The LNER Encyclopedia

There are plenty of reminiscences here, but they are relatively short. This one – in two parts – is much longer, and is a bit of an experiment. I hope you read it and enjoy it, but would understand if you don’t.

Originally it was printed in my local railway society magazine under the same title, where it had the benefit(?) of my hand-drawn map and track diagram. I trust it makes enough sense without them.

If it prompts other contributors to have a go that would be great. To keep things manageable may I suggest, unless they are connected, they are posted as a separate thread?

Kudu

1 - GETTING THERE

I don't suppose I'm the only Forum member whose interest in railways goes back to childhood encounters. In my own case I was fortunate enough to live within easy of reach of two busy trunk lines of contrasting character, separated only by a cemetery and a canal, and amidst a network of secondary lines busy with freight traffic. Add assorted freight and carriage yards and two large loco sheds that almost faced each other on opposite sides of that canal (yet a third depot was also within walking distance) and maybe I've given enough clues to identify the location. We're in London, specifically, the north-west, in the area we called Harlesden, though rail enthusiasts will get a more accurate picture if I mention Willesden Junction.

I now invite you to join me on a walk to a particular spot on the railway - a place that might be equalled but in my view has never been surpassed as a viewing point. As for time, let's turn the clock back to the end of the 1950s, when the first main-line diesels were just arriving but steam still dominated the scene. If we start at my house, we can hear but not see the railway. (How I used to wish I could live in a nearby street where the gardens backed onto the line.) But it's only a few hundred yards before we reach a hole in the wall (the first of several) where a flight of steps takes us down alongside the line. Two lines in fact, for the passage ahead of us has a pair of tracks on each side, clearly visible through the railings.

On our left as we head west is the North London line, its pair of tracks already separating in anticipation of the island platform at Willesden Junction High Level 300 yards ahead. On our right another pair of tracks, having just diverged from the North London, goes on to connect with the West Coast main line at Brent Junction, somewhere beyond the station. (Yet a third pair, not visible from our vantage point, is further over on our left, connecting the North London with the "New Line" - the Euston-Watford dc line - and is used mainly for empty emu movements.)

In the few minutes it takes to reach the station there is a good chance of seeing a train, even if only an emu on the 15-minute Broad Street-Richmond service. If we go back far enough this would be one of the comfortable and spacious Oerlikon saloon sets, of which I have fond memories.

But there was plenty of freight, too, and what a variety there was! Starting with the LMS, we had Ivatt large moguls from Devons Road, or even one of their Jinties, keen to prove they were no mere shunters. But these were soon to succumb to the early Type 1 diesels, especially what became the Class 20s, as Devons Road made history by becoming the first all-diesel depot. (Luckily, I was able to find it before its steam disappeared entirely.) These diesels eliminated LMS representation through Willesden High Level, but we still might see a Willesden 8F, Super D or 4F 0-6-0 on the connecting line to our right.

Meanwhile the Eastern Region continued to send steam across in plenty. From the GN, Hornsey shed was in charge, with its inexhaustible supply of sturdy J50 tanks. For a change there would also be the occasional J6, or even a WD from New England in that immaculate condition invariably associated with the class, wherever they were seen. But it was Stratford that provided the variety. This could bring another WD or, more likely, a selection from Stratford's extensive range of GE 0-6-0s (J39s were rare, for some reason). Thus we might see a relatively new J19 or J20, or an ancient J17 or even J15, dating back to the 1880s and leaking steam from every pore. No doubt you could find locos of similar vintage and condition pressed into service on the LMS, but not here at Willesden, however filthy their engines could sometimes be.

Finally, there was the Southern. Mostly their traffic came from Feltham yard and that meant Q1s, interspersed with the occasional LSW 700 0-6-0. Feltham shed sent other types, too, but these mostly stopped short at Old Oak Sidings, the small transfer yard that linked the NLR with the LNW, of which more later. So the 0-6-0s were left to climb the 1 in 96 bank up to the High Level station. The Q1s, especially, made an imposing sight accelerating straight towards you, passing almost within inches on the other side of those railings.

