Bus painted in pre-war 1930s livery in nostalgic tribute to Westcliff-on-sea Motor Services

source - FirstGroup / John Lidstone

Bus painted in pre-war 1930s livery in nostalgic tribute to Westcliff-on-sea Motor Services

Some local vintage news now in the form of the welcome return of some æsthetically-pleasing 1930s livery applied to one of our bus operator's vehicles as part of its celebration of the 100th anniversary of one of its predecessors.

FirstGroup's standard colours of white, blue and pink (known in some quarters as "Barbie" buses for obvious reasons!) have long been anathema to this blogger so any effort to bring back some of the more tasteful hues of bus companies past is definitely a good thing in my book.  In fact most modern bus firms' colourways from the last twenty years or so leave a lot to be desired compared to what has gone before, so it is to be hoped that First's foray into more tasteful heritage livery sets a trend that others will follow.

FirstGroup's "Barbie" livery (ugh!) in contrast to the much classier cream and red
of competitor Hedingham Omnibuses.
source - Wikimedia Commons

First Essex's original Westcliff-liveried Dennis Trident
source - Wikimedia Commons

This is in fact the second of First Essex's buses to have been repainted in the colours of Westcliff-on-sea Motor Services, which was the main private bus company in the Southend area from the 1910s up until 1954 (when it was bought out by Eastern National, which until then had operated only in the north of Essex), with an ex-London Transport 2002 Dennis Trident (above, and in the background of the first photo) also having been given the same treatment a few years ago and which can still be seen plying various routes around Southend as well.  Now it has been joined by this newer 2011 Volvo B9TL which as well as providing a nice bit of vintage-painted luxury (by First Essex's poor standards, at any rate - they're known around here as "WorstGroup" for a reason, unfortunately) along the region's routes will also be put into use as a "flagship bus" (it could use a few more of them, too) at events up and down the county, so I expect I shall see it and its older sibling at future bus rallies once they restart post-covid.

First Essex's latest Westcliff-liveried Volvo B9TL at Southend.  The bus in the
background is a competitor Arriva, proving that they could also do with looking
through their back catalogue for livery inspiration.
source - Busmopolitan

In any event, I am delighted to see a local bus company taking inspiration from the past and decorating its vehicles in the much more stylish colours of the 1930s.  While it has been acknowledged that the appearance of modern buses is far removed from the chrome and swooping lines that were prevalent in that period (more's the pity; someone needs to design a whole bus that harks back to those times, much like the New Routemaster only perhaps more successful - we can only wish!), I'd say First have been successful in applying the '30s livery of Westcliff Motor Services to the shape of these buses and it certainly makes them look a damned sight better to my eyes.  Now they just need to roll it out to the rest of the fleet - they could do worse than use Eastern National's colours of green and cream, for example.  What about it, First?

***Which historic liveries would you like to see reintroduced on buses?  Let me know in the comments below!*** 

Ipswich library staff record audiobook for 102-year-old

source - ITV Anglia

Ipswich library staff record audiobook for 102-year-old

A touching news item from East Anglia, this, featuring as it does a sterling effort on the part of Ipswich librarians to track down and record to CD a 1920s novel for a local centenarian who remembered her father reading it to her as a child.  I'm sure we have all at one time or another used our local library to try to obtain a rare or out-of-print book but the thoughtfulness of the staff at Ipswich library is above and beyond anything one would normally expect and I can well understand the pride felt by the library's senior management.

Ipswich library staff record audiobook for 102-year-old member during lockdown

source - Amazon

Once again there are multiple facets to this story that all make for happy reading - the kindness and sense of community that came out in the early days of lockdown which this typifies (and which I'm sure we all hoped would continue once the crisis abated); the thought and effort put in by the librarians to actually go and buy the book with their own money, then to take the time to read it aloud and record it on to discs; the care and concern they obviously feel towards this valued member of the community and the recognition of the importance of this book to her and the memories it engenders; the obvious joy of reading that was imbued in to this 102-year-old lady at a young age by her father, which has not waned in nearly a century; the importance to the human spirit of books and of reading in general.  Not to mention that a previously-forgotten novel from the 1920s is now potentially back on the shelves of Ipswich library, at least, hopefully for a new and appreciative audience to discover and enjoy.  Then there is the wider aspect of this story - Suffolk Libraries' advice and support network for older and more vulnerable residents, which is also to be applauded as a perfect example of the value of libraries to the local community.

It's also lovely to note that as well as recording the audiobook the library staff also purchased the DVD of the 1950 film adaptation for Mrs Bugg to watch.



