The Yorkshire Steam Railway: All Aboard" Channel 5 Fridays

[Butler Henderson]

I appreciate i do not have the wealth of experience of the star of the programme, but I did wonder that if a LMS Stanier Black 5 fitted the line, then why would a LMS Stanier boilered Scot not be the same especially as it is main line registered and my understanding is that this requires a restricted loading gauge (as per the cut down Kings etc).

Tyre thickness, spring settings etc. will cause differences and obviously they felt the best think was to test it out.

[Francis deWeck]

Very interested in this program, after visiting the railway last September. As with others, i got a bit fed up with all the jeopardy and appalling continuity.

If you havent been to the North York Moors, it is well worth the visit. For me, it was like an "up North" version of the Bluebell - excellent!!

Some nice big engines, some real coaches (Gresleys) and some steep grades, meaning you get plenty of noise from the front end. The scenery is stunning, Whitby is a very interesting place for a wander, Pickering has some cracking pubs and The Black Swan Hotel has its own micro-brewery.

And dont forget to wander up into Goathland village for the full "Heartbeat" experience - and I'd never watched the program!

On the subject of walking, there is a great walk between Goathland and Grosmont, downhill for ease, or uphill in the opposite direction. This is the usual walk for me, my better half, and two black labs. There are other walks lineside, but these are somewhat different. On the subject of taking the trains, they can be very full more often than not and it is quite a good idea to take food/drinks on these trips as there is not always a buffet service/trolley, alternatively take advantage of the station cafes; there are quite often coach trips which have the journey between Pickering and Grosmont/Whitby as part of the tourist experience. If/when visiting Whitby, the 'old' part (across the bridge) is worth a walk round, and there can be found a good 'gin' palace' which has great food.

[TheSignalEngineer]

As has already been said the continuity was dire. I was also amused by people in summer clothing in some shots. I was in Pickering at the time and went up past New Bridge to try to get a shot at the footpath crossing. It was so cold waiting we nearly gave up.

That being said, I always enjoy the railway itself. For those who haven't been yet if you get the chance go to see a southbound train coming up the bank into Goathland. Spectacular sight especially if it is pointing the right way and has a good load on.

Edited March 3, 2018 by TheSignalEngineer

[don]

Watched it and thought it was ok,yes i am ex footplate and i am a member of two heritage railways,BUT it wasnt realy aimed at me but will draw in a lot of future customers.

Two years ago my daughters Xmas present for me was a day on Flying Scotsman at the NYMR, It was packed! yes there were enthusiasts there but it was mainly us oldies and partners having a nice day out, AND spending our pensions in the local community,

You may be surprised how many tourists will turn up after watching these programmes,if you are an Emmerdale fan i used to live in Hotton,and yes our shop was back dated to the 60's twice for filming, not that it too much to do it!

Just watch it and enjoy what we have.

Don.

[don]

What tickled me was that they hired in an LMS loco, rather than an LNER one.......

I believe Tornado is there at the moment?

Don,

[chriswright03]

Included in the email I received telling me about the series is this:-

 

 

 

 

 

 

Artistic License

 

For those who know and love the NYMR, there are a few examples of shots that may not make sense. Including locomotives facing the wrong way, leaving the wrong station, signals in the wrong position and jumps between different parts of the line on the same journey.

 

 

 

 

This is not done through a lack of understanding, but for the simple fact that there were only two cameramen during the filming of the series. We hope that you enjoy the chance to see behind the scenes of what it takes to keep our heritage railway running for all to enjoy.

 

 

 

 

[Bezzy Oppo]

I believe Tornado is there at the moment?

Don,

Yes, it is. Scheduled to now start running Tuesday after the weekend running was pulled due to the white stuff. Which was probably more to do with people being able to get to Grosmont rather than the running conditions, I hazard a guess.

[Quarryscapes]

Included in the email I received telling me about the series is this:-

 

Behind the scenes of behind the scenes...

[Nobby (John)]

I know there are issues with continuity, this is apparent on most travel/transport related programmes.

 

There will always be people who moan and state I’m not going to watch anymore of this BUT. I found the programme quite enjoyable and to be honest I’m just glad that there seem to be some railway enthusiasts who seem to have some say in programming on our TV’s.

 

I’m quite happy to watch Railway/transport shows on TV, you can always switch off if you don't like them.

[GWR8700]

Just watched it now, nice to see an insight into the working of a heritage railway.  The false jeopardy was a bit much at times but it's nice to get railways on the TV which is only beneficial to heritage lines and 'our' hobby.

[caradoc]

I enjoyed the programme, despite the continuity and other issues (at least they didn't film Endeavour there !). I know some of those involved are paid staff rather than volunteers, but the utter dedication of those who work on the NYMR (and all our preserved railways), and their pride in what they do, is wonderful.

