Did we really look like this when out trainspotting?

[stewartingram]

"Ginger and the Duke and the Wee Blue Book" in the 'Wizard' - here you go -

http://www.britishcomics.20m.com/ginger01.htm

http://www.britishcomics.20m.com/ginger.htm

http://www.britishcomics.20m.com/ginger02.htm

I reckon thats the one - takes me back a bit!

 

Thanks, Stewart

[devondynosoar118]

Anyone fancy writing a modern version? Perhaps in VIZ?

[APOLLO]

The Fat Slags go HST !!

 

gan away fuu mi bait, man !!

 

Brit 15

[Mallard60022]

I reckon thats the one - takes me back a bit!

 

Thanks, Stewart

They had photo stickers of ex works loco's in that comic too. That takes me back; I've still got them somewhere in the loft (sad lad). No copies of the comic sadly.

I just can't believe that there is an archive of that comic; wonderful.

P

[The Stationmaster]

They had photo stickers of ex works loco's in that comic too. That takes me back; I've still got them somewhere in the loft (sad lad). No copies of the comic sadly.

I just can't believe that there is an archive of that comic; wonderful.

P

My stickers - in the album - lurk upstairs somewhere.  i sold all my copies of the Wizard a few years ago, along with quite a lot of other comics.

[Talltim]

 

Not to mention the de rigueur sandals!

That and standing on a point blade. PTS trainers would have a heart attack

[devondynosoar118]

The Fat Slags go HST !!

 

gan away fuu mi bait, man !!

 

Brit 15

How about " Buster Voyager and his un feasibly small vestibules"

[Enterprisingwestern]

The cap with shorts combo.

Did I have a cap fetish as a youngster?

 

Probably taken at the back of Derby Loco Works, what with all those Fowler tenders and a Johnson one on the right.

 

The spotter behind is wearing a jacket and tie.

Winning the knobbly knee competition so far!

 

Mike.

[br2975]

And so, armed with some left over Christmas money I bought an "Inter-City" bag from the travel centre at Cardiff Central (it had just been renamed from Cardiff General) . . . . does anyone remember those dark blue shoulder bags ?
.........
 

 

Looks like I wasn't alone, and the "Inter City" bag was also popular in the West Country.

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/auchlander/5978032539/in/photostream/

[ikks]

My God!!!  Wot have they done to five arches!!!....cost me a few "O" Levels that bridge, best cops there were Neptune and Clan Mckenzie, on both occasions there was a louder roar from the spotters there than was ever heard at the Baseball Ground.

Worst experience was when some b*st*rd threw an unfrozen Jubbly over my brand new Henry Cav blazer......mum was not impressed!!!

Mike 

[devonseasider]

Getting back to the original "did we really look like this?" theme, and the question of clothing (style, colour, etc.), I hope the following may be of interest.

 

Like so many others have said, I was a "grammar school boy" with strictly enforced school uniform - blazer, cap, tie etc. - in rather fetching shades of grey & dull green.  Woe betide anyone who chanced their luck ignoring any of the regulations.  One classmate lost out bigtime in his encounter with "the stick" in the Head's study for daring to wear non-uniform socks.  To be fair, things eased in the sixth form (and by the time I reached that dizzy height, Saturday morning school had also been consigned to Room 101).

 

Let's face it, the late 50s/early 60s was a drab time.  Most of life was lived  in shades of black, grey, beige & brown although things were starting to change and did so quite dramatically over the next couple of years.

A photo' from 26th September '64 of an excited youth having just copped his last "Brit" - un-named '47 - at Blackpool Central (Rigby Road) shed gives a good idea of what might be termed "normal" everyday clothing.  Particularly worthy of note are the collar & tie, general dingy appearance and the sartorial elegance of the bike clips.  Still, his mother must have been proud of him!

 

 

Visible on the left is a small splash of colour in the form of a knitted bobble cap and tangerine & white striped scarf.  The latter shows up more clearly in this view, along with duffle coat and cuban heels.

 

 

The reason for the scarf & cap, of course, was the proximity of the shed to Bloomfield Road, home of the Seasiders, as shown here behind the 9F.

 

 

The football, as ever, brought out a few "Jack the Lad" types, who were just starting to be aware of fashion, as seen here, but they were still few & far between.

 

 

 

Just for the record, Blackpool beat Sunderland 3 - 1 that day to move to second spot in the first division.  The rest of the season was not quite so good, although relegation didn't come for another couple of seasons!

Also for the record, Blackpool Central closed only a very short time after these photos were taken - hard to believe!

 

 

 

[br2975]

Bristol Bath Road - Open Day, Saturday 30th. April, 1966.

.

It may be Saturday, but the weekday 'v' neck grey school jumper, grey shorts and long socks 'WILL BE WORN'.

.