On a more personal note this article reminded me of my own lockdown project that I have been working on, as well as putting me in mind of one or two lesser experiences with my own library service.

To start with the lockdown project - seven years ago now(!) I made tell of picking up a book at a local vintage fair, which I regarded (and still do) as a splendid period find.  It was The Test Match Surprise (subtitled A Romance of the Cricket Field), ostensibly written by the famous early 20th century cricketer Jack Hobbs (in actuality ghost-written by an unknown author, although Hobbs may have had a hand in the more cricket-oriented chapters).  Anyway, I have enjoyed reading it many a time since then and one day during lockdown having re-read it again it occurred to me what a charming story it was (albeit of its time like Portrait of Clare) and that in many respects it was not unlike a Wildean plot.  With this in mind the thought came to me that it could possibly be converted into a four-act play so I began transcribing it on to my computer.  Well I've completed that task but since then I have received various other suggestions as to adaptations - radio play, four-person comedy version in the mould of The 39 Steps and, as the Suffolk librarians have done, a simple audiobook.  Faced with this variety of sources I'm sorry to say things have stalled a little but I still hope to have this own out-of-print book of mine - published in 1926, only one year before Portrait of Clare - adapted into one of the above formats, if only for my personal enjoyment, perhaps before the year is out.

The two instances of my local library service helping me track down copies of rare books are not in the same league as Mrs Bugg's but nevertheless still form happy memories.

Ever since I first saw the B.B.C. adaptation in 1995 I was on the lookout for a copy of 1930s racing driver Sir Henry 'Tim' Birkin's autobiography Full Throttle.  Then in the early 2000s I read an article about Birkin in the Autocar magazine and spurred on by this I eventually managed to get a copy through Essex Libraries' inter-loan scheme (it originally coming from Maidstone, Kent).  Back then I was working at London's South Bank and I spent many a happy hour reading this copy by the riverside by Blackfriars.  Afterwards I desperately wanted a copy for myself, but it had been out of print since the early '60s and I couldn’t find another one anywhere.  More out of hope than anything else I dropped a brief e-mail to the chaps at Autocar asking them from where they got their copy on which they based their article, expecting at best a list of bookshops to try my luck at.  Imagine my surprise and delight when the following week the journalist in question used part of his column to plead for a copy for me!  Even more wonderfully, a splendid old boy who lived literally just around the corner from me had 1935 edition in remarkably good condition, plus W.O. Bentley's autobiography, both of which he said he would let me have for free.  I popped round there and spent the best part of half an hour, spellbound, chatting to him, as it turned out that he used to be a marshal at lots of the major European motor races and had seen many of the greats - Fangio, Moss, Surtees - actually racing!

In an almost carbon copy of the above, the autobiography of forgotten army officer and eccentric Lt.-Col. A.D. Wintle MC was also adapted as part of the same three-part B.B.C. series (titled Heroes & Villains) and it was through this that I first became aware of this unique individual and the story of his remarkable life.  Following this I was able to locate a copy of The Last Englishman in Southend Library's "stack" (i.e. store unit) and for several years would request it every time I felt in need of reading it until one day, a few years ago, I was distraught to discover that it was no longer available!  Clearly it had been disposed of (or possibly, due to its rarity value, misappropriated), much to my chagrin.  Since then I was constantly on the lookout for a copy - mainly on eBay, where the prices more or less confirmed my suspicions that the library copy had either been sold or snaffled by someone who realised its value.  Then just a few months ago one came up on the aforementioned auction site and my bid - far less than I'd seen any other copy go for - was the winner!  So once again after several years of searching I was finally able to add another long sought-after book to my collection and in both cases it has been thanks in various degrees to my local library service (although nowhere near the same league as Ipswich's).

At the risk of repeating myself, then, these experiences and the wonderful story that forms the crux of this post just goes to show the overwhelming importance of libraries to society in general.  I take my hat off to the staff of Ipswich library and hope that Mrs Bugg enjoys listening again and reminiscing to Portrait of Clare.

