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BBC commissions 'slow TV-like' live trainspotting show


The newly-commissioned Trainspotting Live on BBC Four will see veteran host Peter Snow and expert friends delight as different trains speed past on major railway lines.

Another plus is the rather attractive Dr Hannah Fry.... ;)

couldn't resist a Google

Any ideas as to when this will hit our TV screens ?.

Daily through Wednesday 13th & not weekly.

Interesting to note the Open University are involved.

Peter meets poet and rail fan Ian McMillan, challenging him to write a new poem about the iconic Flying Scotsman to images filmed by members of the public as the train went on a recent journey. Dr Hannah Fry adds mathematical insight to these incredible machines by exploring how these massive engines stay on the rails and the effect that the rail network had on timekeeping across the whole of the country.

Engineer Dick Strawbridge is in Doncaster on the trail of a workhorse of the network, the Class 66, and he also visits the National Railway Museum in York to explore how this most British of pastimes began. With spotters based across the length and breadth of the country, including resident spotter Tim Dunn in the Scottish Highlands tracking down the only steam engine working on the line during the live programme, Trainspotting Live provides a snapshot of the whole network during the hour, providing analysis and context, and revelling in this unique and wonderful world.

Peter is joined by Bob Gwynne, curator at the National Railway Museum, to apply his incredible knowledge of the British rail system to the live images coming in. Hannah is out and about at Didcot, working out the equations that meant that the move from steam to diesel power was inevitable. She also meets Sir Kenneth Grange, the man responsible for many design classics including the famous Intercity 125 which is this episode's focus for the spotters up and down the country. Dick Strawbridge is on the hunt for a very special example of that train in Swindon, and also meets the group trying to buy and preserve the original prototype. Tim Dunn has moved south to Carlisle to spot one of the trainspotters' favourite locomotives, the Class 37. All of this, plus a man that has collected thousands of locomotive number plates and a short film about the 'flying banana'.

In this final episode of the series from Didcot, Dr Hannah Fry and Peter Snow look towards the future of rail travel. Hannah explores how the timetables work and whether they can squeeze in extra capacity in the future. She also looks back to what the future could have looked like had Brunel's broad gauge track system become the standard over a hundred years ago. Engineer Dick Strawbridge meets some young volunteers who are preserving locomotives and learning the engineering techniques to keep the network running, and he is live from Clapham Junction, one of the busiest commuter rail stations in Europe. Tim Dunn is after another live rare spot, a mail train which runs cards and letters around Britain and is powered by a unique class of locomotive. He also gets to ride on a train so futuristic it isn't even on the network yet. Back at Didcot, Peter is joined by Gerry Barney, who designed the British Rail logo, something that has stayed constant through years of rail upheaval and is still a design classic today.

...having watched the former on more late night OU recordings than you could shake a stick at!!!  ;D

I've not seen those in years! Shame they don't show them overnight on the BBC any more, mostly they were deadly boring although once in a while a memorable programme would pop up! As you correctly mention, most were presented by very wooden, bearded characters mostly wearing tweed Blazers with elbow patches...

Fry and Laurie did it very well!!!

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=1970s+open+university+lecturer&&view=detail&mid=DB6519DF8361F630A523DB6519DF8361F630A523&FORM=VRDGAR

"Now back up to Doncaster, where dick spotting continues!"

"There's trains everywhere!!!"

Very amateurish. For example I think they were talking about the class 43 named "Squadron Leader Harold Starr" and showed a clip of an IC125 pulling into a platform, which presumably was supposed to be that locomotive, but I don't think it was. The clip ran on for a while, so I thought "maybe it is the rear power car", but before the rear power car was visible they cut to a green set (43005 if I recall correctly).

Also, was it me or did somebody say they had spotted a class 155 at Swindon? If so, was there really one (and if so why) or was it a slip of the tounge, or a novice trainspotter mistaking a pair of 153s for a 155?

Full marks to GWR for ensuring the diagram of 43002 "Sir Kenneth Grange" meant a timely appearance at Swindon platform 3.  :)

I thought, but may well be wrong, they were talking about class 150s at Swindon but can't sure.

Pulling into Maidenhead last night on the Bourne End train, there was a SouthWest trains' DMU which had stopped just short of the platform on the down relief (I don't know what class it was).  ???

They are addressing the Great British Public, some of whom own clocks that only go up to 12.

Nonetheless, if you say 23:45, it is completely superfluous to add PM to it. Much in the same way as stating prices in the format £1.99p or the dreaded grocers apostrophes! Don't try to spoil the fun for us pedants!   ;D

Nonetheless, if you say 23:45, it is completely superfluous to add PM to it. Much in the same way as stating prices in the format £1.99p or the dreaded grocers apostrophes! Don't try to spoil the fun for us pedants!   ;D

For those pedants amongst us, what is the difference between the times 12am and 12pm?
One states 12 hours before midday and the other states 12 hours after midday, so both strictly relate to midnight.
If used properly, neither time actually exists, being correctly stated as 12midnight and 12noon!

For those pedants amongst us ... both strictly relate to midnight.

For those pedants amongst us, what is the difference between the times 12am and 12pm?
One states 12 hours before midday and the other states 12 hours after midday, so both strictly relate to midnight.
If used properly, neither time actually exists, being correctly stated as 12midnight and 12noon!

I watched the start of Trainspotting Live on Monday.  This show, together with Peter Snow’s presentation style, was clearly aimed at people (or the children of people) who watch The One Show.

I turned off after 30 minutes and cancelled the planned recordings.

Watched episode 1 last night and it really was rubbish wasn't it!  Some of the recorded items were fine, but the contrived "live" element was just embarrassingly bad.  Neither of the presenters were experts.  Peter Snow kept talking about "freightliners"  which weren't and Hannah Fry seemed to be there solely to add some glamour and irrelevant equations.   I did enjoy the guy from NRM because he knew a bit about the trains and had a constant grin which suggested he thought that the presenters were clueless.   

And by the railways, 2359 or 0001 hrs, although they do try to be on time it seems like the nearest ten minutes as well sometimes.