By now we've reached the station, and my gateway to the rest of London, whether via Euston, the Bakerloo Line or Broad Street. But we're staying local today, so we veer away along another passage with the Citybound side of the High Level island platform close by on our left. Then, down some steps, across a dead-end road, and we come to another hole in the wall - this one, an open sliding door - and we're standing on the up slow platform of Willesden Junction Main Line station. With station buildings obstructing our view we walk under the North London overbridges (a separate one for each track here) for a clear sighting of the main line, albeit only in the Euston direction. To the left of the quadruple tracks is the back of the carriage shed, relatively little used, on the site now occupied by the electric traction depot. To the right the West London line diverges, and over on that same side we can see sidings curving into another shed, this one housing the Euston/Broad Street emus - an awkward position, this, since it can only be accessed off the West London.

A few minutes loitering here should be enough to see something moving, even if nothing more than the diesel shunter working Old Oak transfer yard the other side of the main line. (It was always a diesel here, despite Willesden's stud of Jinties.) I've no need to recite the classes that would be seen on the expresses, unless to remind you of the Royal Scot impostors - the Rebuilt Patriots and that pair of Jubilees - or the variety contributed by the occasional Britannia from Holyhead then, later, Longsight. Semi-fasts would typically be hauled by Northampton Black 5s, while locals would be behind 2-6-4 tanks from Bletchley or Watford. In my earlier recollections these were Standard Class 4s, but latterly Stanier and Fairburn types replaced them. At the same time fewer and fewer of these trains actually deigned to stop at Willesden until eventually the platforms themselves disappeared.

Before long class 40s would be making their debut here and the motive power scene would be transformed almost overnight. But already we had a foretaste with the inseparable twins, 10000 and 10001, regulars on the down "Mid-Day Scot" for many years, and, on semi-fasts the Bullied diesels, 10201-3. And the pioneer blue Deltic, too special to carry a mere number, also spent a while here, with a particular liking for the Liverpool route, as I recall.

For most of these expresses the empty stock passed through Willesden Junction to and from Stonebridge carriage sidings, giving us the chance to read the carriage headboards. Along with the familiar Wolverhampton HL, Lime Street, Manchester London Road, Citadel, Glasgow Central was the occasional Llandudno, Blackpool, Windermere, Barrow, Stranraer, Inverness… And if I had little idea where Colne was exactly, at least I could pronounce it, which was more than could be said for Dun Laoghaire. Motive power for these ecs trains was almost exclusively drawn from Willesden's stud of Fowler 2-6-2 tanks until scrapping reduced their numbers and Stanier and Fairburn 2-6-4 tanks arrived in their place.

The other traffic on the main line was the fitted freights from Camden Goods Depot. But these only came through in the evening (always in the down direction) and on the slow lines, despite their speed, giving Willesden's own Jubilees and Patriots their chance. (Presumably Camden shed, literally just the other side of the tracks, lacked the capacity to provide the haulage.)

If nothing appears on the main line during our brief stop here, we may well see something on the lines beyond. Besides seemingly incessant light engine movements, we might see a freight coming off the West London line. But we'll have a longer chance to observe this interesting line later. Instead we can suppose a freight from Feltham yard opts for Old Oak transfer sidings rather than thundering up through the High Level station. There were loops here, so, with no need to set back, these trains would stop out of our view, but the loco would make a brief appearance after uncoupling, giving us our one opportunity on this journey to glimpse one of Feltham's quartet of giant G16 4-8-0 tanks. (I can only assume a route restriction prevented them from going any further on the North London.) Failing that, it would be another newcomer from Feltham shed, the S15. Although a freight loco, it always seemed a little undignified to use a 4-6-0 for such a humble duty.

But it's time to move on. More steps take us up alongside the North London again, but this time we are tantalisingly hemmed in by high fencing on both sides as we cross the West Coast line, sharing the bridge of the Richmond-bound track just to our right. Once across, our path descends, giving a view of the main line again until we are soon hemmed in again with the rear wall of the emu depot on our left and an embankment on the right. By now the North London has curved away and the line above is the Mitre Bridge Loop, a spur connecting the North London to the West London line. Then we reach a road - the first since that hole in the wall at the beginning of our walk (unless we count the minor road outside the main line station). But our new road is only a cul-de-sac serving local factories, as if defeated by the presence of so many railway lines. And if the railway is now out of sight for a while (apart from two bridges we pass under), its presence can still be heard. In fact, unless a whistle gives the game away, we may need to check on the wind direction before being sure on which line that express is running.