***What has been your experience of your local library service?  Is there a book you would like to see turned into an audiobook or similar?  Let me know in the comments below!***

'Stunning' Doncaster Victorian landmark building saved from demolition

source - The Demolition Register

'Stunning' Doncaster Victorian landmark building saved from demolition

One of the few periodicals that I regularly subscribe to is the satirical/ current affairs news magazine Private Eye, which takes a critical look at fortnightly events in both British and international politics and society in general.  Since my college days I have long found it equal parts amusing, insightful, revelatory and provoking as well as being a good counterbalance to the reporting of the mainstream media (all of whom come in for their fair share of stick in its pages).  My grandfather was often fond of saying that anything you read in the papers is, essentially, one person's interpretation of events and that is a view that has never left me.  I always try to make a point of reading the news from various sources and am frequently struck by how the same story can be reported so differently depending on whether it is by, say, the conservative right-wing Daily Telegraph or the more left-wing, Labour-oriented Guardian.  Indeed it seems to me that in the last few decades the news has become increasingly politicised, although maybe it has always been the case and it is just something I've noticed as I've got older.

Anyway, although it doesn't always do my blood pressure much good, among many of the interesting columns to be found within the Eye is a regular half-page spread called Nooks & Corners, which focuses on all too common abuses of building and planning regulations and various travesties related to historic buildings throughout the British Isles.  It was through this, about six weeks ago, that I was first made aware of the plight of the remarkable building mentioned in the Doncaster Free Press article.

At the time its fate seemed all but sealed, with approval in principle for demolition and the ubiquitous modern development of flats due to go up in its place.  The shortsighted views of the developer and Doncaster council - that the building was not of "sufficient interest" and would therefore be left to fall into a state of even further disrepair (a rather dubious statement open to interpretation in my book) - were not shared by campaigners including the Doncaster Civic Trust and The Victorian Society, the latter of whom have been successful in applying to Historic England (formerly English Heritage) for Grade II listed status.  Although its future is still far from assured this does at least mean it is no longer at risk of being torn down, which is wonderful news and gives hope that for other buildings facing the same misfortune. Here's hoping that it will also encourage the developer to consider his options in the renovation of this striking and important local landmark.

source - The Guardian

This story has reminded me of several similar incidents from down the years - a couple quite close to home - beginning with the tragedy that was the Firestone Tyre Factory in Brentford, in the west London Borough of Hounslow.  Designed and built in 1928 by the noted architectural company Wallis Gilbert and Partners, who were responsible for many beautiful Art Deco inspired buildings including the nearby Hoover Factory (still standing albeit now as a Tesco supermarket and recognisable in a couple of early episodes of Poirot) it stood for over half a century as the Firestone Tyre Company's UK head office.  All that changed in November 1979 when Firestone announced it would be closing the factory and selling the building, which was subsequently bought by a British conglomerate, Trafalgar House Plc.  Mindful of its historical importance to an area rich in Art Deco industrial design, in August 1980 the then-planning minister Michael Heseltine moved to have the building listed but was obliged to inform Trafalgar House in advance of the impending decision.  What happened next was the worst sort of underhand cultural vandalism.  With the listing due to come into effect at the end of August, Trafalgar House simply got the bulldozers in over the Bank Holiday weekend and before anyone could do anything about it had demolished this stunning building, leaving only the entrance gates as any sign of its existence.  Outrage quite rightly followed, with the then-fledgling Thirties Society (now The Twentieth Century Society) up in arms at what had happened.  Heseltine wasn't best pleased either and in conjunction with the Civil Service introduced legislation which made sure that such a disgraceful occurrence could never happen again; the Hoover Factory was quickly listed as a result.

source - Yesterday's Racers

Fifteen years later and a similar and equally lamentable occurrence took place - albeit on a much smaller structural scale - in my old home town of Canvey Island.  Overlooking Canvey Lake for the best part of one hundred years was the quaint architectural oddity known to all and sundry as the Oysterfleet Lighthouse.  While its resemblance to such a building was obvious, it was in fact a little one-up one-down cottage built in the traditional 17th-century Dutch style common to the area (Canvey having been reclaimed from the Thames Estuary by the Dutch in the 1600s) by a Captain Gregson in the late 1880s.  He lived in the house on the left of the picture, below, and supposedly designed the Lighthouse for his mother-in-law to live in!

The Oysterfleet Lighthouse
source - The Original Canvey History Website

This charming local landmark stood unmolested for the best part of a century and was just on the verge of having a preservation order applied to it when - well, you can guess what happened next.  The land it was on had been purchased by a developer with his own ideas for the site and in the night leading up to the day the listing was due to come into force the bulldozers moved in and by the morning all that was left was a pile of rubble.  The shock and sadness felt by everyone in the community is still fresh in my mind over two decades on.  A large pub-hotel complex now stands on the site, with its "Lighthouse" restaurant the only nod to the little piece of local history that was sacrificed for its existence.

