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Another early start and this time it's to the Kirkby bus running day at the museum which is is certainly one of the fastest growing collections at present and seems to evoke the pioneering spirit which sees many ventures either flourish or fail. Thankfully so far it's all been the former and on a bitterly cold and damp late spring Sunday the ranks of the museum were swollen by numerous visiting buses which had braved the elements and had confidence in the weather forecast that all would be well in the end. Perhaps an annoying habit of many at running days is to take all and give nothing, I've commented before that this day reminds me of an early Lincoln but it shares the problem that people will just ride all day and not purchase a programme or done or in our case call in and have a look at the stands. It's been two years supporting a young event with the PMP stand and there were signs that it could have developed there for us but now the amount of sales stands outweigh any possible sales. I would certainly recommend the event and in future I think I'd just attend for the fun of the day and to enjoy the experience without Mandy getting as cold as she was today and needed to get back in to a warm atmosphere before her legs just folded. Possibly there are other events which are like this , better just enjoyed rather than trying to attain sales which are not there. When we got home the sun which had been shining all day lingered for a few hours then yet more rain and as one of the flower troughs is sheltered I had to water which seemed ludicrous with the amount of water falling in the day. I've taken out the trolley and Northern photos and loaded up with our Southern area photos and the South Eastern DVD stock of extras ready for Southdown 100 at Southsea next Sunday. If the weather looks good we'll take Friday off and get some filming done in the south as well as on the Saturday, certainly Brighton and Portsmouth are possible plus? Meantime some pictures from Kirkby where newly restored vehicles seem to come tumbling off the production line regularly but obviously behind this is time, sweat, skill and cash. A hectic few weeks of transport events, today we were up at 5.30 and away before 6 getting into Norwich at 9.30, we met up afterwards and had coffee and cake in Marks & Spencers. The weather was cold but mostly sunny and quite windy although tomorrow morning which sees a repeat of the early rising looks like being wet at the Kirkby running day first thing but clearing up later, with 45 visiting buses and their own collection plus launches of several buses newly refurbished/restored it looks like being a tremendous day and well worth a visit and of course we'll have a thumping great selection of PMP DVDS plus some photos. I met a very nice chap whilst filming in Norwich, it was all very pleasant no hassles at all and what a tremendous variety, seemed funny to see Stagecoach ( Norfolk Green) in Norwich although it seems there may be negotiations afoot for more big group interchanges. Anyway lots to see and good weather, I even got warm running around. Things went downhill when I went near the bus station, I'm 100% certain that the pavement id a right of way there was a road there way back and these things don't just vanish. Anyway it left a nasty taste and to compound it I got abuse from one of the park and ride drivers, council services often seem to attract a poor standard of driver though, remember the trouble in Peterborough a few years back when they used agency people. Over at Kings Lynn it was chaos, the old bus station half rebuilt closes tomorrow and reopens in a week or so meanwhile services are being placed on surrounding roads. Stagecoach have anything with 3 or more wheels on the Norfolk Green services, they have a shed full of replacements which I guess they want to launch with the revamped bus station which now has a separate entry and exit. See photos Yes we've set our destination for tomorrow as Norwich with Kings Lynn, I'm not sure if we'l;l have time for Great Yarmouth, anyway we'll get to Norwich about 10am and I hope to be moving on shortly after lunch time and late afternoon lets say Kings Lynn. I know its a trek in one day but most of the more distant rallies are in the south east this year. Another distant location is Plymouth and we'll be heading down that part of the world in August. Looking ahead I made inroads with the trip to the PMR or Transniestre whichever you prefer, we've got a local guide to take us around and arrange a trolleybus depot visit building on our last visit around a decade ago, it only seems yesterday, a short trip but two counties sort of and all trolleys , who knows perhaps I'll spot a truck route through the country, they must run near the capital at least and I don't think i got a single truck shot last time so I may do a little bit of research. We've just done a bit more work in the back garden which is really starting to come out now, I've trimmed up the edges of the lawn and we've popped along to the most local garden nursery and got three white flowering two perennial and a shrub to fill in a gap and avoid the plethora of blues and yellows that we keep getting. I was quite busy at work today although an early finish on a Friday. Next Wednesday I