I'll get the cover for the Bus Spot Ultra Rotherham  made before I start to get too far into the Doncaster version, I've uploaded a lot of clips to compliment the material in the new DVD. I've also been busy with cine film scanning and I should have another couple in the Down your way series ready before too long. There is a nationwide shortage of DVD discs, I think a container with them must have gone adrift. Anyway Mandy is going to phone the supplier tomorrow and see if any of those being touted on Ebay at 3 times normal price will do the job. It is quite a specific choice as to which like our machines and don't fail. We are bringing in to the house some more boxes of DVDs which were our rally stock. As no events seem possible until at least spring I might as well dip into the sales rally stock. We shall also just copy the one disc for the order and not put any aside for future requests they will have to take their chance. It was a bit like this in the last lock down when China was locked down as well but these discs now come from Taiwan so not sure what is happening or if its a shipping problem. Bottom line is that if you need DVDs urgently as Christmas or birthday gifts order now while we have stocks. We may well get a buffer stock at the rip off EBay prices to see us through but don't take any chances.

The weather is being very fickle this week, tomorrow I'm covering lorries at Dove Holes near Buxton and then a very early start on Wednesday when I'm going down south with Mandy to cover buses in locations outstanding on our to do list. I think I've outlined these before. Its getting very cold this week, even snow is possible. I'm still bashing away at the card model kits for buildings on the diorama. I'll end up with enough for another layout but that isn't a problem at all. The next stage will be a modern setting for buses and trucks. Then stage three will be a motorway with docks, container traffic and distribution centre to soak up the lorry models. To get us in the mode for Derbyshire lets have a look at previous winter visits.

Yes a good days work broken by a trip to pick up a new monitor screen, a black Friday John Lewis sale at 120 saving £40. This will go into the editing suit and I'll cascade the old one to the general office machine as it is larger than the one I've been using. Hopefully swap them all round tomorrow. I've been looking at the weather, Monday seems a bit damp but I should be going over to North Lincs for Grimsby and Scunthorpe on Tuesday. On Wednesday when the lock down lifts, Mandy will come with me down south. I'm not sure what we'll get done, a couple of London suburbs are on the list also High Wycombe and Guildford. I've got to burn the master disc for the Bus Spot Ultra Rotherham DVD and make the cover but otherwise it is done. I have quite a regular routine now on these films that works well. Any requests for what comes after Doncaster the next on the list.

We are relaxing with a fine Bordeaux tonight with the roast lamb, Janet is reopening The Crown this week so we'll go along to eat and drink , hopefully our neighbours will be able to come and sit at the next table! I'm still churning out the 4mm buildings from card to go on the diorama although there are too many it does give me a choice and then when I've got the big cabinets full of such things I can use the other side which has a section of larger shelves for small displays. I must try and get some photos done but I really want to get is a bit more finished before I share it all. The last of the three sections on my earlier period display will go up to the 1970s and I can fill my boots with road markings and lines everywhere as restraint was required in the earlier post war years when a line at a junction was about as far as it got.

Stills from te earlier years of Rotherham, a nice mix although my own film doesn't start until 1996 but its a crack8ing visit ijn pouring rain, some super shots all through. I'll dedicate to the clots at the SYPTE!

If I say it has been a busy day that pretty well describes all our days. We have compiled about two thirds of the material which we will pick from to give 2 hours of memories of Rotherham. I think it is a place which lost it's way after the heavy industry upped sticks and went away. THe low point for me though was when they refurbished the present bus station the SYPTE yobs they drafted in tried to throw their weight around far and wide and even crossed the road opposite the entrance to the temporary facility and had a go at me. In my experience PTE's normally hate buses, passengers and especially anyone who loves buses, their whole raisin d'etre is to ride the towns of buses and hope they have a quiet life. Why anyone would trust this mob to organise a whats it in a brewery I don't know.

we step back in the glory days of the trolleybuses and the Mexborough fleet running in, we have decades of video coverage taking us from deregulation and before right up to date. When we have finished with Rotherham I'll make a start on Doncaster, a duo of releases which will attract many of the fan base for buses in south Yorkshire.