Elizabeth Cottage, Billericay, prior to its restoration
source - geograph (Robert Eva)

To end on a happier note a similar incident to that in Doncaster took place in Billericay, a town near me, involving a charming early 20th-century cottage that stands in a conservation area along the main high street.  Elizabeth Cottage has a fascinating history, but the story of its last 20 years has been rather tortured.  More or less left to decay over that time by its elusive foreign owners, it made local news (and appeared in the Eye) in 2017 when it emerged that mysterious builders had begun demolishing the roof - this three years after the owners' original planning permission for shops and flats had expired.  The local heritage society swung into action and to their credit Basildon Council acted swiftly to serve an injunction on the absent owners but were eventually forced to take over ownership and protect the structure from any further damage.  Subsequently the property was sold at auction to a local developer who I am pleased to say is obviously more sympathetic to the cottage and its importance to the local conservation area, having renovated it into several apartments while keeping the traditional frontage.

While there will always be wily owners and investors keen only to make quick money without giving thought to the historical or architectural importance of a building, it is thanks to groups like The Victorian Society and The Twentieth Century Society - as well as local community history groups - keeping the pressure up on councils and planning inspectorates that we are seeing more and more historically beautiful designs preserved and restored, to be given new life for future generations.  Although there is still some way to go in protecting significant traditional buildings from the ravages of decay or the attentions of unscrupulous developers, I do believe that we are as a society becoming more appreciative and protective of our communities' early buildings and I very much hope this means we will see more good news stories like this one from Doncaster in the future.

Lockdown look back #3: July 2017 - Thurrock Thameside Nature Reserve, Mucking, Essex

As most of us continue to slowly - and hopefully permanently - emerge from lock-down (although with those like myself still having to shield until the 1st August) it's occurred to me that it's been a couple of months since the last in my series of "Lockdown Look Back" posts featuring some of my escapades in the 3½ years I was absent from this blog.  So without further ado (or further adon't) let me take you back three years to the day to the 1st July 2017, where we find ourselves in the somewhat different but no less interesting surroundings of Thurrock Thameside Nature Reserve on the banks of the Thames Estuary and just outside the hamlet of Mucking in Essex.

source - Essex Wildlife Trust

The history of this nature reserve is a fascinating and convoluted one.  Like so much of this area bordering east London and the river it started life as a gravel quarry (although its ancient history can be traced all the way back to a Stone Age settlement) before becoming a landfill site for 50 years.  In 2012 it was finally closed as a tip and work began to return it to nature under the auspices of The Cory Environmental Trust, DP World Port and the Essex Wildlife Trust.  The 100ft-high piles of waste - half a century's worth of household rubbish from six London boroughs - was first covered over by a layer of thick clay (fortunately also found in abundance in this part of the world) before fresh soil and suitable plants were added.  A varied landscape of grassland, woodland, ponds and reedbeds has been created, with the seawall at the east end of the site being deliberately breached to allow the area to revert to marshland.

source - Essex Wildlife Trust

An ingenuously-designed visitor centre was also built in 2013 - wood-clad and circular in shape it has wonderful views of the entire reserve as well as the estuary, not least from the 360º viewing platform on its roof, and sits on hydraulic jacks that allow for the movement of the rubbish beneath as it continues to settle.

I can certainly attest to the excellence of the visitor centre, which as well as the aforementioned views contains a wealth of informative displays plus the obligatory EWT shop and a decent cafe.  I first visited the place with my parents shortly after it first opened, which was how I knew of its existence and thought of it as a worthwhile place to take my then-new lady friend.

Looking east out into the estuary
source - Essex Wildlife Trust

As I recall it was a mild if slightly blustery day - not unusual on that exposed part of the estuary - as we parked up and commenced walking around one of the myriad pathways that reach out in all directions from the visitor centre.  The entire reserve is currently about 120 acres in size (although the aim is for that to increase to a massive 845 acres - twice the size of Regent's Park) and forms part of the Thames Estuary Path which runs along the coast practically uninterrupted for 27 miles from Tilbury all the way to Leigh-on-sea.  Needless to say we contented ourselves with staying to within a mile or so of the centre but there was still plenty to see.

Looking towards Stanford-le-Hope/ Horndon-on-the-Hill on the Essex coast

Sailing boats over on the Kent (Cliffe) side of the river took advantage of the breeze

Unfortunately I am never going to win the Wildlife Photographer of The Year and as we were busy walking around, taking in the sights and enjoying each other's company I had little time or opportunity to take much in the way of photos.  The two above and three below therefore constitute the best of a poor bunch, but I hope they give a little idea of the splendid variety of wildlife and the fantastic effort that has gone in to turning a once barren and industrial wasteland into a beautiful and thriving nature reserve.

