Author Archives: Paul Bigland

Cambridgeshire day 4…

05 Tuesday Sep 2023

Posted by in Aircraft, Cambridgeshire, Duxford, History, Imperial War Museum, Photography

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Today we only had one destination in mind. The Imperial War Museum’s airfield at Duxford. We knew there was so much to see that we gave ourselves an entire day to see it – and we were very glad we did! Even we hadn’t appreciated just how large the aircraft collections are – and it’s not just aircraft either (more about that later).

We’d also decided on an early start as we knew today was going to be a hot-one weatherwise, although you wouldn’t have known that at 07:30 this morning. This was the view from our verandah with early morning mist obscuring the nearby fishing ponds – hardly flying weather – even for Ducks!

Now, unless you have an interest in aircraft and military or social history, Duxford probably isn’t for you. It’s not cheap to get in, and adult ticket (with a donation included) is £29, but when you see what’s preserved there and what goes on in the way of aircraft restoration and maintenance, you realise it’s not an bad price to pay. The museum’s also still an active airfield, so there’s always a series of aircraft taking off and landing with some providing commercial trips. Today this varied from civil light aircraft through to vintage Tiger Moth biplanes and a twin seater Spitfire, PT462. Costs vary considerably, with the Spitfire (understandably) being the most expensive, but if you have a spare few grand in your back pocket…

There was a procession of other aircraft in the air too. Single-seater Spitfires and Hurricanes kept the air full of the sound of Rolls Royce Merlin engines, as did an American P51 ‘Mustang’. The bigger aircraft stayed on the ground today but a PBY ‘Catalina’ flying boat and an American B17 ‘Flying Fortress’ basked in the sun for all to admire. Here’s a few pictures from our visit.

North American AT-16 Harvard IIB.
You don’t normally see a German V1 rocket displayed on the original ‘ski ramp’ launcher complete with propellant system. The old hangers and buildings are stuffed with aircraft and other memorabilia from the site’s time as an operational military airfield.
Hurricane Mk1 No V7497 was built in 1940 and is back in the air. You can learn more about the aircraft here.
A Sea Fury under restoration in one of the hangers. They way some of these planes are restored to airworthiness when some are little more than wrecks is truly amazing.
Some of the aircraft aren’t what you’d called tiddlers. Here’s a Handley Page Victor, built as one of the V-bombers that carried the UKs original nuclear deterrent.
In the same hall is one of the two surviving TSR-2 aircraft. The project was cancelled before the planes went into service, sparking lots of debate as to how good they *could* have been to this day.
Fans of the spoof Twitter site ‘RAF Luton’ will know this aircraft well as the English Electric Canberra features all the time. This brought memories for John as he maintained these planes out in Cyprus during his national service.

As well as aircraft there’s a whole building dedicated to land warfare at the far end of the site. This includes tanks and guns from world war 1 onwards, with some of the most recent being the most sobering as they’re fighting in the Ukraine right now. Former Soviet Union BMP1 and BTR80 armoured personnel carriers are used by both sides, whilst 14 of the British Challenger 2 tanks on display with them have been supplied to the Ukrainians (the first one ever to be destroyed in combat was reported today).

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Cambridgeshire day 3…

04 Monday Sep 2023

Posted by in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, History, Photography, Transport, Travel

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The summer we’ve never had arrived with a vengeance today. Here in the middle of nowhere we woke up to clear blue skies and mist over the fishing ponds, which made for quite a sight. Breakfast over we piled into the car to drive to the Madingley Road park and ride site to the West of Cambridge, where we swapped the car for a bus to get us into the centre of town. It’s a great service. Good quality double-decker buses run every 10 minutes and cost £3.50 return. Helping to keep Cambridge traffic and pollution free and be the sort of city I wish more UK towns aspired to, rather being in the thrall of the motoring lobby.

. Once in the centre of town we had a wander to find options for onward travel. I’ve visited Cambridge several times although I’ve not explored the city centre for a while. The Platt’s have never done so. Dawn had hit on a plan of taking her parents on the open-top bus tour, which would allow them to see the sights and save their legs. So, whilst they did that I took the camera for a walk to indulge two of my other loves, architecture and street photography.