After a few hundred yards a dip in the road takes us under the West London line, the junction with the busy Scrubs Lane just beyond. Here we head south, the West London alongside on our right, towards a girder bridge spanning another railway. (The destination of a passing trolley bus reminds us of another great junction - Clapham.) But before we reach the bridge we cross the Grand Union canal (at least, that's what we called it though I believe the name wasn't strictly correct for this section) and there's another hole in the wall to tempt us away, this one taking us down to the towpath. With the canal to our right, a featureless brick wall blocks our view to the left. Almost immediately we walk under the West London line, seemingly only just above our heads. Ahead the towpath with its wall stretches forbiddingly for 1/4 mile before a rightward curve takes it out of view.

But the threat of more endless walking is illusory. Almost out of nowhere an obliging hole appears in the wall on our left. Step through and we've arrived.

It's difficult to convey the impact, the drama, almost, of that step from one world to another, especially the first time. The whole scene hits you in an instant, without warning, unless you noted the steam drifting over the wall or the noise betraying the railway's presence. And what a scene! If you like busy railways, this cannot be beaten ...

2 - ON THE BRIDGE

Now we are standing on a footbridge, looking west, the direction of our walk. The canal is revealed to be contained by a retaining wall and the world we are now in has dropped down by more than a train height. The view is dominated by the array of carriage sidings, the gables of the extensive carriage sheds visible beyond. Our footbridge spans only two tracks before steps down provide convenient seating. These tracks feed the sidings, or some of them, while the two tracks themselves follow the retaining wall until they curve to the right and out of sight, where they serve Old Oak Common locomotive depot. To the left of the carriage sidings are the quadruple tracks of the main line (relief then main beyond) with a small freight yard on the far side. Beyond lies the open expanse of Wormwood Scrubs, the distinctive turrets of the prison in the distance.

If we turn round, our view east is dominated by Mitre Bridge, a girder bridge carrying the West London line across the many tracks of the Great Western, with the Scrubs Lane road bridge hidden just behind it. Fortunately we are low enough to see under these bridges and can follow the GW until it veers right towards Ladbroke Grove. Our own pair of tracks, the ones we are standing over, still hug the retaining wall while they soon begin to climb so as to reach a flyover across the main line just before the bend. Finally, if we look south across the GW lines we see, opposite our footbridge, another pair of tracks curving west to south, passing under the West London before joining it out of sight at the oddly-named North Pole Junction.

Most of the activity naturally centres on the carriage sidings. Wisps of steam can always be seen here as Old Oak's 57XX pannier tanks, all bunker-first and with the characteristic GW shunter's wagon in front, busy themselves endlessly with sorting stock.

Dotted about the yard are other locos to ferry the stock to and from the terminus. These are mainly panniers, but the 57XX's are now joined by the 94XX type or maybe that GW oddity, the ungainly 15XX, with motion as well as cylinders on the outside. A handful of Old Oak "Tanner-One-ers", the large Prairies, also help out. All these locos may be humble tanks and their trains merely empty stock, but they have to put in a performance to attack that incline up to the flyover from a standing start. And there’s no better place to witness this than from the footbridge as they pass (chimney first) underneath. From Old Oak's huge stud of panniers (the largest on the Great Western) I must single out 3648 and 9754, whose cabside number plates happily survive in my possession. Then, interspersed with the empty stock are the train engines, edging quietly out of the depot, to reappear seemingly hours later storming west on the main line.

In the reverse direction less drama is involved, though it could be busy. From the Paddington direction, empties use a dedicated track alongside the relief lines, worked on permissive block. Queues of trains formed here at times, the train engine still in position unless already lured away by the Ranelagh Bridge servicing point, just outside the terminus. Occasionally the main line loco (still tender-first, of course) brought in the empty stock rather than running light, a procedure rarely occurring with departures.

All these empty stock workings give us the chance to read some more destinations: along with all the Wolverhamptons, Bristols, Plymouths we can also spot Birkenhead, Pwllheli, Aberystwyth (two routes in those days), Pembroke Dock, Falmouth, Kingswear, Weymouth.

On the main line, incoming trains glide in noiselessly until the carriages clatter past. But outbound locos have to put in some effort as they continue building up speed (though it is still those panniers attacking the flyover that impress more). This main line could be busy. Simultaneous arrivals or departures are common - both expresses - as trains via the Birmingham Direct Line use the relief tracks (the junction is just beyond the carriage sheds). I don't ever recall seeing two Kings race each other, but a Stafford Road King on the relief line could be pitched against a Castle on the fast. Occupation of all four tracks isn't so rare (albeit with a suburban, semi-fast or parcels on the fourth rather than another express) so that four trains can pass our footbridge within seconds.