have to be back up at Darlington so who knows it may be an opportunity of catching up somewhere else before I return in the afternoon, perhaps Durham or Bishop Auckland, weather dependent as ever and work must come first although I don't mind getting up very early if it gives me free time later. The car is ready for Norfolk and the van is full of goodies ready for Kirkby on Sunday for the North West Vehicle Restoration Trusts running day which has the enviable record of 8 buses to launch in one day. So tonight a bit of a rest perhaps whilst we catch up on the soaps. The latest Scottish social film has a few scattered coach shots taken on excursions , it's a bit harder to edit than the other material as there are more shots out of focus and variable exposure but the same superb mix of content although they may well appeal to a different kind of market to our transport only fans but I know a lot of people love social history scenes ijn the post war years. Some more cine 16mm arrived there are reels on Eastboune in 1949 and some Channel Island films. A few very large orders have come through this week, anything received today will go on Monday. We are focused on our French trip which starts a couple of days on from the trip down to Southdown 100 at Southsea Common. Looks like being a good turn out, anything anyone wants especially bringing let us know and we'll reserve items. We'll have our complete stock of South East photos with thousands of Southdown shots. Here are some clips from our Youtube postings from recent releases. There's a title for you all almost good enough to go on Twaddle or Titter or whatever its called. So the forecast for Friday morning isn't very good with wind and rain so its the 5th flight cancelled and after I've blogged I'll try another date and keep our fingers crossed. Saturday still looks cool but sunny more or less everywhere around Britain, as it seems so settled and we are local on Sunday it seems worth risking a lengthy run which doesn't fit in with a rally which leads us to Norfolk so a possible there and I know its a popular area with enthusiasts and with Norfolk Green going all blue and orange and what have you it would be well timed. Sunday is the excellent North West VRT who do stirling work in preservation over at Kirkby in Merseyside. I know there will be severral large stands there as the fame of the events spreads, think of it as the Lancashire / Merseyside Lincoln if you follow my drift. I got the films from Teesside done yesterday and clips went on Youtube last night from all locations. Remember we are in dire need of more clicks on adverts when you visit as it pays for the site. Talking of paying did battle with Key Publishing who cocked up the payment for Buses advert and took double the money then tried to cover it up by saying that we'd owed a payment since 2012 which would be weird as they have our card details and take payment when due. Speaking to the manager my guess with my random memory was that it was the takeover time and it was so it probably went to Ian Allan, the girl though was determined that she would be right even when they'd messed up, eagle eyes of Mandy will b e on them next month to see it rectified. Mandy of course got back from Ireland last night complete with new hand bag and a pair of tough yet light weight gardening gloves for me that actually might be suited to winter filming as well. Also had hassles with Opodo whom I booked two flights with yesterday but today I got an email that one was still in my 'basket', funny how it said print out etc when I'd not even paid for it, I rang them to check and they charge you for the call even when their site is rubbish and you get a call centre in Central African Republic and get totally angry, then I had the Nat West Black Card people whose card I used so tried to confirm with them but wouldn't speak to me as Mandy is main card holder etc etc for 20th time we've done this plus Nat West are shutting the bank we have our business accounts with at Northenden which is nearest to where Mandy worked back in the day! I had to take the IQ car to Sale for RBBGGG ( silly name for car sales) to look at the flaking steering wheel and then submit photos and report to the Vatican and see if the pope can decide what they should do, if it were Honda I'd have a new steering wheel or it wouldn't have happened in the first place, they are good at offering everyone coffee though! What shall we have tonight, I'm still trimming up pictures to file, never ends as doesn't the Scottish archives which I'm on Vol 4 and more 16mm cine arrived today, could do a weeks film shows. Lets try Eastern England just in case we go to Norwich Saturday. I think I've had the electric blanket on every night to warm up before bed, Mandy is home tonight from Ireland lets hope the torrential rain doesn't spoil the journey back from Holyhead as its hammering it down outside, certainly no neend to water anything today. I'm just cracking on with the Middlesbrough and then Stockton/Darlington DVD which should both be ready this evening and hopefully some clips on Youtube if I get clear before Mandy arrives home. It was a catch up day at the office and I did manage to get the flights booked for Moldova in July and also the hotel at Heathrow where Mandy will drop me off after Worthing rally. I