I love looking around a place where you come across completely random stuff like this. Ever wonder where the expression ‘Hobson’s Choice’ came from? Wonder no more…

My perambulations took me back to Bridge Street which was familiar territory. I was only when I got there and sat down to watch the world go by that I realised ‘familiar’ was 22 years in the past! The last time I’d been here was when I was living in London and I took my ‘daughter’ here. I should explain. I don’t actually have a daughter but a young lady whom Lynn and I first met in Australia and who came to stay with us in London called us ‘Mum and Dad’ so we reciprocated.

Here’s how Bridge St looked during our visit in 2001. Here’s how it looks today.

I hung around here as I wanted to catch pictures of the way people travel in out and around a city that isn’t choked by cars. Here’s a couple of examples.

Active travel. A carry bike that can be used for numerous things, from children to shopping, business to leisure.
Inactive travel and a form I have issues with. E-scooters. What problem are they actually solving? Even the regulated ones litter the streets. Unregulated ones are even worse as they’re not speed limited (you really don’t want to get hit by either) and from my experience in various countries they’re mostly used by young people for joyriding rather than as an alternative to other transport modes – except walking.

Here’s an inactive mode Cambridge has become synonymous with, but what the hell! It only expends someone’s muscle power and adds a lot of money to the local economy as hiring these punts ain’t cheap!

Tomorrow we’re having a different experience as we’re visiting the Imperial War Museum at Duxford. John (Dawn’s dad) did his National Service in the RAF, so there’s family history as well has national history here.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Cambridgeshire day 2…

03 Sunday Sep 2023

Posted by in Cambridgeshire, Musings, Photography, Railways, Travel

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It may be tardy but summer’s finally arrived. We’ve had great weather all day here in Cambridgeshire, although looking at the stressed state of some of the local trees I suspect there’s been a lot less rain here over the summer than we’ve had up in God’s own country.

After a leisurely morning we headed over to Ely, a town I’m very familiar with but one the Platt family had never visited before. On the way in I gave the folks a bit of a run-down on local history, including that of why there’s now a Southern bypass due to the number of HGVs that used to get stuck on the level crossing or jammed under the adjacent low bridge. I’d no idea how useful a lesson it would be until we parked at the station and prepared to walk down to the river. All of a sudden there was a hell of a bang and crunching noise from behind the trees masking the road. I knew what had happened straight away. This…

And the moral of the story is – always know the height of your vehicle…

To add to the drivers distress and embarrassment, there was a weeding party a few meters away who were about to board this vehicle. Needless to say, the wedding guests phone cameras were out capturing pictures of the added entertainment. Nice bus tho’…

Walking into town the Platt’s first stop was Costa coffee, which gave me chance to dash to the tourist office for leaflets, check out a few of the sightseeing opportunities and grab a swift pint before we moved on to the Cathedral. You don’t have to be religious or an architectural buff to appreciate the magnificence of Ely cathedral (although they’d help) as it’s truly a stunning building with a fascinating history.

Looking up into the cathedral tower…

The family were all impressed and moved by the building and the atmosphere within it. If you ever get chance to visit – do. I doubt you’ll be disappointed.

Having done our spiritual duties we moved onto more temporal concerns by stopping for a drink by the river Great Ouse at the Cutter Inn which has a great selection of food and drink – as well as great views along the river. We managed to bag a table outside which allowed views like this.

Two excellent forms of transport meet at Ely.

Whilst we were relaxing we were rudely interrupted by this critter above us – which we hadn’t even noticed until it started cooing like it was auditioning for a part in a Cuckoo clock!

Good to see those anti pigeon spikes work. Having seen the way this Dove’s defeated static defenses I can only assume it must be Ukrainian…

Now we’re back at home, relaxing and digesting the excellent coq au vin that Dawn had set up in the slow cooker before we left. Tomorrow we head to Cambridge – another first for the Platts…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Rolling blog. Cambridgeshire day 1…

02 Saturday Sep 2023

Posted by in Cambridgeshire, Photography, Rolling blogs, Travel

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09:00.

Good morning from Saxon mound (as this collection of chalets is named). I was up first and had a lovely solo interlude sitting on the balcony overlooking the lakes, sipping coffee whilst watching the Coot, Ducks and Herons on the fishing lakes. Now the house is awake and the rest of the family are indulging in the same sport. Thankfully, I remembered to bring the binoculars this time!