As for the loco types, it is of course Kings, Castles and the two Hall classes that predominate (I must single out here the white buffers that distinguish the smart Landore Castles) but variety is added through the occasional County, Grange or 47XX 2-8-0 pressed into passenger duty. But the one "namer" never seen, and only to be mentioned in hushed tones, is the Manor, though occasionally one somehow crept unseen on to Old Oak shed. And let’s not forget the Standards – the Canton Britannias, with class 5 or 4 4-6-0s on lesser duties.

The story is completed, so far as passenger traffic is concerned, with the humdrum locals, made up of non-corridor compartment stock, invariably hauled by “Tanner-One-ers”, sometimes from as far afield as Oxford.

There isn’t so much freight on the main line, Acton yard being a few miles further down the line. But the occasional loco saunters up light engine to visit Old Oak shed, usually a 28XX or perhaps a 43XX or Woodford Halse WD. And on one occasion a 72XX 2-8-2T, with its huge bunker, turned up from Ebbw Junction shed. Then, from 1959, Old Oak started building up its own stud of new 9Fs, though for years before then it seems to have managed perfectly well without heavy freight engines of its own.

There is some freight, however, via the West London. GW panniers or one of Old Oak's handful of 2251 0-6-0s take this route. But most trains are Southern-hauled, usually behind W 2-6-4 tanks from Stewarts Lane, Hither Green or Norwood Junction depots. Tender types to be seen are C2X 0-6-0s from Norwood Junction and K 2-6-0s from Brighton or Three Bridges sheds (Norwood having none of its own). To me the elegant lines of the Ks always seemed inappropriate - proper freight locos should have a more rugged appearance. Meanwhile, if Hither Green tires of a W, we can expect the occasional C 0-6-0 or N Mogul

Trains for the West London from Acton Yard entered a loop alongside the carriage sidings - a much-needed refuge as they seemed to wait hours here before getting a chance to cross the main line and enter the short tunnel under the West London itself. In the reverse direction, having cleared North Pole Junction, the train could safely be held on the running line, the engine just visible out of the tunnel, until getting the chance to cross. Some freights in this direction didn't make the attempt, opting for a dedicated track alongside the down main, presumably to access the small yard on that side of the line.

And what of the West London itself? Going south, trains try to edge across Mitre Bridge unnoticed. But in the reverse direction they announce their arrival well in advance as they attack the 1 in 60 incline up to the bridge.

The dominant traffic, or so it seems in memory, comprises Willesden 2-6-4 tanks (or their Fowler Prairie predecessors), which seem to wander aimlessly up and down, either light engine or with just a brake van or couple of milk tanks for company. Another common sight is the cab of an emu (no more), as the unit reverses just before Mitre Bridge en route to or from the emu shed at Willesden Junction.

But there’s plenty of other activity to excite more interest: Willesden 8Fs, Super Ds or 4Fs have hefty loads to and from Hither Green or Norwood yards. The Southern is well represented, too, with those W tanks again, plus Cs, C2Xs, Ks and Ns. All the LMS and most of Southern-hauled freights work to and from the West Coast main line, but I believe a few Southern freights use the Mitre Bridge Loop to reach the North London. And what of the LNER? Hornsey's engines, common enough on the North London itself, seem never to reach the West London, no doubt preferring their own access to this part of the Southern via the Metropolitan Widened Lines. But Stratford regularly sends its 0-6-0s via the Loop and on to the West London. And so, thanks to these workings, our footbridge is one of the few vantage points where locos from every one of the Big Four Post-Grouping companies appear regularly.

The West London, though, isn’t just a freight railway: from 1905 until 1971 the WLR hosted through passenger services between the South Coast and the Midlands or North, though sometimes these were on summer Saturdays only. These trains were Southern-hauled as far as Willesden Junction, the locos turning at Willesden shed. In addition events at Wembley could bring the occasional special from the Southern. So, if we’re lucky, we will witness an unrebuilt West Country, usually from Brighton, making heavy weather of the incline. Not that the Bulleids have a monopoly on these workings. One of the mysteries of the Southern was why, with treble the Pacifics of the LMS, they put theirs to work on 3-coach trains on "the withered arm" of the LSW while older and smaller locos were given serious work to do further east. So we could well see a Schools class 4-4-0s, again usually from Brighton, or even a U1 3-cylinder Mogul (remember them?), battling against the gradient while a Paddington-bound Castle glides effortlessly underneath.

