rail, and financial aid from numerous other bodies both institutional and the general public. Only by seeing the photographs shown by Dewi could some impression be gained of the tremendous feat achieved to reopen the line after only just over nine months. The talk was an object lesson in how to overcome a major disaster which early on looked to close the line for good.
Monday 18th January 2010Branch AGM and Members’ Slides
The Branch AGM followed by a members evening was held in Coventry on 18th January. The existing Committee, Messrs Morris, Walker, Smith, Reid, and Barby, were re-elected for a further term. Under AOB lively discussion ensued regarding the provision of digital projection equipment. David Walker reported that this is under active discussion by the Society development Committee.
After the AGM members presented a varied and diverse range of items. Chris Berridge gave a talk covering the accidents at Harrow, Hither Green, and St. Johns. David Walker presented slides of the 2009 open day at Eastleigh where steam, diesel and electric were on view in pristine condition. Derek Codling took us to the North of England and Scotland in the early 1960,s when steam was still in evidence. John Hills then presented a talk on the Clapham accident with reference to the signalling aspect. Tony Foster showed slides of his recent visit to Luxembourg including preserved items as well as a review of the current scene. Peter Smith covered the Somerset and Dorset before and after closure including the last day specials. Ray Reed then went to Scotland with the RCTS/SLS joint Tour of 1962 when preserved locomotives were used for much of the tour. Alan Jelley then proceeded overseas with South Africa in 1972 and ending with the KWVR in 1975. For the final item Roger Johnson covered Scotland in the 1950’s and 1960’s, South Africa, and ending with the 2009 Great Britain Railtour. It was a pity that the attendance was not up to the usual as the evening demonstrated the wide variety of interest and commitment of local members especially noteworthy were the two well present talks.
Monday 14th December 2009Steam on the Main Line 2009Karl Jauncey/Dave Richards - PSOV
On 14th December Karl Jauncey and David Richards came once again to Coventry and presented their compilation of "Preserved Steam on the Main Line 2009". As usual this event drew a large audience. There were the usual eagerly anticipated shots showing a variety of motive power in superb settings around the country. Of particular note were Scottish views in a snowy landscape and steam working hard over Copy Pit. The recent additions to main line steam featured prominently, namely 46115, 60163 and 70013. An interesting episode saw 61994 making heavy weather of a tour in Scotland only getting started by dint of superb driving skills. As a prelude to 46115 shots were shown of Royal Scots in former days and in the case of 60163 views of some of the original class at work. The 2009 "Tour of Britain", Penzance-Inverness, was also covered. As an aside during setting up and in the interval the screen was occupied by film taken around the Brecon area in the 1960s. We now await their compilation for 2010.
Saturday 21st November 2009-Sunday 22nd November 2009Warley National Model Railway Exhibition, NEC
This show, with an attendance of over 18000, is always a good shop window for the Society and like 2008, when we had the newly introduced book on the BR Standards 9F 2-10-0s and did a roaring trade, this year we had JUST in time got the new LMS Hughes and Stanier 2-6-0s book on offer, along with all the other Society publications and second-hand items.
Despite the current financial uncertainties, the show was incredibly crowded on the Saturday, to the point where movement became impossible at times, but somewhat more comfortable on the Sunday.
The stand was manned, over the two days, by Branch Secretary Derek Morris, plus Peter Smith, Mike Lane and Lionel Simpson, who were kept busy during the show and took home a very much less heavily loaded vehicle than they brought.
Monday 16th November 2009Sir Vincent RavenAndrew Everett
On Monday 16th November, the West Midlands Branch were visited by Andrew Everett, from County Durham, who entertained us, appropriately, with a talk entitled ‘Sir Vincent Raven, Last CME of the North Eastern Railway’. The NER is a company which rarely receives the attention it deserves, outside its local area, being ranked in size and importance alongside the other major pre-grouping companies, the LNWR, the GWR and the MR, but lacking their visibility and perceived charisma, largely by not having a direct route to London.
Unusually, Andrew’s main slant was more related to Raven, his family, and the many people he was involved with, in his career. This began with family background, from Norfolk, through his apprenticeship under Edward Fletcher, the first Locomotive Superintendant of the consolidated NER, then working for Alexander MacDonnell, and the Worsdell brothers, up to his elevation to the top job on the engineering side of the railway.
We were treated to a very thorough dissertation on how he accumulated a vast amount of knowledge and experience, not only in engineering, but in cost management, personnel matters and other areas, all of which were the lot of the CME on a large railway such as the NER. He was fortunate, along the way, to work both for and with some extremely competent people, such as General Manager Sir George Gibb, electrical engineer J.T. Merz, his assistant A. C. Stamer, plus a highly skilled workforce at Gateshead and Darlington.
His specialities, pioneering work on such things as automatic fog signalling and electrification were well covered and the rationale for his thinking on locomotive design was covered in detail, not to mention his secondment to the Ministry of Munitions during WW1, for which he received his knighthood.
Despite the handicap of a non-functioning digital projector, a vey comprehensive and interesting presentation
Monday 19th October 2009Living With LizzieClive Mojonnier
On 19th October Clive Mojonnier came to Coventry to inform us on “Living with Lizzie”. No not his wife who accompanied him but LMS 4-6-2 6201 “Princess Elizabeth” built in 1933, Clive being Chairman of the Princess Elizabeth Locomotive Society. The locomotive was the subject of a record run in 1936. The first part of the evening was devoted to a talk on the ups and downs of preserving this locomotive which the Society purchased in 1962 for the sum of £2160 having had to make a choice between it and 6100 not being able to afford both. The loco was moved to Aschurch, then Bulmers Hereford, then Butterley, and finally in 2002 to a permanent base at Crewe, an appropriate home for an LMS engine. Here it is housed at the Heritage Centre which is undergoing a revival as a Museum. Clive dealt with the trials and tribulations of preservation in some detail and provided an insight into the huge amount of effort needed to keep the locomotive active. Some work is now being carried out at the Centre under an apprentice scheme in association with LNWR Co. After the break slides were shown of 6201 including action shots both before and after preservation. A lively question and answer section followed both parts of the evenings show.
Monday 21st September 2009Railways Around the South EastGeoff Dunster
The 2009-2010 season of Coventry meetings commenced on 21st September with Geoff Dunster coming from Dover to give an illustrated talk “Railways around the South East”. Largely covering Kent, his home area, Geoff illustrated gauges ranging from 9” to standard. He commenced with the miniature lines progressing through the 15” gauge RHDR some private 2’ lines and on to standard. The Cinque Ports Training Area at Lydd with its 600mm gauge and target vehicles was an unusual item. Traction of all types was represented both on normal service and in preservation. Being in Kent HS1 naturally featured with scenes during the construction of the route, Dollands Moor yard and terminal and then in operation. A not often recorded were the two SNCF 22xxxx which worked through the tunnel in the initial days. Geoff, due to his employment, was in a position to take many of his shots from other than the public angle. Geoff gave us a fitting start to the new season and with a good attendance.
last updated: 18/05/10