Now it’s time for a leisurely breakfast before heading out to explore. Feel free to pop back and see what we get up to…

19:30. Well that was a crap ‘rolling blog’, wasn’t it? The reality was we were too busy moving around and I was too busy acting as tour guide and Dawn’s navigator to be able to update the blog. So from now on I’ll only do a daily update – bearing in mind I’m in company and meant to be on holiday. I could write volumes about today as we visited some really interesting places, many of which I’ve never seen before. Our first stop was to explore the nearby village where we just had to stop so that I could get a picture of this.

Moving on our first proper stop was at St Ives (no, not the one in Cornwall) which is a lovely little place with shedloads of history, a relaxed feel and some lovely buildings. There’s also a very rare bridge across the river in that it’s only one of four left in the country that contains a chapel as part of its structure.

The bridge across the Ouse at St Ives has a fascinating history. The old chapel in the centre is one of only four left and that’s had an interesting and varied life too…
“You – boy” – the statue of Cromwell in St Ives.

We really enjoyed our visit to St Ives – a place we’ll be popping back to again before we go as it’s only up the road. Our next stop? Maybe not – although Huntingdon was interesting in a different way. The old county town certainly has a lot of history. It was the birthplace of Oliver Cromwell, became a battleground between Royalists and Cavaliers during the English Civil War, and has later political ‘form’ as the constituency of former Conservative Prime Minister John Major. The town centre’s been knocked about a bit since I was last here 30 years ago, but there’s still a lot of old buildings that remain, including a lovely old pub called the Falcon Tavern at the back of the market square. I spotted it so popped in for a pint when I was checking out the sights whilst the rest of the family had gone for their Costa coffee fix. Having seen the Falcon had Hopback ‘Summer Lightning’ on tap and outside seating in the sun I couldn’t resist. As usual, my camera proved a talking point and I soon ended up in conversation with some of the pub regulars who were an interesting and eclectic bunch. Lets put it this way, I don’t think any of them voted for John Major when he was the sitting MP!

Once the combined coffee/beer break was over I took the trio to the Cromwell museum in the square. Its’ only small but a really interesting place as it makes you realise some what you thought you knew about Cromwell (and the Puritans) was Victorian make-believe. The very helpful and informative young lady staffing the single-room museum really added to our visit thanks to her own knowledge and interest in Cromwell. There’s good reasons for the Scots, Welsh and Irish to have an intense dislike of him but the idea that he ‘abolished’ Christmas (that was Parliament, not Cromwell) or that he was intolerant of other faiths and denominations (he wasn’t) are fictions. Oh, the idea the Puritans always wore black is cobblers too. Apparently, black dye was expensive, so they were far more colourful than people think.

Versions of Cromwells death mask on display in the museum.
A single-room museum that fits a lot in. I’d certainly recommend a visit.

Suitably enlightened we headed home to enjoy the rest of the evening rejoicing in the dying rays of the sun before Dawn got her chef’s hat on and cooked the evening meal. Nothing fancy today – we just had fish and chips, but what a great end to the day!

Relaxing after tour guide duties.
Time to eat…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Rolling blog. Cambridgeshire here we come…

01 Friday Sep 2023

Posted by in Cambridgeshire, Railways, Rolling blogs, Travel

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12:20.

Well, almost! I’m sat at Dawn’s parents. Having repacked the car with all our stuff we’re just waiting for Madame, who’s gone off to have her nails done whilst we sorted out the jigsaw of suitcases, shoes and jackets plus the bags of condiments and spices we always take with us. The weather’s done its best to delay us by throwing the odd shower our way but the job’s done. Now we’re waiting on our driver…

13:20.

We’re now en-route…

13:55.

The joy of the M1 motorway – but only for 11 miles before we cut across country to the A1.

14:45.

Having left the M1 we cut across country on the A57 which passes South of Worksop.It’s not the most scenic of routes, it’s also very busy. But anyone who remembers the miners strike of 1984-85 will recognise some of the names – like Manton, and Thoresby.

A lot of housing in the area looks like it was built by the council or National Coal Board. Unlovely houses for the most, many haven’t improved as now it’s like living in a car-park as what once were gardens have been concreted over.

Right now we’re heading South on the A1, fortunate that we’re not going in the opposite direction as an accident by the junction where we joined the road has caused a tailback several miles long.

17:00.

We’ve made a slight detour to a very pleasant place to stop for coffee where you can admire the scenery. Rutland Water.

19:00.

We’ve arrived, unloaded the car and started to settle in. We’re all really impressed with the accommodation, which is one of a new group of five chalets just outside the village of Elsworth.

