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As mentioned elsewhere, I was born in 1938; and my father worked for a major chemicals company which was moving into pharmaceuticals. My mother was a typical housewife of the 1940-50s, with three sons; and with her mother living within 1/3 mile. We only had any form of washing machine after...

Does anyone else watch the episodes in the above series? I've seen a fair number of them, and whilst the video tend to be well done, the spoken commentary does seem to have many "schoolboy errors". On the most recent one about The Royal Scot, there was mention of Chat Moss being in Cheshire...

65 years ago today (19 August 1957) I left home armed with a travel warrant from my home in Cheadle, Cheshire to RAF Cardington where I started my National Service. I remember my mother having a tear in her eye - I guess she knew more about the changes to follow, and the risks. (In WWI my mother...

Recent comment on why we had the "Infected Blood Scandal" seems to be that our policy makers "didn't know" that blood sourced from the US was risky at the time. My memory is that there were serious warnings at around the time when it started. Is my memory at fault? (I graduated in 1962, so I...

Wow!! I've just seen the lists of road closures, No Parking etc. for areas close to the Stadium! I hope those affected think it is all worth it!

I'm watching "The Last days of Steam" on BBC Four, and it was stated that one of the fireman's jobs was to "watch for the signals", because they were better seen on his side in the cab, and not seen as well on the side convenient to the driver. Seeing as railways, signals etc, were invented...

Just supposing that the century old Forth Rail Bridge didn't exist - how would we design and build one today? Or, would we simply not bother?!

On normal railways, there's lots of safety features, and masses of experience & reports when things very occasionally go wrong. On rack & pinion railways, matters are very different in that should the cog fail (metal fatigue etc.), I can't imagine that there's any braking possible from the...

I visited Wolverton station on Friday 13th Nov 2020, and videoed traffic as seen looking south on the WCML. Lots of Pendolinos of course, but then an 11 coach diesel hauled train arrived on the Down Slow, let off a passenger in the centre sidings area, moved a short distance, and waited...

On 13 February 1988 we travelled from Milton Keynes to Euston for a "day out". Approaching Bletchley, we found ourselves in the carriage sidings, along with a guy on the ground looking carefully at our coaches. At Bletchley We continued our journey, and approaching Euston came across a...

I watched the repeat last night, and was struck by two things, apart from the costs - the mention several times that it ran at around 100mph, and that the coaches were refurbished originals, and from what I saw, I got the impression that they were timber framed. Is a timber frame compatible...

Ownership of the coach maintenance facility at Wolverton has changed over the years, and I think some buildings to the east of what is now Tesco's car park, have been listed, smartened up and now have new users. What remains an eyesore is the roofline of the old buildings seen from Tesco's car...

Sorry not rail related, but I hope someone here knows the technology behind my query. I'm retired, and I've driven a Vauxhall Astra (petrol) for many years - fairly low annual mileage. One of the popular outlets for motor oils offers a variety of oils both basic and "more refined"... By...

I watch far too many TV programmes about canals; and almost inevitably, the programme makers tell us how important a good supply of water is for any canal, and then show us locks with leaking gates etc. But what I've never seen is any attempt to use a modern material (such as tough rubber or...

I hate the way we now have to use the word "accessible" because it got into UK law some years ago. I think it's forced on us an ugly way of using our native language, English, but can't really offer anything better. I think the problem is that it's taken a word which was one form of speech...

Videoing traffic on the WCML in Milton Keynes this morning, I was passed by a "Stone Blower" travelling north at around 12:31. Never heard of anything like this before, and having googled a bit, it seems as though I might have caught a bit of history.

Some of my old favourite programmes weren't worth watching under Covid rules - some others were much improved. My personal list: Improved:- BBC's Springwatch - I thought the new format was a definite improvement, with Chris Packham's stepdaughter being a TV star! This programme definitely...

When Milton Keynes station (MKC) was upgraded back in around 2008, an extra down line was added and a new platform, 6 on the west of the station. The routeing for platform 6 is via Knowlhill Junction, (new?) and I've always wondered what advantages this gave in the workings of the WCML, and the...

Is there an official definition of a "Path"? I see the term used here, and elsewhere in the forum, but can't recall ever seeing it defined in this niche(?) usage. Just wondering if I may have misunderstood what is meant...

I took some snaps a year ago of the Talerddig Cutting, and found that I'd included this sign a short distance from the road bridge. I've done a search, but so far haven't found any info. Many thanks.