Has anyone seen Prince Charles today?

[Peter Mugridge]

I saw it, the amount of enthusiasts asking for information of it's timings was unbelievable. I thought it was common knowledge it's all on a need to know basis?

It's actually quite easy to work out weeks in advance when the train is running if you look closely at the diary section of the Palace website and cross-reference with their press releases as well.

In some cases they have even actually specified in a press release two or three weeks in advance that "HM The Queen will arrive at x station and will be met by..."

The exact timings, of course, are a different matter but approximate timings are fairly easy to guestimate from the information on the Palace website.

Plus... 67 005 and 67 006 are very likely to both be in for maintenance at the same location as each other the day before the train is used. That's another big giveaway.

 

[37401]

The privilege of having your own train. Or rather one you can borrow from your mum

Should get the Royals to set up an account on here and ask them to post on the Skip bashing thread

20,000 Miles off 005 and 006, I is main!

 

[merlodlliw]

Maybe they should run a class 46 into the Royal train at 100mph......

It is a pity petty comments have to ingress such an excellent forum, just think about the consequence what you have stated.


my opinion

 

[LE Greys]

A look onboard. Yikes. The man really is devoid of taste.

My dad once had to organise a visit from Charlie boy. Hi workplace had "HM" in its name. Codename for the visit in the meetings in the run up was "Operation Big Ears"

Well, it's a vast improvement on the inside of a Voyager, that's one thing to say for it, but his great-great-great-grandmother had a lot more taste (go to the NRM and have a look). I would have gone for something like the "Silver Jubilee" stock from the 1930s, best decorated coaches ever to run in Britain. That thing was actually purpose-built if it's the sleeping car, the dining car used to be a TRUK on the ECML.
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Surely a royal train is an anachronism in this day and age. We don't have a Prime Ministerial train and even the USA doesn't have a specific presidential train set aside - although with Air Force One at his disposal, President Obama probably has no need for a train!

I've said for years that they could have made themselves very popular by saving a Concorde (preferably G-BOAC) for the Queen's Flight. They could even have named her Britannia.

 

[At_traction]

A look onboard. Yikes. The man really is devoid of taste.

But at least the drapes and the carp..., I mean, sofa match. Could be worse - the whole is in all rather spartan instead of a full back-in-time Quinlan treatment...

I've said for years that they could have made themselves very popular by saving a Concorde (preferably G-BOAC) for the Queen's Flight. They could even have named her Britannia.

I guess the support infrastructure for a single plane would've been too much for the BA's interests to carry on providing even if they had agreed on retaining any of the planes for any use. Even Branson might have succeeded in keeping at least the Concorde toilets from overflowing...

On the other hand, after the massive taxpayer commitment in the 1960s and 1970s and the government-backed loan for BA to purchase the planes, wouldn't I, as a child of those taxpayers be allowed to have a say? Come to think of it, better not.

 

[HSTfan!!!]

It's actually quite easy to work out weeks in advance when the train is running if you look closely at the diary section of the Palace website and cross-reference with their press releases as well.

In some cases they have even actually specified in a press release two or three weeks in advance that "HM The Queen will arrive at x station and will be met by..."

The exact timings, of course, are a different matter but approximate timings are fairly easy to guestimate from the information on the Palace website.

Plus... 67 005 and 67 006 are very likely to both be in for maintenance at the same location as each other the day before the train is used. That's another big giveaway.

I'm not saying it's hard to work out when it's running, but finding out actual timings etc...

 

[37401]

Yeah timings and such kept hidden for obvious reasons

Prince charles's gen and noone elses capeish!

 

[David Pemberton]

The charity that I work for has organized many of the visits for HRH's itinerary this week. My boss is spending most of his time on the train including an overnight stay.

The train has a couple of additional benefits - whilst it is travelling between visits HRH uses it for meetings with business people and supporters of his charities so it makes very good use of his time. We find that an invite to a meeting on the train is rarely turned down (even by the least charitable people) and that gives us a chance to ask them to help us.

I've never been on (or near the train) but several of my colleagues have. I was green with envy when one colleague was unexpectedly "given a lift home" to Grantham. The train made an unscheduled stop and she was the only one to alight - I'll leave you to imagine the looks from the people on the platform.

I think some people underestimate the amount of "work" the Royal transport does beyond conveying the Royal family. For example a huge amount of Britannia's time was for trade missions/meetings.

 

[brianthegiant]

they just passed beeston today en route to nottingham, thought they looked a bit streamlined for coal wagons behind the EWS/DB Locos in the distance...German royal family pulled by German Locos...