There’s certainly plenty of space…
Both bedrooms are doubles. This one’s en-suite. The other has a bathroom opposite.
The chalets are constructed from ‘timber’ made from recycled plastic so both hard wearing and eco-friendly.
The view from the deck which overlooks a pair of well-stocked fishing lakes. There’s a tackle shop on site. The woods in the background are a SSSI so protected and off limits.

It seems that even here I can’t get away from railways! In 1946 the local church recruited a new Rector. His name? The Reverend Wilbert Awdry, who wrote the ‘Thomas the tank engine’ children’s books! Apparently, there’s a blue plaque in his honor on the vicarage, which I’ll have to seek out.

22:15.

Time to bring this blog to a close. The trip down here was pretty good and what we’ve seem on our foray to the Waitrose supermarket in St Ives makes us want to spend tomorrow reconnoitering the area so we can decide where we’d like to spend more time. The weather’s certainly a lot better than where we’ve come from and the forecast is looking good. I might even be able to break out the shorts and sandals!

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

31st August picture of the day…

31 Thursday Aug 2023

Posted by in Aircraft, Cambridgeshire, Photography, Picture of the day, Travel

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The last blog of August’s only a short one as the pair of us are preparing for a few days away in Cambridgeshire starting tomorrow which means there’ll be a series of blogs and pictures from a different neck of the woods for a while. Dawn found an interesting opportunity at some new lodges where the price was just too good to resist, so we’re heading down there with her parents for a few days R&R in the hope we might actually get some summer weather. The place we’re staying at is just 30 mins away from the Imperial War Museum at Duxford which Dee’s dad (who did his national service in the RAF) has always wanted to explore. We went once to see the recreation of a WW2 ‘big wing’ which brought 22 Spitfire aircraft together but we’ve never explored the museum building or static aircraft exhibits so we thought. it’s time we did. Mind you, I’m the only one who knows Cambridgeshire, for the Platt family it’s pretty much virgin territory, so I’m going to be wearing a tour guide’s hat for the next week as I show them around the likes of Cambridge and Ely.

I’ll be having one day off to do some railway stuff which will give me another opportunity for blogging as I explore, although I’ve no firm plans for where I’m going yet, that depends on a client’s shot list arriving in my inbox tomorrow.

Right now it’s time to go. I’ve got stuff to prepare and a cottage to sort out for the folks who’ll be looking after it whilst we’re away. I’ll leave you with an image from the last time we visited Duxford. The chance to see so many vintage Spitfires is a rare one, but in 2015…

10 of the 22 Spitfires in flight at Duxford in September 2015. If you’ve any interest in planes powered by Rolls-Royce Merlin engines you can just imagine how this sounded.

You can see some more pictures of the aircraft we saw at Duxford here.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

30th August picture of the day…

30 Wednesday Aug 2023

Posted by in India, Photography, Picture of the day, Travel

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Not quite the sort of day I’d hoped for here at Bigland Towers, but I know Dawn feels exactly the same because poor Dee’s spent most of the curled up in bed as she’s been struck down by a migraine. Enter ‘nurse Paul’ stage left to try and persuade that sleep is the best thing and I’ll take care of the rest. I’ve not suffered from migraines since I was a teenager so I really count myself lucky – especially when I can see the effect they have on Dee. I really feel for her – especially when they’re as bad as this one, which is (thankfully) a rare occurrence but shit when it happens.

This means much of my day’s been spent in the office opposite the bedroom so I’m close at hand. That’s not been a problem as I’ve lots to do and the day’s been productive as I’ve all the archive pictures I’d mentioned edited and up on my Zenfolio website. You can find them here.

Tempting as it is – I’m not going to get into a political spleen-venting, despite there being so, so much to rant about right now. Rishi flying from London to Norwich by helicopter (don’t get me started). Nigel Farage advising his slack-jawed supporters how to avoid inheritance tax? Former Tory leader Ian Duncan Smith from the party of ‘law and order’ endorsing vigilantes smashing ULEZ cameras? The list is endless. This country’s becoming beyond parody. Still, in a couple of days I’ll be able to take a step back from the madness – sort of – to take a break in Cambridgeshire and act as guide for Dawn and her parents in a part of the country none of them know. I’ll still blog, but my spleen will be restrained – honest!