We have some more quite old film coming through the scanners soon taking us back to the early 1960's but more of that when I get there, we have a few films coming through from the early eighties before we can get back to glory days of transport interest. The DVD orders received now will all go out in the post on Monday. I have listed several more digital downloads on the PMP shop.

.I've nearly finished scanning 4 400' reels of transport cine film today, I've also managed to pick up a larger monitor screen for editing with and written some correspondence for Mandy plus the usuals like getting the DVD orders away on time. Everything here before 3pm was away today. Now it will go Monday as we have no Saturday service. I've been constructing a 4mm scale postal sorting office for the diorama. I did managed to slice off a bit of my thumb doing it yesterday and another chunk today, deadly things those stanley knives. I got the covers done for the Swindon and Bath DVDS which are on the PMP shop and also got some as digital downloads, slowly catching up on that side. There are probably a thousand and one other jobs I've done but it gets repetitive and is mundane!

A few screen shots from the actual cine film used as well of course as our extensive video coverage

Of course it covers all eras that we could source but I think Belfast Corporation livery looks best.

We did finally get matters sorted with Amazon, actually I was happy to think we were shot of them, they are the devil to work we, rude, arrogant and American/Philippines hardly my favourite places although others used to be available until Amazon wrecked tens of thousands of businesses around the world.

I have finished putting together films on loan from  Robin Hannay and am ready to send him the results of digital scanning both his transport and family footage. I can now edit the films taken at Swindon and Bath the other day. I can also carry on with the digital HD scanning. Anyone who still has old cine of any transport interest we can still offer our duplication service and long term safe keeping with the OTA. Next we have a few shots from Swindon.

I got back from my film trip to Bath and Swindon. Bath I must comment was like Manchester back in February/ early March , the whole community seemed to be on another planet with no precautions other than shops I assume. There were all sorts of groups of people, nobody wears masks except for Chinese students. I felt as if this town thought itself untouchable. With reduced numbers as usual the dross is more obvious. Rude building workers, rude woman at train station, car park only takes coins, what a dump it is. I hope the tourists are sensible and never return. Swindon was fine, it is a pleasant dump and knows it! Bath did have some bus interest with student services and hirings in. They have put temporary bus stops where I normally stand to film but it worked out ok. It is always interesting to see what daft social distancing stuff the council have wasted money on.

The Cheshire East council gave Mandy a copy and paste response to the incident where the traffic warden said he didn't agree with the temporary disabled parking and wasn't going to stick tickets on the posh cars which now park with immunity. We suffer terribly torn between two pathetic councils either side of us.

I got a really rude and snotty message from Amazon saying my account had discrepancies and threatened all sorts of things, hold my money, stop us selling. This went on for ages last night after I got home all the way from Bath. It carried on this morning, this bullying should not happen but they have a bad reputation and seem able to get away with all that the do and all the tax they don't pay, beyond the law yet have ruined many businesses in countless communities in Britain.

By this morning i was ready to pull the plug on Amazon, some of the customers are no better. I emailed the CEO in USA Seattle, obviously he doesn't get them but has a team to sort and if stuff gets to that level something is obviously in need of sorting. Within 10 minutes of sending I got an apology and there is nothing wrong, why put small businesses through hell. I am sill considering waling away from it altogether, it is only Christmas when we get a lot of women customers and many are incredibly rude. We just don't need the hassle. The orders are still coming in droves and the disc supplier is out of stock so that is next big thing to sort.

Photos from Bath yesterday afternoon.

Thankfully we had kept up with DVD orders over the weekend so there wasn't too much to do this morning and I could resume work on the Belfast Bus Spot. I finished it late afternoon, just need to get the cover done plus I promised a friend that I would string together all the source material for Belfast trolleybuses.