Thistles amidst the grassland

A close-up of a cardinal beetle taking a break atop a thistle 

More thistles and some unidentified purple flowers (I'm afraid I'm no horticulturist
either so if any green-fingered readers want to enlighten me I'll happily update this
caption!)

After our circuit of some of the shorter routes we repaired to the visitor centre for a light snack in the cafe (quite passable) and an enjoyable wander around inside and out (access to the rooftop viewing platform is via a circular ramp that runs around the outside of the building, which allows for good views as you make your way to the top).  One other thing the visitor centre had, which appealed to us more as bibliophiles than naturalists it has to be said, was a small selection of second-hand books tucked away in the corner of the cafe.  While unsurprisingly most are of an environmental or horticultural bent there are often quite a number of other genres both fiction and non-fiction so to finish off this post here are two acquisitions from that stall (although neither of them came from this particular visit).

The Friendless Sky was actually my most recent find from a return visit and is exactly what it says on the cover; it joins my already-burgeoning collection of World War One literature but was a jolly good read and complements my library well.  Likewise Captain Starlight by Percy F. Westerman, a contemporary of Biggles author W. E. Johns and while maybe not quite as well-rounded still a ripping adventure yarn.  This came out of my very first visit with my parents and served as an introduction to Westerman's work, further examples of which I have since added to my collection.

I have no doubt that we will return to Thurrock Thameside Nature Reserve again (and not just for the books!) and can wholly recommend this - still sadly somewhat hidden - gem should you ever be in the area.

Chocks away at the South Essex Armed Forces Day

Since 2009 there has been a special Armed Forces Day in Britain, with events held around the country to honour the men and women of the British armed forces past and present.  While not an official national holiday it certainly seems to have become an annual event, observed nationwide usually in the last week of June (to coincide with the anniversary of the first ever Victoria Cross).

Chances are there's an event or three near you (if you're UK-based), be it a simple town centre march-past or a weekend of packed commemorations.  Both of the above are occurring locally to me this weekend (28th/29th) but it is an earlier experience that will form the basis for this post today.

One of the biggest events - THE biggest, in fact, according the promotional material - in Essex took place last weekend at my local showground, Barleylands in Billericay.  I first became aware of the event as long ago as February, when the tickets began going on sale, and bought my entry there and then.  (This didn't stop TicketWeb and/or the Royal Mail trying to thwart me by losing my ticket - cue much frantic 'phone-calling in the week leading up to it and the last-minute sending of a replacement e-Ticket... only to find they were being sold on the gate after all!).  One thing in particular had ensured my attendance - the Great War Display Team would be making an appearance (OK, so the Spitfire and Hurricane attracted me too, of course)!

Three fields to the east of the car park were nothing to write
home about.  The field to the south and the green marker were
the places to be.

Come the day itself I availed myself of the free bus service and found myself at the Barleylands ground shortly after 11'o'clock.  I really had no idea what to expect from the day, having never been to an Armed Forces Day event before, but I kept my hopes suppressed following my previous less-than-positive experience a couple of years ago.  As it turned out it was probably for the best, for the overall layout could best be described as your standard funfair with a bit of militaria tacked on.  In one corner of a field there was a very interesting display of military vehicles - of which more momentarily.  But then one had to walk through three fields of the usual merry-go-rounds, shooting galleries and ice cream vans, past a music stage empty and audience-less save for a fat man in jeans and a short-sleeved shirt who was belting out (admittedly in good voice) 1950s Rock'n'Roll numbers, just to get to the display area - which was encircled by innumerable burger vans (which at £4 for the cheapest burger-in-a-bun were a prime example of playing to a captive audience) and sunglasses sales tents.

I did a couple of circuits just to make sure I didn't miss anything, stopped for a cup of tea and my own lunch and then headed back to the first field where I - very happily as it turned out - spent the rest of the day.  Why happily?  Well, that one field was worth the £10 price of admission in my book.

To start with, there was a Spitfire sitting bang in the middle of it!  Although only a static replica (built over 20 years by a father and son team, using an old airframe and various parts) it was still beautiful to behold.  It was possible to get quite close to it (for £2 one could look - but not sit - inside the cockpit) and having not been so near a Spit for quite some time I'd forgotten just how big an aircraft it is.