For now I’ll leave you with today’s picture. Well, when I think what it is – because right now I’ve no idea which one to use *quickly rummages through the files*. Ah, how about this? One of today’s tasks was to look up hotel recommendations for friends who’re off to India in December. I mentioned that when you’re staying in Delhi a hotel with a rooftop restaurant is ideal. This is the place I’ve recommended, in the Paharganj area. I’ve stayed there many a time. On this particular occasion back on the 7th December 2010 I was in the city arranging an interview with the head of the Delhi Metro Corporation whilst also proofreading a friends book. IIRC it was Michael Williams first ‘on the slow train’ series.

You can find many more pictures of that trips Indian adventures here. It’s a shame I wasn’t blogging then as they were very interesting times! Hopefully, I’ll be out in that neck of the woods soon – ish!

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

29th August picture(s) of the day…

29 Tuesday Aug 2023

Posted by in British Railways (BR), East-West rail, Hs2, Photography, Picture of the day, Rail Investment

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There’s a short blog from me I’ve been up to my neck in archive pictures for most of the day. Not because I’d planned it that way but because I had a rather unusual request which involved digging through various hard-drives to find pictures of a particular event going back 20 years, which took a fair bit of digging. I haven’t looked at one of the hard drives for several years so I was relieved to find what I was looking for – and more! I rediscovered some pictures I’d filed away and thought were lost which would have been frustrating as they’re of historic interest now. To be honest, it was a good day for being stuck in the office as we had another morning of torrential rain. I had to walk into Sowerby Bridge for an appointment and ended up wearing my full set of waterproofs to do so – not something I expected to be doing at the end of August!

I’ll be spending much of tomorrow to complete the exercise and also to add some more of the pictures I’ve discovered to my Zenfolio website, starting with images from what’s now the new East-West rail link. I visited the line in 2011 when the idea was still being considered and long before construction actually started. Here’s one such shot taken at a location that’s unrecognisable today – and not just because of E-W rail, but also HS2.

This is Calvert in Buckinghamshire. Looking West towards L&NE junction and the single line to Bicester beyond. A spur runs off to the left towards Calvert and the old Great Central line. Only one thing in this shot remains intact (but not for long) which is the road overbridge in the distance. This picture was taken on the 11th August 2011 from the Addison Rd overbridge, which has also disappeared although it’s replacement has yet to open.

Here’s the same view almost exactly a decade later on the 23rd June 2021

The tall piling rig is standing where High Speed 2 will pass from Left to Right, underneath the reopened E-W rail link, the trackbed of which is being raised to almost the level of the old overbridge beyond. Meanwhile, the land to the right of the picture is being transformed as it’s the site of the HS2 Infrastructure Maintenance Depot (IMD) and sidings.

Here’s a more recent picture. I can’t do an exact comparison as Addison Rd is still closed. But here’s how the area looked on the 1st August this year.

Taken from further East, this is the new Addison Rd bridge under construction. The E-W trackbed has been widened on the Northern side to accomodate the tracks which will lead into the IMD.

How things change in 12 years! You can find more E-W rail construction pictures here. It’s the place you’ll be able to find the 2011 pictures too when I’ve had chance to add them tomorrow.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Bank holiday blues…

28 Monday Aug 2023

Posted by in Musings, Photography, Politics, Railways

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Excuse me? This is the August bank holiday, the only one actually in that season we in the UK regard as summer. So where’s the summer weather? In fact, where was the summer? OK, I shouldn’t complain too much as we’ve hardly had any rain at all here in the Calder valley today which goes against bank holiday traditions, but honestly – what a low key event. Admittedly, Dawn and I hadn’t got anything planned as we’ve got a busy September ahead. Even so, the idea of sitting out in the garden with a G&T whilst soaking up the sun wouldn’t have gone amiss.

Instead, the pair of us have spent much of the say slaving over keyboards. The other day I had a conversation via Twitter (Musk, you can do one – I refuse to call it X) about the state of some of the old BR built diesel trains and the amount of corrosion repairs many of them had undergone. Then I looked for the pictures I’d taken, realised they weren’t on my website so went hunting. It’s a long story that involves tales of why you should keep a central database and not lots of different folders – but I eventually found them.

The interior of one of the cars of 150257. Note the bottom of the steel skin of the car has been chopped off to deal with corrosion of the bodyshell ribs. The condition of the car frames due to water ingress condensation is also evident. You can find more pictures from here.