fly out with LOT via Warsaw and back with Turkish via Istanbul, there is a reasonable amount on the net about the Moldova fleets less so the PMR though which is no surprise. A complete vehicle list by depot for Chisinau and a map of all the 22 trolley routes plus I even found a small map of the 3 line Balti system. The Transniestre or PMR has only two lines which a regularly traffiked the other handful are mainly hourly or less. Tomorrow I take the IQ car to the car dealer to have a look at the steering wheel which is flaking away, I had to actually make an appointment for them to look at it, 10 seconds would be enough, why not just send a photo, its costing me more in time and fuel getting there, the Toyota service has been rubbish compared with Mandy's Honda dealer at Chester ( ie Ellesmere Port). Lets hope the photos from Middlesbrough yesterday lunch time load up better than they did last night. Stagecarriage have a nice web site with a liast of routes, most carriage services pass through Stockton or Middlesbrough but the school routes are more North Yorkshire. A couple of Stockton shots to lead us into tomorrows offering! A very hectic day and I've two large DVD orders to get ready, it's been a long day as well as I was up at 5.30 and on the road well before 6 to get up to Stockton for a visit to our apprentice at NETA college near Portrack lane which is just over the bridge past Middlesbrough although i did stop at Sainsburys at Middlesbrough first thing and got some fruit with it being a diet day although I must admit to a little cheat with a Kitkat bar. The light was all wrong early on at Middlesbrough at the bus station but it was going to cloud over later so I decided to get work done and double back before I returned back to Cheshire. I struggled in through Stockton as I folishly followed the signposts for Stockton which actually take you towards Darlington and then I had to circle the whole town. Anyway all was well and everything was working out as we wanted so a feeling of a job weell done although a long way to come. I then went back to Middlesbrough where the sun had moved around and there were some cloudy spells , the activity even late morning was pretty constant and all the drivers friendly. I then went back through Stockton and had another go at the new bus station which I had looked at last winter.
I encountered a miserable Stagecoach bloke who like most in his situation paused to lean out of his window and whinge about not wanting his photo taken, of course you couldn't see him until he did that, good job it wasn't in Scotland though I'd have been clapped in irons and put in the bloody tower at Holyrood palace etc. Anyway all was very nice in the increasingly warm sunshine and blue sky and of course just when you think you are winning a couple of tarts from community plods unlimited poke their noses intoi my life, a security call from Marks & Spencers ( I think) and someone in the public had commented, shock horror someone has a camera in Stockton High St, whatever next and they've even done all the town up , pity as the plof women said it isn't nice there like it used to be and people are very anxious seeing cameras. This is all strange as there are cameras on nearly everyy building along the road and hasn't just about everyone else got one on their phone. Weird place, never had hassle before but they can stuff themselves and I was nearly going to say how well it looked but not now. Stagecarriage is an operator I'd not encountered before got a mixed fleet including deckers working the area around Stockton, Middlesbrough, cheeky play on fleetname. Anyway did Darlington offloaded the post which cost £35 to send such was the pile which had gathered and I've another two big orders to get ready before bed. I found a Halfords in Darlington, got stuff to get tar off my IQ, when I got back rushed to catch up, I'd not drawn the curtains in lounge, Malcolm and June must have thought I'd joshed it overnight, looked relieved to see me when I got back. Did the car as best I could, mowed lawns, sprayed roses etc and then had an hour of telly before this blog and orders to get ready and then bed, spoke to Mandy in ireland, they got a lead on a great new horse for Hilary, had to go right down south of Bantry, looks as if it was worth it. Mandy got a call from rthe Balloon people expecting it to be a good morning for flight tomorrow but of course Mandy will only be coming back tomorrow afternoon and we are booked for 4th time on Friday which doesn't look so good, oh well.. anyway thats your lot photos from Middlesbrough. It won't upload you'll have to wait until tomorrow! I did manage to get a bit of a lay in, I never got up uintil 7.30, had some fruit bread for breakfast and then got stuck int cleaning the van and car, I thought it was a bank holiday sort of thing to do although I found that me little white car is covered in tar spray, I managed to clean one side but the other is really bad, went through the whole cupboard looking for something that was effective but I need some more purpose made stuff although I'll search on the net for hints and tips first. Anyway what is clean looks good. The weather is overcast with hints of brightness not at all warm, it wasn't that warm at bedtime last night so I put the blanket on ready my book on the