Peterborough Turntable?

[sandwhich]

I know that New England shed used an angle to turn engines rather than a turntable, but I do seem to remember a turntable on the upside at the north end of what was then called Peterborough North station possibly where the postal sorting office was/is. There was a main line pilot that stood there that I believe was a V2, the train crew seemed to spend much of the time playing cards or dominoes and turning the engine every so often with some coal occasionally thrown on the fire. I do remember being relieved at the station on a goods working and having our break in the bunk there prior to returning on the cushions. Funny thing that up to my retirement a "thunderbird" was stationed in almost the same spot. What goes around etc. I know this is a long time ago but can anybody confirm the exact whereabouts of this turntable.

[Andy W]

I remember seeing a B1 getting turned there in my very young years. If I remember rightly, if you stood at the north end of the upside main platform and looked east in the direction of the cathedral, the turntable was a few tracks away.

[52D]

Thunderbirds or East Coast Standing pilot were introduced by the LNER to cater for any problems with the non stops and were posted at from the North Tweedmouth, Darlington, York, Doncaster, Peterborough and I think Grantham. It was not decided to post a pilot at Newcastle as it was thought there would always be a spare Pacific at Gateshead. The locos were either NER Atlantics or LNER Pacifics and would be summoned by a driver of an ailing East Coast express by whistle as he passed signalboxes. There are plenty of tales where the pilot was unavailable and a strange loco was substituted.

[61070]

I can't say anything about the turntable, but in relatiuon to 52D's point about main line standing pilots a group of Grantham men told me "We never took the New England pilot unless we were really, really desperate - it was usually worse than what you'd got!" Their experience was in the latter days of steam of course, when many engines were becoming run down, and perhaps flavoured by a bit of Grantham - New England rivalry too.

[52D]

Pacific substitutes in the North East when the normal Pilot was not available varied from the Legendary G5 from Durham to Newcastle to a J39 pulling an ailing Mallard into 52D. Another one in early diesel days was the Anglo Scottish car carrier being thrashed into central on time behind a K1. There must have been some strange sights in those days.

[neilgow]

During 1962, I was in Kings Cross station with a friend when 60078 arrived with a train from the north. We went along and asked if we could have a look around the cab. Yes was the reply and I noticed the fireman did not seem much older than me and the driver did not look over thirty. On mentioning this I was told a Deltic had failed in Newcastle Station, '78 and its crew were the spare engine but the Deltic driver would not take a steam engine so these two came down to London.

NG

[strang steel]

I can't say anything about the turntable, but in relatiuon to 52D's point about main line standing pilots a group of Grantham men told me "We never took the New England pilot unless we were really, really desperate - it was usually worse than what you'd got!" Their experience was in the latter days of steam of course, when many engines were becoming run down, and perhaps flavoured by a bit of Grantham - New England rivalry too.

I was under the impression that view came from the fact that the New England standing pilot was often one of their A2/2s and usually the one that was closest to its overhaul.

[Hatfield Shed]

Shown nicely on the plan in Griffiths and Hooper's GNR engine sheds, Southern Area volume. At the North end of the station, East of the end of the up platform, on the far side of the tracks leading into the original GN loco shed. There's also a photo from the late 30s in which it is part visible. (The picture composed to show 4900 in Garter Blue in the down platform, B5 6072 in clean black and C1 (unidentifiable) in a down bay platform road; sigh, I wanna time machine...)

[N.Barnes]

There was certainly no turntable at New England, hence the use of the triangle, but there were 4 turntables in Peterborough, 2 of them on LNER territory: 1) at the old GNR shed at the north end of Peterborough North station
2) at the old GER shed to the east of Peterborough East station
The other 2 were on LMS lines:
3) in the roundhouse of the MR shed at Spital Bridge (the first road bridge over the G.N. main line north of P'boro North stn.)
4) at the old LNWR shed west of P'boro East stn. (by the tracks now used by The Nene Valley Railway).

[N.Barnes]

PS The turntable at the old GER shed at Peterborough East is now installed at the Nene Valley Railway's HQ at Wansford.