Kings Cross

[AndyRush]

Going back to someone mentioned on here a couple of months ago, I have just hads the sad news that Len Moore (The Judge) formerly of kings Cross and York Regional Controls has just passed away. I have no other details at present.

Andy

[Mickey]

Deleted

[StevieG]

Going back to someone mentioned on here a couple of months ago, I have just hads the sad news that Len Moore (The Judge) formerly of kings Cross and York Regional Controls has just passed away. I have no other details at present.

Andy

Thanks very much Andy.

Sad indeed. As a junior Rest Day Relief controller I worked with him often on the KX Div.'l Control loco desk. Good to work with and always went about his work in a competent, straight-talking but not over-bearing way.

[manna]

G'Day Gents

Budgie, AKA, Ken Lester, in the very early 70's used to come to work on a Moped, I was with him one day on the Palace Gates/Bounds Green shunt, It was the day that the coal froze in the hopper wagons and they could'nt get it out, and we nearly froze on that 08, I think Ken was a fireman at Barnetby in a former life, last time I saw him was in the messroom at Leeds, would be 1991, I said hello.

manna

[hq1hitchin]

Going back to someone mentioned on here a couple of months ago, I have just hads the sad news that Len Moore (The Judge) formerly of kings Cross and York Regional Controls has just passed away. I have no other details at present.

Andy

Thanks for letting us know, Andy. Have passed the word on to others. He was a regular attendee at Hatfield, along with other Top Shed men, and will be missed. RIP

[John C]

Cor,yeah, old Budgie. Couldn't he talk - hence his nickname. I remember being with him one day and we had to take a bullion van from KX station or the Goods Yard (time has dimmed my memory somewhat on this one). We had to go to Bounds Green, then run round and haul it to Stratford.

Keith (I think that was his name, rather than Ken) had been given strict instructions not to lose any time on any part of the journey; well - we got put down the Goods road between FP and Wood Green behind just about every empty stock train there was and then had further delays once we'd run round and started off for Stratford. Poor old Budge was beside himself with worry, because by the time we got there we were at least an hour late. Having eventually come back LE to the Cross, we'd got rid of the diesel and were walking along (the old) platform 10 when who comes up to us but Bill Tumbridge and his sidekick Joe 90. They gave Keith a right grilling about where he'd been and what had taken him so long. It was one of the few times that I'd seen Budgie lost for words and I'm afraid I rather overstepped the mark and laid in (verbally) to Insp Tumbridge, asking him what the hell he'd thought we wre doing - picking daisies?

Needless to say he wasn't impressed with this young upstart poking his nose in - he was after all adressing the engine driver, not the oil rag. I took this as my cue to shut my gob before I got into some right old mess!

I read on Jim Bulls Kings Cross seniority list (see his posting elsewhere) that Keith died in 1998.

[hq1hitchin]

Cor,yeah, old Budgie. Couldn't he talk - hence his nickname. I remember being with him one day and we had to take a bullion van from KX station or the Goods Yard (time has dimmed my memory somewhat on this one). We had to go to Bounds Green, then run round and haul it to Stratford.

Keith (I think that was his name, rather than Ken) had been given strict instructions not to lose any time on any part of the journey; well - we got put down the Goods road between FP and Wood Green behind just about every empty stock train there was and then had further delays once we'd run round and started off for Stratford. Poor old Budge was beside himself with worry, because by the time we got there we were at least an hour late. Having eventually come back LE to the Cross, we'd got rid of the diesel and were walking along (the old) platform 10 when who comes up to us but Bill Tumbridge and his sidekick Joe 90. They gave Keith a right grilling about where he'd been and what had taken him so long. It was one of the few times that I'd seen Budgie lost for words and I'm afraid I rather overstepped the mark and laid in (verbally) to Insp Tumbridge, asking him what the hell he'd thought we wre doing - picking daisies?

Needless to say he wasn't impressed with this young upstart poking his nose in - he was after all adressing the engine driver, not the oil rag. I took this as my cue to shut my gob before I got into some right old mess!

I read on Jim Bulls Kings Cross seniority list (see his posting elsewhere) that Keith died in 1998.

Lovely story, John. Was just chatting with another old salt and we reckon there might have been TWO budgies, the one you are referring to here and the Hertfordshire budgie? It's a long time ago now but I can recall that the latter invested in a three wheeler car of which he was very proud. Bill Tumbridge?, now you're going back a bit - I had a dynamometer car roll with him shown as the fireman on a 'blue 'un' - like a lot of stuff, now lost, I'm afraid.

[Marx]

G'day Gents

Here's a picture of a couple of Brush 2's at 'tuther end' of Hitchin station, and of a second man at Bounds Green, but I can't remember his name.

Hi Manna,
I think that the secondman( with the hat) at Bounds Green may be Mike Connors, Ken Crawley's secondman in the Cambridge link? He was a friend of mine and Paul Baker another secondman in the Top link......................
I think Mike went to OZ ...............

Regards

Marx

[manna]

G'Day Gents

Used to talk a fair bit about Australia in the mess room at Kings Cross, firstly because I had a fair Aussie twang, and everyone used to ask 'Where you from' I replied Sarfend, but nobody believed me ?? which could have been the reason quite a few railwaymen left and came to Australia.

Secondly, we had at the time 'Teds' three day week, the 'Oil crisis' I remember at the time every train was packed, had a girlfriend in Southampton at the time usually had to stand all the way from Waterloo to Southampton, no wonder some people left.

So if your out there 'Mike Connors' ------

manna

[Mickey]

Deleted

[thesignalman]

To my memory it was always on the same job, an early lunchtime departure from Kings Cross to Hull (I think) and return. About 1220 departure, maybe? I have some photographs but they are out on loan at the moment.

Here is my only picture of it at the head of said train (I thought I had more), and alas it shows the wrong end of the locomotive so the train headcode cannot be discerned. The only clue is the platform (8) and the fact I know the time was just after noon. Perhaps somebody with deep timetable knowledge of the late sixties can identify this working, which was definitely daily at the time.

John

[Dave Cockle]

Theres a number of ex-KX driver's & secondmen on this forum from the early/mid 1970s, does anybody remember the following secondmen?.
Anthony (Tony) Oliver started in 1973. Tony became a driver and went to Selhurst Park on the S.R. in the mid/late-70s believe to have been a driver at Hitchin at a later date and still driving as of 2009.
Raymond Wilson started in 1973. Ray became a driver at Kings Cross in the mid/late-70s and is believed to have remained at KX.
Keith Austin started in 1973. Keith became a driver in the mid/late-70s and was last heard of in circa 1991 as becoming a Eurostar driver.
Steve Cummings started in 1973. Steve became a driver in the late-70s and went to London Bridge on the S.R. he has since retired about 3-4 years ago.

The first three named are ex-secondary school friends, Steve Cummings and myself use to down a glass or three in the KX B.R.S.A. club around 1974/75.

Micky,

When I retired in 2007 Tony Oliver was still based at Hitchin depot and Ray Wilson was at Kings Cross but off driving duties undertaking a messengers job.

[Mickey]

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[Mickey]

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[hq1hitchin]

My, don't things happen quickly nowadays:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TB1ElU38 ... r_embedded

I still miss the suburban station, though...