Fictional Counties

[Andy Kirkham]

The 1960s pocket war comics (War Picture Library, Commando etc) often featured fictional county regiments but I don't remember any! There is a list of fictional regiments here:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fictional_British_regiments but few are "counties".

 

This might be more useful: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fictional_counties

 

Pete

I'm very interested to note that Holby (often represented in location shots by Bristol ) is supposed to be in the county of Wyvern. 

I recall that Softly Softly, the 1966  successor to Z-Cars http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Softly,_Softly_(TV_series) was also set in "Wyvern" and filmed in Bristol.

[Cornish Triang Paul]

The Wessex Wyvern. Wessex Coaches of Bristol fondly remembered. Turned down roles in Casualty 3 time when driving buses in those days ! not the same now its in Wales - don't recognise anywhere !

[ginger j]

 

 

This might be more useful: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fictional_counties

 

 

 

I also found this on Wikipedia before I posted this...some good inspiration right there. Am I right in thinking that there are a few layouts set in Holby (in RM fairly recently)? Incidentally, the neighboring county of Umbleshire is proving rather interesting due to a large treacle mining & refining business. I rather like inventing new counties and their histories....(helps keep the mind from wandering)

[Cornish Triang Paul]

What ? MORE Treacle mines outside of Penwith ??

Ther will be Noodle mines in Crumlin next !

[ginger j]

Oh aye, those Noodle mines were very productive too. They closed in 1996 as apparently the Chinese were concerned they were better then theirs.....

 

GJ

[The Lurker]

There are several layouts out there based on The Shire as well. If you search for Lord of the Rings railway you come up with one on google.

[Satan's Goldfish]

There are several layouts out there based on The Shire as well. If you search for Lord of the Rings railway you come up with one on google.

 

Like this? http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/35993-hobbiton-end/

[talisman56]

"Bath and North East Somerset" now I believe, but still just as fictional.

 

On the glorious day when Avon was abolished, the City and County of Bristol, South Gloucestershire, Bath and North-East Somerset, and North Somerset were born (or re-born in the case of Bristol). However, the numbers of people still using 'Gloucestershire' and 'Somerset' in their addresses probably outnumber the ones using the 'new' county (technically 'unitary authority') names.

[ForestPines]

Legally BaNES isn't a county, it's a district whose council has the powers of a county council. Neighbouring Wiltshire is a county whose council has the powers of a district council. Both are unitary authorities.

 

BaNES is part of the ceremonial county of Somerset - a ceremonial county is the area held by a specific Lord Lieutenant, who is the monarch's representative within his/her area for ceremonial purposes.

 

Generally, the counties which had their councils abolished in 1986 (such as Greater London or South Yorkshire) kept their Lord Lieutenancies and are now ceremonial counties, whereas the counties which had their councils abolished in 1996 (such as Avon or Humberside) were divided between the neighbouring ceremonial counties along modern district boundaries. The former Avon area also had a new Lord Lieutenancy created, for Bristol.

[Fenman]

...the numbers of people still using 'Gloucestershire' and 'Somerset' in their addresses probably outnumber the ones using the 'new' county (technically 'unitary authority') names.

 

I thought that years ago Royal Mail requested we discontinue using counties in postal addresses - post-town and post-code were what they wanted, everything else was confusing(!).

 

Having said that, there are vast numbers of people who live in London Boroughs like Bromley while claiming they are in Kent.

 

Paul

[TheSignalEngineer]

Hallamshire is a good sort-of county for the West Riding/Derbyshire area

We used to refer to the bit where Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and Northamptonshire meet as "Banburyshire" 

[petethemole]

Hampshire derives from Hampton/Hamtun (Southampton), originally Hantunscire (hence "Hants"). The county town is Winchester, an archaic form of which is Winton, so a fictional version of Hampshire could be "Wimpshire".

 

Pete

[Andy Kirkham]

I thought that years ago Royal Mail requested we discontinue using counties in postal addresses - post-town and post-code were what they wanted, everything else was confusing(!).

 

Having said that, there are vast numbers of people who live in London Boroughs like Bromley while claiming they are in Kent.

 

Paul

 

As a resident of Bristol, which does not lie in any other county, I am always irritated by online forms which have "County" as a required field, and am also surprised by  the number which still offer "Avon" as an option.

[PhilJ W]

I was born and brought up in Romford and it really annoys me when people refer to Romford as being in East London.

[Unchuffed]

Rather than fictional one, how about using some long-vanished counties e.g. Hexhamshire, Islandshire, Bedlingtonshire, and Norhamshire (which were incorporated into Northumberland), or  Winchcombeshire (which became part of Gloucestershire).

[Jongudmund]

A lot of people I know who have moved away from Shropshire refer to it just as 'The Shire' when they talk about going home. (Usually in a Facebook status)

 

Wales now has a lot of vanished counties. Technically Glamorgan doesn't exist any more.

[Cornish Triang Paul]

Just to add more confusion, Cornwall is not actually a county. It is a Duchy and has never had the ruling monarch as its head...... !

This makes it a fictional county...... .

 

 

Quite like the idea of County of Sedgemoor.......... .

[ForestPines]

Just to add more confusion, Cornwall is not actually a county. It is a Duchy and has never had the ruling monarch as its head...... !

This makes it a fictional county..... .

Unfortunately, whilst lots of people believe it, that's not really true in any substantial way. Cornwall was already considered to be an English shire in 1086. The Duchy of Cornwall was created in 1337, by the King of England, and certainly with no implication that he was giving part of the kingdom away!

 

Moreover, it had a county council created in 1889, and technically they are still a county council, although as they are now a unitary authority they don't call themselves that.

[talisman56]

Just to add more confusion, Cornwall is not actually a county. It is a Duchy and has never had the ruling monarch as its head...... !

This makes it a fictional county...... .

 

 

Quite like the idea of County of Sedgemoor.......... .

 

...where the inhabitants have to have webbed feet to cope with the winter water inundations...

[Neil]

..... if one has already gone to the bother of creating a personality for the fictitious town, why not take it a step further and create a whole county to locate the layout in? ...... However, relatively few model railways seem to have followed this path-is there any particular reason why?  ......

 

Possibly because fiction has to be done well if it's to come alive. By sticking close to reality one minimises the risk of it all sounding a bit contrived. That's not to say it can't be done; the best example I can think of was Philip Hancock's Craigshire, a fabulously well realised place. It can be a triumph when done this well.

[Torn-on-the-platform]

I'm a little late to this party, but in response to the OP's original question/statement, I would have thought that models of stations in fictitious towns are far more common than counties as its easier plonk a town onto a map than to shoehorn in a whole county! Having read about many such layouts in the magazines, the builders like to apply a believable context to their layout and they do this by showing a map - putting a town in the middle of some countryside is easy, but squeezing a new county between West Sussex and Hampshire would push Kent further towards France!

 

Most people who model fictitious towns seem to want to capture the essence of a real location, be that in railway or geographic terms, but don't have the space or want a bit of modeller's licence to make 'rule one' that little bit easier to apply.

 

My observations only apply to the British Model Railway Magazines (and layouts on RMWeb), I gather in the States, fictitious railway companies are common!

 

Another interesting concept is to increase the importance of existing villages or hamlets in order to provide them with a station or branch line. As I've mentioned before, my personal plan for the future is to model a real, but now closed station, as if it were still alive and kicking today as a preserved railway and something I look forward to is coming up with the necessary historical changes!