And so it's time to leave our footbridge and re-enter the tranquil world of the canal towpath the other side of the wall, only the sounds and puffs of steam from those panniers to remind us of the busy scene. To re-trace our steps we should turn right. But it's tempting to extend our walk and go the other way. This takes us past Old Oak Common loco shed, with Willesden shed soon after on the other side. Another time, maybe …

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

A couple of years ago I had the opportunity to walk the canal and check how things had changed. I was sorry but not surprised to find the footbridge gone. (No more chance to slip down the steps and put a penny on the line.) I couldn't even spot any new brickwork in the wall, so thick was the vegetation now covering much of its length. But I could do something now that wasn't possible back then: returning to Willesden Junction High Level, I took a passenger train along the Mitre Bridge loop and then over Mitre Bridge itself. Looking west, the array of carriage sidings was still there, though, thanks to HSTs, the shunting activity had gone. But a whole new centre of activity had sprung up on the south side of the line with the construction of the vast Channel Tunnel servicing depot. This stretches alongside the GW main line on both sides of the West London. So, if the sheer variety and complexity of the scene is greatly reduced here as elsewhere, this location remains as much a focal point on the railway as it ever was.


[ Regrettably I didn't take photos back then. But you can see some among books in the Middleton Press series, including those on the North London and West London lines for views in the Willesden Junction area , while the Paddington to Ealing book shows the full extent of the sidings at Old Oak, albeit after the demise of steam. And in the July 2006 British Railways Illustrated, in an item called "Mitre Bridge", there are pictures from the footbridge itself, with more scenes in the July 2010 issue (“Old Oak Common in the snow”) . In the February 2010 BRILL there’s a track diagram, (though the WLR connection is skewed to fit). ]


Kudu

Brilliant stuff!!

I lived in Harlesden in the 60's and early 70'2 and used to walk down to Nightingale Road to collect my mate before we went round to Willesden Junction and thence to Parson's Green. I moved away to Stony Stratford but a change of work location has brought me back to the area. I went on a tour of the stations in that area and was surprised how Willesden Junction station has changed, particularly the Low Level Station entrance.

Tony

Glad you enjoyed it, Tony.

Funnily enough, I used to walk down Nightingale Road to collect a mate on Sundays before doing Willesden and Old Oak sheds. He never mentioned Parson's Green! But this was a bit earlier than you, I think.

In the latest Rly Mag (July) I notice the last bit of Old Oak shed has just been demolished, as has Willesden Junct HL box, apparently, though I'm puzzled by the picture.

To the best of my knowledge, you can still do the route I described, though as I wrote the final destination has sadly gone.

Kudu

Kudu,
Thanks for posting that it was a really interesting read. I had not noticed how close the lines were I am familiar with the WCML and the GWR but not put them together, had a look on the map and you could have knocked me over with a feather, looks like you can still walk along the canal though.

Thanks
Simon

CVR1865 wrote:Kudu,
Thanks for posting that it was a really interesting read. I had not noticed how close the lines were I am familiar with the WCML and the GWR but not put them together, had a look on the map and you could have knocked me over with a feather, looks like you can still walk along the canal though.

Thanks
Simon

Oh dear, this brings back memories that I rarely admit to.

When I was in my late teens I lived in a bedsit in Buckinghamshire, because my job (MOD) had posted me there.

In Sep 1972 I heard about Old Oak Common open day and with an enthusiast mate of mine we decided to try and drive to the event. We had never driven in London and in fact I had only bought my first car 4 months earlier (a Mini countryman).

So I set off heading in the general direction of the stations I had seen from the window of trains from Slough to Paddington. I remember going through Ealing and thinking we must be pretty close, but after another twenty minutes of turning down cul-de-sacs and heading into housing estates we seemed well and truly lost.

Then, suddenly, we drove by Willesden station. There was a long bit of road with no parking restrictions, so we parked there and caught a train to Euston. From there it was tube to Paddington and then the dmu shuttle to Old Oak.

The strange thing I noticed was while wandering around Old Oak depot there was a nearby cooling tower that looked very similar to the one I had seen at Willesden. I just assumed they must have all been constructed to the same blueprint.

Then it was back to Paddington, tube to Euston and class 501 to Willesden.

I drove out of the road I was in and turned the corner, but was gobsmacked to see the street sign said Old Oak Common Road. I was even more gobsmacked when about 2 minutes later I drove right past the depot entrance.