history of mapping and drifted off. Well so many things to do but I followed the car cleaning with gardening, I did several chores such as clearing out an old mini greenhouse and metal supports which were all jumbled up then went weeding after I'd planted out the last of the bedding, it looked to have rained a lot last night so I haven't bothered watering in we are bound to get more. Weeding and getting shot of the grass was a heavy duty task, no room in the recylcle bin so stashed it around the back of the garden shed for the time being. Lots of indoor jobs to get stuck into, I've edited the Blackburn fuilm and then I'm just burning the Burnley followed by the AEC rally, all will be ready today after I've got the DVD covers made I'll get them on our shop. We are certainly open for business so send through your order. I fancy having a go at copying dome of the 16mm films I've purchased but its bound to take a while looking out the correct leads for the projector to camera for the sound tracks. Some photos from Blackburn on Saturday. Tomorrow I'm up early once again and off to Stockton in the North East. It was another early start I can't see me having a bank holiday lay in as I'm up early again Tuesday to go up to Stockton so no point in changing my routine although mowning the lawn at 5am on a bank holiday may lose me some friends in the village. It was mainly cloudy but only a few spots of rain at Newark, the satnav went crazy as there are a lot of new roads which shaved nearly 10 minutes off the journey needless to say it was quiet going there. A very nice large exhibition hall well illuminated by glass panels and soaked up us few stands and there was Newark brass band which was very nice up to a point but it does end up domination the ambiance and impossible to have conversations if there had been anybody there to talk to. It was that quiet that although there was a good turnout of lorries which had overnighted waiting for them to come in today was fruitless as there were so few extras to come and the bus content has withered with the passing years. The AEC element is now almost swamped by the ERF fraternity etc just a general vehicle rally really, I don't know how they managed the logistics of what isn't a particularly cheap showground albeit it was being shared with a dog event which will give my film a strange backgound which makes me recall the early Heart of the Pennine rallies which were next to the local dog pound. Anyway I gave up mid afternoon and got home just after 5pm and a quick tea and a scrub up and I made it round to St Oswalds and did my bit to destroy all melody in the evensong. Lots of jobs left to do but its quite late now really, I've got the remainder of last nights wine left and nearly polished it all off now. DVD orders need clearing tomorrow and I'll have a go at the garden, before bed though I must stake the fuchsia in the centre of the border as the winds getting up yet again. The photos you'll have figured out are dfrom the AEC rally today at Newark, tomorrow I'll get Blackburn and Burnley edited and clips on Youtube . Fairly early to bed last night and I suppose that's why I was awake early today but after checking the net DVD orders and bids on EBay etc I set off up to Preston, it was still fairly cloudy. I picked a spot near the cemetery to park the car and waited for a bus to go into town to save the hassle and cost of parking although it was ages before a bus turned up and it was gone 8am already. Well eventually the bus rolled up a Rotala effort and deposited me at the bus station which is without trace of any rejuvenation which is supposed to be coming, yes its the same crappy sordid mess as ever now caged in away from bus enthusiasts like a concentration camp with the equally caged in rat run for pedestrians to reach the rest of the world although it more or less dumps them in a narrow neck of a road with one way traffic funneled down it. The sky was already showing signs of brightening so I needed to capture as much as I could before it turned sunny which would be in the wrong direction at this time of day and chances at the bus station exit no brilliant although I did finish off there. Mostly very friendly drivers and just one sad old cow of Transdev Lancs United to leave a sour note, she should go and drive in Scotland where street photography is now banned she could snitch on every bus enthusiast and vent her hang ups that way. Meanwhile I must say Stagecoach looked the smartest and friendliest of the two. I think that Fishwicks just grin and bear it! The next location was Blackburn and now it was quite bright between the dotted clouds with the temperature about 18 degrees and I wished I'd left my coat off. I did try and park and ride but it was resident parking everywhere I tried even a long way out and there were no buses to be seen and bus stops had no information on routes or times etc, a bit of a poor effort for Blackburn. Then I found a car park and found it was free on a weekend so I parked and walked past the station and the redevelopment of the old bus station and on to the new. No sign of Pilkington's I think the gestapo may have stopped them again albeit I didn't try Accrington their home but last time they had some classics in Blackburn. Really it was a Transdev dominated scene although there is