[Phil R]

^{I enjoyed it, the faux peril par for the course now on documentaries. The continuity gaffes, always fun to spot, seem to have been standard for all programmes with railways in the them for as long as I can remember.}

^{Interesting enough programme showing railways in a beautiful part of the world.}

^{The only downside being it reminded me of a chilling incident that happened to me in the buffet at Goathland. I had ordered the last generous slice of Victoria sandwich and the girl behind the counter promptly cut it into two pieces!}

[Tim V]

I watched it with my wife. We both volunteer on another railway.

 

We both thought the programme made the railway and its staff look amateurish. Would the loco fit under the bridge? Would it fit past the platform (noted it wasn't gauged past the other platform - full of coaches)? Would the food arrive on time? These things do not give a good impression.

 

Quite honestly, if I had seen that as a member of the public it wouldn't endear us to travel on the railway.

[298]

I watched it with my wife. We both volunteer on another railway.

 

We both thought the programme made the railway and its staff look amateurish. Would the loco fit under the bridge? Would it fit past the platform (noted it wasn't gauged past the other platform - full of coaches)? Would the food arrive on time? These things do not give a good impression.

 

Quite honestly, if I had seen that as a member of the public it wouldn't endear us to travel on the railway.

Most of them seemed trivial and over-egged for TV, but leaving a sack truck(?) leaning against a coach or foul of it certainly looked bad.

 

Perhaps filming it at a certain line in a National Park in Derbyshire would have prevented a lot of continuity errors since they have only one working steam loco, and the perennial court cases would have provided more drama...

Edited March 10, 2018 by 298

[Butler Henderson]

Was the sack truck mark on the coach real or just made up for the dramatic effect. We did not see it happening only the "after effect" and its seemed as if it was polishing away easily - could it have been a chalk mark?

[russ p]

Second episode even more tedious think I'd gas the PR woman and the TTI covered in strange badges

[russ p]

That turntable seems to be a death trap so everything else on the railway must be .... Never visit ever!!!

[pete_mcfarlane]

Perhaps filming it at a certain line in a National Park in Derbyshire would have prevented a lot of continuity errors since they have only one working steam loco, and the perennial court cases would have provided more drama...

 

They could film at that line over the course of several years, and still have the same combination of locos and carriages in every shot.

[Hroth]

So, another episode of manufactured and overblown problems to engage the "non-specialist" viewers interest?

 

Oh well, I watched the first episode and it wasn't as bad as it might have been. I've recorded the second too, so I'll give it a go.  Is it, perhaps, the equivalent of the difficult second album?

 

Or its like this:  What gets broadcast is The Directors Cut, as it were.  Rather like the film of the Flying Scotsman in the SVR with the narration.  Perhaps a shorter, more factual version, say of one episodes duration might be created to truthfully show a weekends working on the NYMR, again like the version of FS on the SVR but without the commentary.  That was much better....   

[Butler Henderson]

So, another episode of manufactured and overblown problems to engage the "non-specialist" viewers interest?

Such is the nature of this type of program although the sack truck apart they did not seem to be manufactured unless you are suggesting C5 paid them to give away too many free tickets. Doubt the TT not locking was manufactured; it could have been overblown in that the check of TT might have happened earlier than stated, be a bit odd that the check was not carried out until the need for use was imminent. Galas and busy days wherever are often marked by loco or rolling stock problems IME so a carriage developing a fault is hardly an unusual occurance - it may have been they knew there was an issue with that coach but hoped it would be okay for the busy period.

[FPH 603]

This sounds interesting, but I cannot access Channel 5 BBC because I don't live in the UK, but I could tell just by being there for a couple of weeks that the shows are HEAPS better than the c**p you get on some Australian channels. Although from some comments I can see there are certain weak areas though.

[Ohmisterporter]

I am a little puzzled by the title: The Yorkshire Steam Railway - All Aboard. Do station staff/guards really shout "All aboard" in the UK? Perhaps this was the same production company that did the East Coast Railway - All aboard, a little while back. 

[Rumblestripe]

Just accept it for what it is. A sequence of shots of steam locomotives in beautiful countryside. I really find myself shaking my head at people watching it and getting annoyed about the ridiculous narrative and continuity errors. I suppose it is a sort of "who can spot the most bloopers" competition?

 

It's OK. It shows the railway to great effect and will no doubt draw visitors to the area (who incidentally will not be disappointed)

 

Job done

[jacko]

Was the sack truck mark on the coach real or just made up for the dramatic effect. We did not see it happening only the "after effect" and its seemed as if it was polishing away easily - could it have been a chalk mark?

I'd imagine if they'd been in a position to film the sack truck incident they'd have stopped it happening in the first place.  As for polishing, I do similar with cars. It's surprising how quickly scratches can disappear with the right technique.

[richard.h]

Have visited the NYMR a few times it's a great day out but programs like this have to make a drama out of something (or nothing), its normal but acceptable as long as the don't make the volunteers look like a bunch of amateurs

If you put that aside its a very enjoyable program which should publicise and help the Railway, after all you cant go far wrong filming steam trains running through countryside like that.