On another tack I had a contact back in touch re my fathers family tree and will be speaking to her tomorrow evening. A bit  of detective work with DNA might have cracked it tracing my grand mother Dricoll's side of the family.

In between the editing today I did manage to get all the bus shelters on my diorama fitted in place and lot more little people are standing around waiting courtesy my old railway layout from way back when. The light hasn't been much good for photos but  the top photo is a taster, the background buildings are just roughly laid out pending more construction work! Note my first attempts with weathering powders. I've still got the tiny Chinese dice to make the platform locators plus I've almost identical lamps to those at Wrexham which regular readers will know was the source for the layout albeit it could accommodate buses from all sorts of locations. Shame there is little scenery for Hong Kong I'd love to give my huge HK bus collection some context.

I hope to be getting out with the camera tomorrow. We are starting to get details on the post lock down situation, I hope we aren't too high as it is a pain not going out for coffee, drinks or a meal.

Here are a few screen shots from the film, it seems  to chop bits off putting them in the blog but you'll get a good idea of what it is about.

I didn't have time to blog yesterday as I'd worked 8am to 8pm and Mandy put her foot down on any more. I did my first painting with acrylics on the diorama bus shelters a little bit more paint here and there then some weathering and they will go into position, then it will look like a real bus station.

Today has been the second round of DVD orders, we started last night, cleared the overnighters then we have another batch to go at. I want to make a start on my Belfast film in the Bus Spot Ultra series.  Excuse the rush but I must get the new Portugal film on the shop.

I have scanned yet more films today, tomorrow I hope to put the Portuguese film together. Today I also managed to make all the island platforms for the diorama so far so good and from China arrived the 4mm dice squares, these are spot on scale for the concrete shelters bus stop lines which had them at either end at Wrexham. It all fitted together, creating the drop kerbs as the pavement is the edges of the bus station wasn't too bad, the kerbing itself very fiddly with all the curves at island ends. It would a a very tight turn in in real life but models are always full of compromise. We got all the orders for DVDs sorted early on and I was able to get a few more digital downloads onto the shop. The DVDs shown above are all on the PMP shop. Ready for a sit down and rest now. Tomorrow as well as editing the Portugal programme I intend to paint the concrete bus shelters for the layout. Any orders , we've a few already will get packed as they come in so we don't get overwhelmed.

We went shopping this morning which was a bit of a hole in the day, ditto bed changing but I have managed to complete the editing of the three Ternhill DVDs and trailers will be on Youtube this evening. I also continued scanning cine film. I need to get four DVD covers made tomorrow before anything so I can load them on our shop. A moderate load of DVD orders yesterday but the magazines must have circulated now and a lot of orders all for multiple quantities. Some good to have a chat calls with people I would normally have seen at the rallies.

I did well getting another 15 films on to digital download. I also continued on the diorama in between all the other jobs. Mandy was a bit off colour today, we'll have a drink later, it is Thursday and its pub night only of course we cannot go to a pub. We had something different for tea, fish and chips from M&S, not bad really, last week we had a pizza, good to get something different now and then. I got a new battery for the bathroom scales, it seems I've now lost the best part of a stone in weight since I cut down on sugar, we still have the occasional treat but a nice M&S eclair oozing with cream is nowhere near as bad as the sugar laden stuff. Since cutting down my knee has been 100%, to think a couple of months I was worrying about having another new knee.

I've added another film to the list of imminent releases which will be on Belfast, not quite sure which format it will appear as. I will try and make a start on the Portugal archive film tomorrow. Then there are the twins Doncaster and Rotherham on the Bus Spot Ultra list so plenty to go at but obviously DVD orders take priority. The DVD list on the shop front page is updated and I also posted the information only archive file updated although there is work to lay out the latest scans by locations and dates. Thinking of Portugal we can head that way for tonights slide show.