Around the perimeter of this field (and the small adjacent one) were the majority of the military vehicles (and armed forces', associations' and charities' stands).  Two of the more interesting vehicles were a 1942 Cadillac staff car and 1950s Austin Champ jeep.

At one end was a group of Second World War re-enactors, representing the 2nd Battalion Essex Regiment and complete with Jeep and tents, while at the other end was the fascinating display of the Great War Society.  Despite having only enough room for two pitches their re-enactment was striking in its simplicity and gave a good idea of conditions for, in this case, an RFC officer and a cavalry veterinarian.  The RFC johnnie was done up to the nines splendidly - complete with swagger stick, a beautiful pipe (with equally lovely-smelling tobacco) wind-up gramophone playing music hall numbers and a framed photo of Lady Edith!

Who parked that German staff car there?!

He recognised in me a fellow Chap (I think it might have been my cravat!) and we had a good long chat (he both in and out of character!) about the re-enactment scene, the centenary and my particular interest in the period and late 19th/early 20th century socio-cultural history in general.  If you're reading this, Trevor, good show!

The cavalry vet also had a few handsome displays on show in the form of three pack mules, representing the equine aspect of the First World War.  These three imposing beasts happily stood for being stroked and petted and were really quite beautiful animals.  When you think of mules you might think of little donkeys and suchlike, but these three fellows were proper American-bred - such as the type that was used in the Great War to carry and pull all manner of things from provisions to artillery pieces - and stood an impressive 15-16 hands high!  Very docile they were, though, and one in particular was only too pleased to pose.

Turn, aaand... smile for the camera!

At around 1:30pm the Hurricane suddenly appeared, announcing its arrival by roaring overhead.  Here I found myself in a fortunate position, quite literally, away from the crowds and main display area on the perimeter of the public area - and right next to the field over which the Hurri was flying!  I was one of maybe only half a dozen people who found this sweet spot and it was like having your own personal airshow!  Even with my ancient, worse-than-a-smartphone digital camera I was able to get some half-decent shots, although they don't show the wonderful proximity of this and later displays.

Suitably buoyed I hung around the same patch of grass sitting and enjoying the glorious June weather (and ruing not having brought a fold-up chair - the lack of seating except around the main display area being another nuisance) until 2:30, when looking to the eastern horizon this stirring sight met my gaze:

What happened for the next twenty minutes I won't forget in a hurry.  The last time I saw First World War 'planes (replicas) in the air was nearly 20 years ago, at the nearby North Weald Aerodrome with my dad, when there were only two or three airworthy examples.  Back then they flew so high and far away that it was really impossible to make them out clearly, let alone get a sense of speed and immediacy.  Added to that they did a mock bombing raid that meant they were hundreds of yards the other side of the 'drome.  Well, there were no such problems this time!

British and American SE5as

Sopwith Triplane

Junkers CL.1

Fokker and Sopwith Triplanes

BE2c and Sopwith Triplane

I literally didn't know where to look next.  The Great War Display Team (for 'twas they) put on one hell of a show.  They must have choreographed it with military precision but it all looked so "natural" that my heart was in my mouth more than once.  It was likely the closest I'll ever get to seeing a proper dogfight.  I must have taken over 100 photos in those twenty minutes and it was a struggle to pick out which ones to feature in this post.  Considering I was just pointing and shooting with a fifteen year old 5x zoom camera I'm delighted how few of them I had to delete (I must admit to being a trifle embarrassed when I noticed nearby two young teenage girls both with proper professional-looking zoom lens cameras - oh for the day when I can afford a new box brownie!).

What with them and the GWS my existing passion for the Great War - and particularly the air war - was enhanced even more and I've now made it my mission to get to the original Stow Maries WWI aerodrome in mid-Essex, the restoration of which I wrote about in an earlier blog post and at which the Great War Display Team sometimes appears.  Perhaps an August birthday treat...?

The afternoon was topped off in style at 4'o'clock when the Spitfire turned up and proceeded to wheel and bank over our heads for the next 15 minutes.  By that time I was aching, suntanned and a bit hungry so as the Spit disappeared to the west I hopped back on the bus and was home in time for tea, feeling well satisfied with the day and with renewed appreciation of the armed forces from all eras.

**Are you going to an Armed Forces Day event this weekend?  Let me know in the comments below and I'll look forward to reading any subsequent posts!**

Vintage bus link at Epping Ongar Railway will boost line

source

Vintage bus link at Epping Ongar Railway will boost line 

A couple of years ago now I blogged about the then-recently restored Epping-Ongar Heritage Railway and its splendid idea to run a vintage bus service, for visitors and public alike, from the West Essex New Town of Harlow to the heritage line's current westernmost terminus at North Weald.

