Great Western Coffee Shop

Morning

Seen as there have been quite a few threads of late
regarding historic Penmere and St.Ives e.t.c, I
found something that people who look at this forum
may be interest in.

The excelent "B&R Video Productions" has come out
with a video/DVD of long since closed and surviving
lines in Cornwall, shot on 'Super 8' cine film in the
late 1950s and 60s.  The only strech it doesn't covr is
the North Cornwall line, but does include Wadebridge to
Padstow and the line through Boscarne Junction.  This
production covers all other branch lines undethly and
also industrail narrow gauge and private owner
complexes.  It has some footage on rarely fimed stations
such as Grampound Road, Scorrier and Marizion
stations all in colour!

Various steam locos are seen ranging from 57XX to 28XX,
Grange, Manor and castle plus indepth footage from the last
steam hauled train, "The Cornabian" with 34002 "Sailsbury".
Early diesels such as c22 Hydrulics 'Baby Sad Eyes' D800
and 'Westerns' are also shown with c116, 117, 118, 120
and c122 DMU's.  There is something for everyone in this
production!

Details, if you wish to obtain a copy are:

www.BandRVideos.co.uk

^19.95 plus ^2.00 P&P.

In there you find details of this and new/other realises.
Click on the "Wolverton Rail" link, this will be helpful,
as  they have a complete list of all titles produced so
far which is around 137.  Lots of other lines in
the SW, Avon and Southern areas are catered for.
It is worth a look, I have a dozen or so of their titles
and have always been extremely impressed with the quaility
and varity of their products, I'm very picky about my railway
video/DVD's!!!

Regards

Karl.

It does help Karl, if you put the title in which
is: Vol. 129 The Jim Clemens Collection No 22
"Steam Into Cornwall".

Regards

Karl.

Have seen that DVD, is VERY impressive, shows plenty of footage of the Helston branch and the Chasewater to Newquay branch which were very rarely filmed!

Morning

It is, isn't it!!  One of the reasons why I decided
the forum readers may be interested, plus the Clemens
also did an extreme amount of filming of other areas
in the SW, GWR part of the Home Counties and quite a
lot of the Southern lines; seen as we have members
posting from these quarters!  I have all there NE
titles and to be honest, I was astounded when I was
watching footage of Tweedmouth Station, Tweed Valley and
Cornhill branches in Vol 123, which is the first DVD I
had these featured in footage in 10 years of looking; I
have family connections ex Tweedmouth shed.

As I said the BandR and Wolverton sites (main stockist),
are worth a look, as I'm sure there are other groups,
working line parties that are members of this forum,
may be interested in some old footage of there station
or line.  Vol 129 helped us with Penmere and the
lastest running-in-board was copied using the footage
of Penmere in this production, plus has also put our
thoery of 1971 in doubt, as to when the buildingsn there
were knocked down.

As said, something for everyone!

Regards

Karl.

It is indeed a fantastic dvd, a must have for all interested in Cornish railways and the footage of the Helston & Chacewater branches, as Vacman said, is excellent. Incidentally the LSWR/SR Cornish lines are covered in Volume 69 of the same series, entitled The Withered Arm.

I'm waiting for someone to produce one  focussing on the diesel hydraulic era in Cornwall. The best I've seen thus far is "Western Heroes", which deals with the WR as a whole but contains some fantastic footage of the Westerns & Warships in the far west, including cab ride clips. The two sequences I'd most like to see would be footage of a Hymek in Cornwall and a diminutive Class 22 on the Helston branch.
 
 

Afternoon

Andy 'I don't think' Hymeks were that common west
of Plymouth.  Talking to some mates who are ex BR
there were a few new on trials, plus one did go
down the Falmouth branch on a railtour once c1969!

The "Western Hero" title, is there more than one
Western Hero Video/DVD produced by "Globe Videos"?
If so which one is it?

www.railvideo.com

Regards

Karl.

Karl, "Globe Videos" have 4 "Western" titles:
Western Heroes, Western Legacy, Western Renaissance & Western Blues. I've got the first two and from a 'Cornish' point of view "Western Heroes" is more interesting as two chapters are devoted to hydraulics in the Duchy (including a Warship triple header out of Hayle!) with a further two or three dealing with Devon.

It does seem that Hymeks were rare in Cornwall, though I have seen one or two photos of Hymeks, a couple at Penzance and also Liskeard. Apparently, they worked the motorail turn from St Austell for a while. The "Baby Warships" were short-lived on the Helston line in the 60's, too, so I'm maybe wishing for the moon in both cases!
 

The price of B & R Vol.129 "Steam into Cornwall" is now ^19.75 INCLUDING Post & packing. I've got lots in stock as it's a popular title. B & R dvds are usually post free to UK addresses. DVDs from other publishers, including the Globe Video Western DVDs (also available from my web site), have ^1.25 P & P. Sorry if it sound like a commercial.. I didn't intend it to.

Another good one is B & R Vol.69 "The Withered Arm" (^14.99 inc P & P) and also Vol.125 "Steam into Devon" (^19.75 inc P & P).

I remember the Westerns very well. My parents used to holiday in Cornwall & to keep me happy, used to park in a layby (it is still there) at Trerule Foot & you could hear the fantastic sound of those twin Maybachs as the Westerns tackled the bank. We also used to get a lot of Westerns at Wolverton on the stone trains. The "Newport Nobby" bay was relaid to form a headshunt from the stone terminal (stone for building Milton Keynes). The headshunt is now long gone...

Best Regards... Ian
ian@wolvertonrail.co.uk

Welcome aboard, Ian - good to see you posting. I've ordered a couple of DVDs myself as it happens, purely out of nostalgia for a couple of lines I knew well - I was born next to one station and later moved to within earshot of another along the "Strawberry Line", and later moved to Wiltshire just in time to see the Devizes branch being dismantled. As Karl says, a fantastic selection and a number of irresistable titles (well, irresistable to me anyway!)

Yes, welcome to the coffee shop, Ian!

And Phil, I didn't know you are an ex-Strawberry Line resident!  Which stations?  It's my local dismantled branch line - still full of character, even just walking the trackbed these days: it must have been a lovely train ride, in the sadly distant past!

I was born near Wookey, went to school in Wells, travelled on the final scheduled steam-hauled train out of Wells (to Salisbury) and then moved to Winscombe when I was 8. Lived just by Shute Shelve Tunnel for the next 5 or 6 years, went to school at the back of Winscombe station, and saw the line dismantled. Let's talk more about it offline sometime, Chris!

You should start a preservation movement!

They are in the post, yesterday :-)

Best Regards....
Ian
ian@wolvertonrail.co.uk