Wigan Album

It looks more like a railway accident, very unusual for BR to have the line closed for a Cricket club, must have cost a mint.

Somehow I doubt that it cost anyone anything.... The local lads would know when the coast was clear.

Yes point taken Rev, maybe they just love Cricket. Seriously, I have seen some railway carriages converted into restaurants at some country pubs, they look great and cosy. I think I've seen one at East Lancashire Railway.

Been in that Pavillion many times, when I was scorer for Hindley St Peters I was 13 at the time(1950)

Cant understand this, all this work, trains and rolling stock, mens wages etc etc etc.... who cound have commissioned it for an amateur cricket club??

I think the local system - points, track, signals - were controlled from local signal boxes then. No one outside the immediate area would have known what the lads were doing....

It was a different railway then you must remember - not the profit and money obsessed enterprise we have today. Considerable autonomity and delegated authority would be available to the Local Operating Superintendent, and if it were a Sunday say, then it is unlikely that much goods (freight)traffic ran down the branch between Amberswood West Jct. and Bamfurlong Jct. Finding a couple of hours slot to get a loco hooked up to the steam crane from The Branch and wander up to the cricket club and manouvre it into position wouldn't necessarily be as difficult as one might imagine when it was still a sensible railway!

Dave to-day that would be called "robing time" Double time on sunday, from your work place. You can see why british rail was in such bad a state, in other words poorly run.

I remember going in there for our Coronation Day Party in 1953, thus missing the end of the televised coverage on the grainy black and white TV.

Goodness me John, you certainly have a bee in your bonnet about BR don't you! That efficiency you refer to must be why private rail now costs the country about twice as much to run the railway system than good old BR did then eh?! All large industries/companys irrespective of whether they are private or publicly run, are always able to improve somewhere or other. Just pause and remember who is now considered largely to blame for the recession we are in now matey and it certainly wasn't either BR, or any public owned company for that matter but private ones ie the banks!

On the contrary Dave, I honestly wish BR was still running our railways. Track, locomotives, rollingstock, stations, bridges, signals etc etc etc all under the umbrella of British Railways and that should be the case today. But it was badly run with 30-40 year old trains still in use on long jurneys and thats supposed to be a modern railway.? I hate the word privatisation, but just look at those beautiful virgin trains on the WCML, now come-on Dave, Would we see the likes of those trains operating by BR, I dont think so. Dave, I see you have a passion for BR and rightly so, but it really is for the best for our railways if it is to continue and survive in a clean and safe environment.... and on time.

Tommy Green what a great bloke I was one of tommys apprentices in the sixties. When the job was finished I bet they all went for a cup of tea.Like the gang did when I was the crane driver.

I agree John, unfortunately you only ever get what you pay for. So if central Government chooses to promote road transport rather than rail, you do get older trains. Notwithstanding that of course, all the railway company's from Victorian time onwards have always got the maximum life out of it's locos and stock! If you use the modern railway too, then I think you will understand that good old Virgin and those lovely new trains that they have sold the country are a bit of a pup really. Eight car HST sets from Scotland to the West Country are now replaced by a service to Birmigham only, five or if your are really unfortunate four car sets long only and the same length irrespective of the season. Main line services to Lodnod Euston previously loco hauled with more often than not, more carriages than the Pedolinos provide. Most of the services to Euston don't now stop after Warrington; its next stop Milton Keynes, Watford Jct. or just Euston. We'll totally sideline The major interchange location all the way along the WCML which is Crewe. A great service then if have tunnel vision for London and all you do want to go to is London, but about as much use as a chocolate fireguard if tha' wants to go anywhere else in between!! It certainly isn't my idea of progress John!

I think the railways should be reorganized and back under government control and split up like it was years ago known as the Big four. That way BR could make a come back and learn from the mistakes of years past and under fresh blood could be a success with the right funding. I'v worked for companys who have changed to 3rd party and over the years have returned back to in-house, and big companys at that. Its all about the right funding and the right management together British Railways can make a come back....that would be great. Dave's comments are right, were you a railway man Dave?

Hi Thomas, yes I still am a railwayman as it happens, and having experienced both public and private ownership, I (and a great many other members of staff too) would say honestly and impartially, that it worked far, far better as one cohesive company than it does now. Others may disagree with me and that's fine, I respect their views, that's their perogative and we fought two World Wars exactly so that we could do that. But in all truth they would be wrong, BR was vastly better than private rail. As you so rightly say Thomas, it all comes down to funding. If private rail has all sorts of cash thrown at it by a government eager to try and prove that private ownership is better, then it's hardly surprising that superficially some things do initially look better, than they did under BR. However if BR had been given access to the same significant amounts of cash that private rail has had, then it might well have been a different story indeed. Sorry if I go on a bit, I'll shut up and say no more and get off me soap box right now!

Yes applause to Dave Taylor for his very interesting comments, he's absolutely spot on with his views. It's people like him with full enthusiasm and excitement that could make BR great again, I'm sure if our politicians had the same outlook as Dave at the helm, railways would without dout, be a much better company and profitable again. British Railways must have been a very good company to work for, just look at the service most railway men have on Wigan World..very many years. You're comments are great to read Dave, thanks.

Well said Dave and interesting, even the name stills sounds good....BRITISH RAILWAYS, nice.

Spring..View..railway..bridge(where..Chatsworth..estate..is
now)..during..my..childhood..in..the..1970s..there..was..an
old..train..carriage..left..on..the..railway..tracks..just
before..the..tracks..was..blocked..off..we..used..play..in
it..got..told..off..when..we..got..caught..brill..times