A rather expensive lesson in geography, but it makes me smile to think of it now. I console myself with the thought that at least I got to travel over the ECS tracks to/from Old Oak.

CVR1865 wrote:Kudu,
Thanks for posting that it was a really interesting read. I had not noticed how close the lines were I am familiar with the WCML and the GWR but not put them together, had a look on the map and you could have knocked me over with a feather, looks like you can still walk along the canal though.

Thanks
Simon

I'm sure the canal and footpaths in my piece are all still open.

The earliest plans for a Bristol-London link (initiated by Bristol business interests) did not specify a final London terminus, but soon after a Bill was drafted that entailed the GWR running over London & Birmingham metals to Euston, the GWR itself "terminating by a Junction ... in a certain field lying between the Paddington Canal and the Turnpike Road ... on the western side of the General Cemetary in the Parish ... of Hammersmith." The cemetary is now known as Kensal Green Cemetary and (apart from the canal) is all that separates the two lines. The road was Harrow Road (where my walk more or less starts) and the "Junction" would have been pretty close to Willesden Junction. What a junction that would have been! And whose statue would have stood in the Great Hall at Euston?

The Bill was actually enacted on 31 August 1835, but the GWR and L&B couldn't agree terms, one complication being the little matter of gauges.

Kudu

strang steel wrote:I drove out of the road I was in and turned the corner, but was gobsmacked to see the street sign said Old Oak Common Road. I was even more gobsmacked when about 2 minutes later I drove right past the depot entrance.

A rather expensive lesson in geography, but it makes me smile to think of it now. I console myself with the thought that at least I got to travel over the ECS tracks to/from Old Oak.

An amusing story. Glad you got some consolation out of it. I recently posted elsewhere on the confusions of Old Oak Lane and Old Oak Common Lane etc (on a North London thread somewhere).

I guess Willesden and Old Oak sheds were the two closest sheds of any size serving unrelated lines. I just took it for granted at the time and felt slightly irritated that Neasden was quite a walk while for Cricklewood I would need the trolleybus. Nine Elms and Stewarts Lane were pretty close to each other, too, and could be runners-up.

Kudu

kudu wrote: " .... Glad you got some consolation out of it. I recently posted elsewhere on the confusions of Old Oak Lane and Old Oak Common Lane etc (on a North London thread somewhere). .... " Kudu

...In 'General LNER Discussion' thread "North London Line to Broad street & Poplar", I think : - north-london-line-to-broad-street-poplar-t4156.html

Anyway, great memories indeed, Kudu.
My own earliest of that locality, though a little later in time (1964/5-ish), entail one of our (school 'teen transport 'spotters') many Saturday roamings of London thanks to the versatile LT Twin Rover ticket [5/- (25p ), for all-day validity on all red buses and the UndergrounD].
I forget now how and where we got on to it, but on that same (south-side) canal towpath we were, somewhere in the Old Oak Lane area.
What a boon to be able to, in one direction, access Old Oak Common shed through the hole in the wall (I could thoroughly recommend eating one's sandwich lunch while perched on the handle of a heavily-loaded unattended wheelbarrow near an open large shed door, with swirling steam smoke adding a touch of a 'je ne sais crois' to the flavour), then, in the other direction, heading about a half-mile NW along the towpath, to and up the bank to (no fence or other barrier), the single-track rail bridge over the canal carrying the fairly new 'Connecting Line' between Acton Canal Wharf box on the Acton Wells-Cricklewood/Brent line, and the Euston Main Line at Harlesden (Willesden No.7?), and with a hop skip and a jump over that bridge, and few steps off to the right, there we were amongst the outside sidings of Shed 1A, filled with several lines of silent and cold steam locos.
Great!
Think I took 2 or 3 B&W snaps in each place.

My memories of OOC and Willesden go back to 1951. I was at boarding school in Hammersmith and several of us railway enthusiasts used to go to the two sheds on a Sunday afternoon in school uniform about a couple of times a month. As far as the school was concerned we were visitng the Natural History Museum or something similar, but we were never challenged during a three year period, which included the day that the specials were prepared for KGVI's funeral!

I do remember seeing the two remaining Bulldogs (Seagull & Skylark) at OOC just before they were withdrawn, and there were plenty of Stars still around. It was just sad that I did not have a decent camera at that time.

Happy days.