Now I'm delighted to see that they have started doing the same from the east, with another heritage bus service being run from the nearby London-Anglia main line station of Shenfield to all three of the major terminals on the heritage railway - Ongar, North Weald and Epping.  Once again the service is not only open to visitors to the railway but also to anyone wishing to travel on the route in vintage style!  On Sundays it even becomes the only regular bus service between Shenfield and Ongar!  It's wonderful to see these classic buses carrying passengers through the district they used to serve and further proof that they can still have a valuable role to play in the local area.

source

This latest addition to the EOR's transport links is a very welcome one indeed and bodes fantastically well for the future of the line, which is still looking to finish extending the old track from its present ending point just west of Coopersale all the way back to the Epping terminus so it can once again truly be the Epping to Ongar Railway.  It will certainly open the line up to many more visitors from both London and East Anglia, as those as far away as Norwich, Ipswich and Colchester will now be able to travel by train directly to Shenfield and then begin their journey back in time on one of the AEC R/Ts.  It can only be a good thing for the railway and top marks to them for their continued hard work in putting on these extra services.

There's even less reason now for me not to make the trip to the EOR, since I can hop on a train and be at Shenfield in half an hour.  I see next month is their 1940s Weekend - a little plan is forming in my mind...(!)  All that's left now is for the EOR to take over and run their trains on the main line, so that we can enjoy historic locomotive travel right from the start.  With the way they've turned the Epping-Ongar line around in the last twenty years, I wouldn't put it beyond them!

WWI airfield Stow Maries to be restored

Crikey, has it really been 4 weeks since my last post?  Between a little bit of work, a little bit of play and re-learning how to knit (yes, I've tentatively picked up the needles again after a near twenty-year gap - more on that later!) I've not had much chance to blog lately, for which I again apologise.  Now's the time to get going again, though, with this excellent article about a First World War airfield right here in my home county of Essex. 

WWI airfield Stow Maries to be restored

With the 100th anniversary of the start of the Great War less than a year away now, the wheels have already begun to be set in motion to mark this important centenary.  The B.B.C. has announced over 2,500 hours of related programming and the government has pledged £50,000,000 to remembrance commemorations, with commenters from every corner of the country discussing what should or shouldn't be done and how the money should be spent.  (Personally I'm delighted to see the Imperial War Museum London earmarked to get even more "massive" improvements and major events all around the country mooted too.  Not to mention the all-important educational aspect as well.  It all sounds good so far!)   

Stow Maries WWI aerodrome saved by £1.5m grant

RFC Stow Maries, c.1914
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Already a small part of that £50m has been well spent saving an original First World War aerodrome in Stow Maries (near the town of Maldon in the mid-east of Essex) with the aim of restoring it to its 1916 condition in time for the commemorations.

One of only ten remaining from the total 250 RFC stations built during the war, Stow Maries is the most complete example in Britain with all of its buildings still intact - more than 24 in total, many with their original windows and other features still intact as you can see in the accompanying clip.  Built for one of the new Home Defence squadrons - otherwise known as "Zeppelin Busters" - to counter the new menace of aerial attacks by airships and Gotha bombers, Stow Maries was ideally placed to allow quick interception of zeppelins bound for London, Southend and northern towns.  Along with Suttons Farm (later RAF Hornchurch and from where Lt. William Leefe Robinson became the first pilot to shoot down a zeppelin on the 2nd-3rd September 1916),  Hainault Farm (RAF Fairlop), North Weald and Rochford aerodromes and also Joyce Green aerodrome in Kent, Stow Maries made up part of the London Air Defence Area.



Stories still abound of zeppelins bombing Southend and Purfleet, being spotted over Canvey Island and perhaps most famously being shot down in Billericay so it is wonderful to see this locally and nationally important historical site preserved and restored for future generations.  Already there is talk of using it as the base for some flying WW1 exhibits at future Southend airshows and the plan to have it as a place to teach the restoration skills needed to keep these aircraft airworthy is inspired.  I can't wait to see what else Stow Maries has in store!

By remaining unused (save for the occasional farm storage purposes) and overgrown from the end of the Second World War until only four or five years ago Stow Maries has managed to survive miraculously untouched.  It was on the market only a year ago with the very real risk of being redeveloped but it is now in the safe hands of aviation & history enthusiasts and successful businessmen, the Stow Maries Great War Aerodrome Trust and the Friends Of Stow Maries Aerodrome.  Thanks to the National Heritage Memorial Fund it is now in a position to begin realising its full potential as a fully restored First World War aerodrome, working museum and of course a lasting memorial to all the brave men (and women) who fought and served in the "war to end all wars".