still a sprinkling of smaller operators and Stagecoach trundle through once in a while. It was very sunny in the end and I was just about ready for Burnley. I gave up on finding anywhere to park or get a bus and just got lost for the 30th time or so and eventually ended up getting hold of a bank to arrange a mortguage to pay for the car park near the bus station which not surpringly had just 6 cars in it on a Saturday afternoon! The bus station was very quiet just Transdev, compared to week days no Pennine to run in now just First and whatever Tyrer latest incarnation is although its still got Tyler's on the buses in some form, lavatory paper stick to the side or old newspapers in the windscreen scruffiest outfit makes the M&M look smart although i believe they've had their run in with the commissioners for oaths, well I bet that's what they say. So I was just thinking it had been a long time since I had seen all the drivers who knew me when I met one of my old bus pals from the Boyle St sales etc and had a chat between his journeys and by the time we'd finished I met another enthusiast of First bus attachment and we had a pleasant chat between shorts and by the time we had finished the sky was almost clear blue and every driver was waving, a taste of the good old days, show the bloody Scots a thing or two about being friendly eh. Home about 5.20 and had tea, cooked a steak pie and did buttered sweet potato mash and opened a bottle of Gato Negro Chilean plonko and still enjoying it, want a glass? Buses at Preston this morning. Things sdem to happen so fast and furious that it is hard to remember to mention everything. The nation has now gone into public holiday mode for the long weekend and of course it is already well into the transport rally season although the weather is changeable in the extreme and it doesn't bode that well for the AEC rally on Sunday, I'll be keeping my eyes open lest it is too bad to even go there I don't want to get the van bogged down and everything soaked for nothing. The more immediate question is tomorrows filming destinations which could yet change, really you'll just have to wait and see what pops up tomorrow evening. I finally got my Buses magazine today, it seems to be a bit on the late side, very heavily laden with Southdown 100 news, it doesn't seem long since we were at Amberley for Southdown 75. Anyway I've just finished off the DVD and cover for the Chester visit and they are added to stock and our shop plis of course the first two Northern Scotland social history films. It is interesting to note how much is being promoted on the Southdown side with preserved buses, we of course are lucky that thanks to John Bishop we can have living memories on DVD from his splendid cine films. These will be on sale at the Southsea event along with thousands of other films from our range and an amazing selection of photos at just 50p stretching back from prewar to the NBC and beyond. There has been news on the Hardy family side, in September ( date to be decided) there will be a small ceremony at Manchesyer's Southern Cemetary to unveil the new bench dedicated to the decendents of Robert Joseph Hardy worldwide plus our own 'Berta' ( Mandy's mum). This will be a culmination of plans over the past two years. Any collective response to the idea was not forthcoming so we've taken the bull by the horns and done it albeit inflation has taken it's toll despite deflation cos Manchester council is short of cash being robbed by the Tory government under a small african country The Cameroons, and what would they know or care about Britain having led a life of privilege and wealth at public schools and no idea of what Britain is about. Of course so far removed from reality that they could almost be Scottish! I dropped off a card, flowers and chocolates to Jane lloyd at the vicarege on my way home today, Tom is expected home this evening, Jane is going to take all the family to welcome him back and lets hope that this speedy recovery continues after all we know it's a big birthday this year Tom , no secrets around here. I was at Southern today to do the bench transaction after we'd looked at locations with the maintenance team, opposite Berta's grave looks a perfect place. I was sweating buckets getting the graves sorted using the battery strimmer and spade, fork and anything else I could throw at it. The spring bulbs lasted very well but always get swamped by the grass and weeks. I put weed killer on the stones but the chippings need topping up a bit. I ran out of steam really but it looks pretty good now if anyone is passing. I'm now editing bvolume 3 of the Scottish social history archive, yet more cine film arrived today, I need to process some and then resell hopefully at a profit when I've squeezed anything good out of them. A very varied collection I've accumulated so far. I'm going to try and catch a bit of telly tonight and have a bit of a rest ( joke). The clips of Chester buses should go on Youtube channel tonight. The shop is a bit quiet, end of the month pay day coming up, treat yourself to a few DVDs! A look t the clip of the Portland Cement lorries, not many hits as yet surely it warrants a million at least. |
PMP Sponsors the North West Vehicle Restoration Trust at Kirkby.
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