Whilst these shots were taken in November 2017 they’ve become rather topical as replacement of these train fleets is back on the agenda as Northern have expressed for expressions of interest in building new ones to replace them. And that’s part of a bigger story. These old diesel trains date from 1985-86. Due to government inertia and dither on electrifying more of the UKs rail network we’re sending far greener and more modern electric trains to the scrapyard – like the Government owned (it’s a long story) class 365s built a decade later in 1995. Meanwhile, we have even more modern electric trains – the class 379s built in 2010 which are stored with no prospects of working for the foreseeable future.

Now, you’d think that a Transport Minister who’s supposed to be thinking about such things may be exercising his mind to solve the problem? But no. Mark Harper is too busy fighting culture wars and proving just how unfit for the job he is – hence this utterly ridiculous tweet.

The Government doesn’t have the ‘legal power’ to stop it? Either this is a blatant lie (it is) or Harper hasn’t got a clue how UK democracy works (possible) or both (likely). Because the truth is the UK Parliament is sovereign and can make or change whatever laws it likes. And let’s not even get into the fact ULEZ was a Tory policy and one they’ve pinned on Sadiq Khan. Plus, there’s the fact most Londoners (who actually want to breather clean air) support ULEZ. So, you can see why the Dept of Transport is in a mess. It’s ‘led’ by a politician who’s a bit like a tortoise atop a fencepost.

OK, I’ve digressed from Bank holidays to a rant about useless politicians. Sorry (not sorry) about that. Anyway, I hope you’ve all enjoyed your day off – if you’ve had one…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

26th August picture(s) of the day…

26 Saturday Aug 2023

Posted by in Food and drink, Photography, Picture of the day, Railways, West Yorkshire

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Vegetarians may want to skip this blog…

We’ve had another quiet Saturday here at Bigland Towers, partly because we’re preparing for a lot of adventures in September. Well, that and the fact the weather’s been shocking. August? It feels more like Autumn. Today the mercury’s struggled to get over the mid teens, making it one of the coldest Augusts for many years. Before the climate-change denialists start rubbing their hands in glee can I point out that weather isn’t the same as climate (especially global climate) – a distinction lost on these people. Look at charts of average temperatures and the picture becomes all to real – and all to frightening.

We had brunch with Dawn’s parents over in at a farm shop near Huddersfield, which led to a classic moment. Norah sometimes forgets history. John and Norah are 88 and 82, during a conversation Norah asked ‘what was it like for you growing up during the war love’? The Scouser in me immediately kicked in and said ‘which war, the Boer war’? I couldn’t help but laugh at the idea Norah had me pegged as older than her and John. That reminds me, maybe I should put in a bulk order for anti-wrinkle cream. Or maybe just keep a portrait in the attic…

After brunch the pair of us ventured into Halifax to do some clothes shopping. Well, I should clarify. Dawn was doing some clothes shopping yet I still came back with some new schmutter due to Dee ‘suggesting’ I needed some new polo tops. Who was I to argue?

Afterwards we popped into our local pub (The big 6) for a drink and a giggle with friends and locals – and dogs! The pub’s always been very dog friendly and the attentions and actions of the local pooches can be just as entertain as some of the human visitors.

Another source of entertainment was the weather I mentioned earlier as we were prevented from venturing out earlier due to thunderstorms and torrential rain. We thought July was a washout but August’s giving it a run for its money. On the bright side, clinging to the side of the Calder valley as we do – we get a grandstand view of the storms approaching and the rain blanking out Sowerby Bridge before it hits us. It’s rare that the rain sneaks up on us here.

Walking back from the pub to skies like this…

Now we’re having a quiet night at home. Dee’s busy in the kitchen (it’s her turn and her choice) preparing steak in peppercorn sauce with garlic mushrooms, potatoes and green beans. We eat steak once in a blue moon but today Dee decided today was the day – and it was delicious! Having eaten our fill the local foxes will be dining on the fat.

At the and of next week we’ll be leaving the life of domestic behind as we’ll both be on the road so I’ll be bringing you a variety of blogs from different parts of the UK. In the meantime (wherever you are in the UK) enjoy the last bank holiday of the year. To my other readers spread around the world – don’t worry – you’re not missing much!

This brings me on to today’s other picture which was taken at Sheffield station the other day. Sadly, not all wildlife is railway savvy, especially birdlife. Peasants being particularly dumb but pigeons aren’t far behind. Still, the pigeon/train interface often provides lunch for other animals. In this scenario it was a case of fine dining for crows…

‘Fancy a takeaway’?

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312