48706 was one of several recently redundant S & D stalwarts en-route to the furnaces of South Wales, by way of a middle-man in either Risca, Newport Docks, Bridgend or Morriston.

.

Brian R

[Jol Wilkinson]

How slim everyone is.

[PhilJ W]

How slim everyone is.

I came across a photograph of myself the other day, standing on the footplate of a Welsh narrow gauge loco. It was taken over 40 years ago and the jeans I was wearing I could barely fit on to one leg today. Just as well perhaps unless very wide flares come back into fashion.

[JeffP]

The last two comments just reminded me that, on starting grammar school, (another grammar school lad here), I was four feet eleven inches tall and weighed four stones seven pounds.

 

I remember being carried round the playground on one of the fifth formers' shoulder......sitting on one side.

 

Small? Who me???

 

Coudln't get over eight stone seven until I got married, now fight to stay below thirteen.......

[Nelson Jackson]

This thread makes me wish I was born 40/50 years ago

[shortliner]

Mallard60022, on 30 Jan 2013 - 21:04, said:

 

 

They had photo stickers of ex works loco's in that comic too. That takes me back; I've still got them somewhere in the loft (sad lad). No copies of the comic sadly.

 

I just can't believe that there is an archive of that comic; wonderful.

 

P

 

My stickers - in the album - lurk upstairs somewhere. i sold all my copies of the Wizard a few years ago, along with quite a lot of other comics.

 

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

 

I took some stuff to the local Charity Superstore (yes honestly - they are the main depot) the other day , and on a shelf in the books section there were about 30 assorted "boys" annuals Wizard, Lion etc - someone must have been having a clear-out or house-clearing.

Edited September 18, 2014 by shortliner

[Pobrien]

Outside St Philips Marsh Shed in June 1964

 

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/bristolsteam/8994683379/

[darren01]

Hi 

Me and my brother at Old oak common shed in 1976,really do miss this. 

I don't know what my mother was thinking making my brother wear  them cloths!.

Edited September 18, 2014 by darren01

[Dave Scott]

Just found this thread. Lyons apple pie, Tizer that brings back memories. Short trousers until 3rd year and yes I did wear a school cap even at weekends when at primary school. Started big school in 61. Had to travel for steam as all local trains were on the sparks( Southern Electric)

 

Who remembers the garden round the Euston Control office.

[BlackRat]

I had trousers like that, C&A where my Mam worked!!!!

 

I suffered terribly!

 

Whilst my mates had Wranglers and Levi's, I had jingling Joes which had bells on the bottom. Of the jeans!

 

Got chased home one night, managed to outrun the rascals and hid in some shrubbery.....till the bells gave me away!

 

I sounded like Tiddles the cat with his collar!!!!

[philwaglab]

I wore a donkey jacket and had a British Rail badge which I bought at a station kiosk.Got away with almost anything !!!!

[TheSignalEngineer]

How many spotters can you get in the cab of a Royal Scot? I'm the one at the back.

 

 

46112 on Ian Allan Locospotters Special, Swindon 11 April 1961

Photograph Charles E E Steele.

 

[southern42]

A few pics from the Trainspotters exhibition I took at the National Railway Museum, York on 4th December 2014.

 

 

 

 

But I wonder what you all would have been wearing had you'd been spotting at the time of this letter which I've split up to keep the image size down but give you a readable rendition.

 

 

[jonny777]

I have only just found this thread (shame on me ) and it takes me back half a century.

 

However, I never remember wearing school uniform for anything other than school. My mother would have never let me go trainspotting in it, because it cost far too much money to get filthy.

 

I know that by about 1964 I had a pair of jeans, not blue but black - and they were drainpipes. So much so, that it took about five minutes each evening to get each leg over my ankles when taking them off. I presume that I wore those for trainspotting, and a colourful jumper knitted by my grandma or an aunt.

 

I had a number of duffle coats through my schoolboy years, although my best coat was something called a 'camel coat' and I hated it. I would have worn the camel coat for church on Sunday, and the duffle coat for spotting.

 

I had a duffle bag, which was a pale grey with blue top and bottom strengtheners and a white string tie-up at the top. One item that would never be in my duffle bag for spotting was Tizer, nor anyone else's that I knew. Tizer was far too expensive, and a bottle cost something like 2/-. Mostly it would be an old glass bottle with water in it, or maybe a dash of orange squash if mother was feeling particularly generous. I don't think I ever bothered with sandwiches following our family day trip to Hunstanton. My mother made some egg sarnies and they were wrapped in greaseproof paper and put in an old tin box on the kitchen table.

 

My dad forgot to pick them up on the way out to the station, and there they remained during one of the hottest days of summer 1959. I don't know what we did for lunch that day, but when we got home we were forced to consume the festering sandwiches. I never forgot the smell coming from the tin on the table as my father opened the lid. Anyway, a Mars bar and a packet of crisps was more likely to be in my bag.