Birthday tripper

So, I do believe I promised a little while ago an account of my doings on my birthday last month and now all the photos are gathered in here it finally is!  Actually this will be one of two posts, the other to feature The Main Present that I've been teasing you all with and which has just recently made it's completed appearance following some final adjustments in the skillful hands of mater - that's the only clue you'll get until the big reveal!  I could have lumped everything together in one post but it would have been very picture heavy and probably a bit of a snore after a while so here's the day out first, with the gift post to follow shortly.

My original plan had been to attend the Barrelhouse Stomp 1940s Weekend at Battlesbridge, as mentioned previously here, but as my health was (and still is) playing Lucky Dip with me come that weekend I didn't feel that I would do the event justice (and as it also turned out the local railway branch line that would normally have taken me there was closed for engineering work!) so I went with the consolation prize of a day trip to nearby Old Leigh on the Thames Estuary.

Leigh Creek and some of the fishing fleet, taken from the quay.

Old Leigh is a quaint little fishing village that sits on the banks of the Thames Estuary in Essex, a couple of miles west of Southend and roughly opposite the Isle of Grain in Kent.  While the main town of Leigh-on-sea has evolved into part of the London commuter belt, albeit still very much with a small seaside town flavour (although in recent years a little bit of "yuppyness" has crept in as evidenced by the types of some high street shops and, I'm afraid, prices in a few of the charities) and some lovely history, Old Leigh has remained very much as it was at the turn of the 20th century.  True it does play up its heritage a bit for the tourists these days but it is still a wonderful place to visit for us locals too and is best known for its seafood, which remains the village's prime industry (as you can probably tell from the first picture).  Cockles, winkles, crabs, all sorts of fish - it's all available at Old Leigh's many seafood merchants!

Very windy on the quayside!!

It was a lovely warm albeit sometimes cloudy Sunday in August when mater and I went there and more than a bit breezy at certain unprotected points!  The place was also heaving with people, quite the busiest I'd seen it in a while, as everyone made the most of the late summer weather.  We did two lengths of the old high street, taking in the splendid old fishermans' houses (many still private dwellings), the novelty shops, the two museums/galleries, and the many cafés, restaurants and fishmongers which litter the place (and all of which were packed!).  We eventually found ourselves back at Osborne's Café, which was busy (busier than in the photo below!) but still had a few seats free.  I had a couple of crab rolls (yummy!) and mother had a crab roll, a cheese & onion roll and some rollmops.  Rollmops, in case you're wondering, are pickled herrings wrapped around sliced onions/gherkins/olives etc.  Not so yummy in my opinion (!) - I like my herrings kippered personally ;).

source

After lunch we decided to burn it all off by walking from Old Leigh into Leigh-on-sea town centre, via the intimidatingly long and steep Church Hill.  Starting a little way above the shoreline it runs all the way up to Leigh Broadway (the high street).  In its present location it dates from 1838 and the church at the summit, St Clement's, can trace its construction back to the 1400s (although there is evidence of a church on the site from as early as 1248).

Church Hill runs for about 520ft and blimey, is it steep!  We stopped a few times, not only to rest but to take photographic advantage of the rewards such an old route provides!

This is actually someone's back gate!

Quite apart from the historic nature of the hill and its immediate surroundings, there are fantastic views of Leigh Marshes and the estuary to be had on the way up.  The people living on the terraces that branch off either side are lucky blighters and no mistake!

Just starting off...

The top at last!  Long way, isn't it?

At the top there are more rewards to be enjoyed in the form of Leigh Library Gardens on one side of the summit and the aforementioned St Clement's church on the other.  We got our breath back in the gardens before having a look around the churchyard.

The entrance to Leigh Library Gardens

You'll have to excuse the decidedly non-vintage sunglasses and drinks bottle!

St Clement's Church, Leigh-on-sea

By the time we reached Leigh-on-sea town centre proper the afternoon was fast drawing to an end and most of the shops were closing up, so we didn't bother perusing anywhere but instead made our way home.

All in all it was a smashing day out and a very nice way to spend my birthday weekend in the end.  [Old] Leigh has always been one of my favourite day trip destinations and I will no doubt return there again soon; if you're ever in the area I can certainly recommend visiting!