2512silverfox wrote:I do remember seeing the two remaining Bulldogs (Seagull & Skylark) at OOC just before they were withdrawn, and there were plenty of Stars still around. It was just sad that I did not have a decent camera at that time.

Happy days.

Whenever you started there was always something you just missed. I sometimes went to the footbridge in the evening. It was quieter but there were parcels and other less usual workings. One one such train the last survivor, 4056, worked up but that was an evening I stayed away. I never saw a Star in steam. As for Bulldogs, before my time.

Kudu

StevieG wrote:What a boon to be able to, in one direction, access Old Oak Common shed through the hole in the wall (I could thoroughly recommend eating one's sandwich lunch while perched on the handle of a heavily-loaded unattended wheelbarrow near an open large shed door, with swirling steam smoke adding a touch of a 'je ne sais crois' to the flavour), then, in the other direction, heading about a half-mile NW along the towpath, to and up the bank to (no fence or other barrier), the single-track rail bridge over the canal carrying the fairly new 'Connecting Line' between Acton Canal Wharf box on the Acton Wells-Cricklewood/Brent line, and the Euston Main Line at Harlesden (Willesden No.7?), and with a hop skip and a jump over that bridge, and few steps off to the right, there we were amongst the outside sidings of Shed 1A, filled with several lines of silent and cold steam locos.
Great!
Think I took 2 or 3 B&W snaps in each place.

That's doing it the hard way! There was a road you could take between the two, you know. Mind you, I would always go the other way as the road entrance brought you in sight of the shedmaster's office at Willesden.

Btw, on the outside wall of the offices was a painted wooden sign, protected against the weather by an awning. The notice had the usual BR emblem and said

"WILLESDEN MOTIVE POWER DEPOT

LOCOMOTIVE SHEDMASTER

AND

GENERAL OFFICE

ENQUIRIES" (with left arrow)

This has spent more time on my wall (inside - don't want the neighbours to think I'm mad) than on theirs.

Kudu

PS The approach road to Willesden shed was regularly used to film "The Likely Lads" TV series. The two streets of terraced housing here, Stephenson Street and Goodhall Street, I believe were used more than once for BBC plays. Not a million miles from Shepherd's Bush, after all. And the little wagon works and sidings backing onto this route were used in "The Ipcress File".

kudu wrote:

StevieG wrote:What a boon to be able to, in one direction, access Old Oak Common shed through the hole in the wall (I could thoroughly recommend eating one's sandwich lunch while perched on the handle of a heavily-loaded unattended wheelbarrow near an open large shed door, with swirling steam smoke adding a touch of a 'je ne sais crois' to the flavour), then, in the other direction, heading about a half-mile NW along the towpath, to and up the bank to (no fence or other barrier), the single-track rail bridge over the canal carrying the fairly new 'Connecting Line' between Acton Canal Wharf box on the Acton Wells-Cricklewood/Brent line, and the Euston Main Line at Harlesden (Willesden No.7?), and with a hop skip and a jump over that bridge, and few steps off to the right, there we were amongst the outside sidings of Shed 1A, filled with several lines of silent and cold steam locos.
Great!
Think I took 2 or 3 B&W snaps in each place.

That's doing it the hard way! There was a road you could take between the two, you know. Mind you, I would always go the other way as the road entrance brought you in sight of the shedmaster's office at Willesden.

Btw, on the outside wall of the offices was a painted wooden sign, protected against the weather by an awning. The notice had the usual BR emblem and said

"WILLESDEN MOTIVE POWER DEPOT

LOCOMOTIVE SHEDMASTER

AND

GENERAL OFFICE

ENQUIRIES" (with left arrow)

This has spent more time on my wall (inside - don't want the neighbours to think I'm mad) than on theirs.

Kudu

PS The approach road to Willesden shed was regularly used to film "The Likely Lads" TV series. The two streets of terraced housing here, Stephenson Street and Goodhall Street, I believe were used more than once for BBC plays. Not a million miles from Shepherd's Bush, after all. And the little wagon works and sidings backing onto this route were used in "The Ipcress File".

And there was me thinking it was all filmed up north. Innocence shattered.

I think that idea is because the opening and/or closing credits were shots of Newcastle with a Metro-Cammell dmu crossing a viaduct near a multi storey car park,

This is all from memory, mind - and the last episode I saw was probably 30 years ago.

We are talking about What Became Of The Likely Lads; I think.

I was led to believe the original Likely Lads series were binned with a lot of 1960s BBC treasures.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Likely ... g_episodes