Thom Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 Here are pics of 'Angloshire... a little bit of Britain' that I built in Allentown, PA USA to take to shows and introduce modelers in the Mid-Atlantic region to British modeling. I will describe some of the ways I built it, as well. There is still much to do, especially signaling and lots of minor detailing. There are both advantages and disadvantages to bulding a personal layout to take to shows. One major advantage is that I can decide what I want to do and don't have to consult or compromise with anyone else and I can it done faster. The main disadvantage is that when I take it to shows, (only two so far,) I have to rent a truck and find friends who will help me load it up and set it up, and if I'm lucky, find people who will help me run it. But, since it is a continuous run double track layout it's not too difficult. I pretty much lets the trains run so I can spend time interacting with the viewers. Right now it's DC but when finances are available I hope to convert it to DCC. I currently have a 9 track fiddle yard in the center of the layout. The fiddle yard has a hinged lid and after laying a layer of foam on top of the trains the lid is secured and the trains stay on the fiddle yard tracks for transport. That saves a lot of time for both setting up and breaking down. I'll explain more along with the pics. 'Angloshire...' is based as accurately as possible in the time period between 1949 and 1961 but no one particular area of Britain. I run trains from every region. But after that, there is intentional whimsy throughout the whole layout. Besides Great Waterton from 'Thomas and the Great Discovery' to Hogsmeade from 'Harry Potter.' I covered British sit-coms, movies, musicals, and even real people and places. I had so much fun at the shows pointing all of them out to viewers. I also have an 'I Spy' list available for people to look for people and places. Adults as well as kids had a lot of fun with that. My first show was the bi-annual train meet here in Allentown in February of 2014. My second show, and the one that I was really looking forward to, was the 2014 Great British Train Show in Brampton, near Toronto, Ontario. It was an 8 hour trip but well worth it. I hope to go there again for their next show in 2016. OK, I said I built it to indroduce people to British modeling, but a fun addition to that is being able to take it to the only British model train show in North America. These first two pics are the layout at the 2014 GBTS and the basic plan of the layout. 14 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Posted July 10, 2014 Author Share Posted July 10, 2014 These pics were all taken by Stephen Gardiner at the 2014 Great British Train Show in Brampton. I used a flashlight to show people specific things to look for. This part of the layout has two backscenes. The low one on the left is for people to look over and get a great all around view of Hogsmeade (Goathland) Station from 'Harry Potter.' The station is, hopefully, 90% accurate to what it looked like in the 1950s. Those who know it well know there was no footbridge there at that time and there are only two tracks going through it. The third track is for the Hogwarts Express from 'Harry Potter' to be parked there. I did not have room for the additional tracks behind the camping coaches. I am working on extending the footbridge to the correct length for three tracks. The station buildings are all weathered and detailed Hornby. The joint between these two section of the layout is hidden by the platform in front of the station. The village above Hogsmeade Station is actually Wynter Hill. Hogsmeade Village is a couple miles behind the station. I kitbashed St Thomas on the Hill from 5 Hornby church kits and 1 Heljan kit. Outside the front doors is the vicar, Rev Geraldine Grainger, along with Virger Alice Tinker, from 'The Vicar of Dibley.' They are greeting HM The Queen and Prince Philip. One wonders why there are no crowds there. Along the station approach is Hagrid's Hut from 'Harry Potter. This is a resin building that Hornby considered marketing in 2004 but decided not to. As far as I know there were only 2 made and this is one of them. I hope to make a Hagrid figure at some point. Ye Olde Fighting Cocks pub is the TMC commissioned Bachmann Birch Hall Inn which is about a mile away from Goathland Station, although in the opposite direction. I took lots of pics when I was there in 2013 and tried to make the setting, complete with the steep hill and bridge, as close to the orginal as possible. In reality the hill is actually much steeper. Coming out of the pub is Winston Churchill tipping his hat to Mr Bean who is timidly sitting on the bench. Keen eyes will recognise Mr Bean's Mini and Winston Churchill's Land Rover. 12 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Posted July 10, 2014 Author Share Posted July 10, 2014 These pics are also by Stephen Gardiner who did a great job of taking pics all over the show. At the bottom of Wynter Hill, heading towards Great waterton, is Aidensfield Garage/Scripps Funeral Services and Aidensfield Arms, both from 'Heartbeat.' These are TMC commissioned Bachmann models. The Michelin Man is from Harburn Hobbies. DelBoy's Reliant Supervan, from 'Only Fools and Horses,' is next to the garage. In front of Aidensfield Arms we see Hercule Poirot meeting Miss Marple while Captain Hastings and Miss Lemon wait in the car. All from Agatha Christie's 'Poirot' and 'Miss Marple.' Across the road is Ivo Peters next to his Bentley taking some of his famous photos of trains. The Prince Albert pub, right outside of Great Waterton, is a kit bashed old Hornby post office. A class 128 parcels railcar passes on the down main line leaving Great waterton while a freight train passes above. In Great Waterton, from 'Thomas and the Great Discovery,' sits Austin Powers, from 'Austin Powers, the spy...,' in his 'shaguar,' in front of Waterton Butchers and Grace Brothers Department Store from 'Are You Being Served?' A view of part of Great Waterton Station with Thomas, Annie and Claribel waiting on a side track and a class 25 waiting in front of Stanley's Shed. No clue where Stanley is. lol I plan on adding railings to the footbridge. 13 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Posted July 10, 2014 Author Share Posted July 10, 2014 In these two pics by Stephen Gardiner the first one shows the view over the water tower to the woman hanging out her wash. The naturists next door are hidden by the high fence 'Dwight D Eisenhower' coming off the Tovis Valley Viaduct while Harry Potter and Ron Weisley fly above in the Ford Angia from 'Harry Potter.' And, yes, they are actually in the car. 8 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Posted July 10, 2014 Author Share Posted July 10, 2014 In these 3 pics by Stephen Gardiner we once again see 'Dwight D Esienhower crossing the concrete Tovis Valley Viaduct which was built in 1903. Being an American I guess this loco being my favorite is no surprise, and I love it in early BR while still garter blue. If you look close you will see the landscape painter is actually painting the viaduct. The woman at the front of the narrow boat is waving to Andy and Lou from 'Little Britain.' The stone aqueduct and tunnel were built in 1861. 11 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Posted July 10, 2014 Author Share Posted July 10, 2014 These final pics by Stephen Gardiner show the end section above the tunnel. It does not tie in with the rest of the layout. A stone circle covers the access door to the controls. While it is loosely based on Stonehenge, it is a generic stone circle and not meant to be any particular one. I used air drying clay for the stones. The abandoned farm next to the stone circle is where part of the home guard platoon from 'Dad's Army' is having fun. Pike even has his trademak scarf around his neck. Jack Jones' butcher van is from Days Gone and the figures are from Airfix. 7 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Posted July 10, 2014 Author Share Posted July 10, 2014 Here's a link to a Youtube video someone posted after the GBTS. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Od1XCLamU1g 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
F-UnitMad Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 We get a lot of US TV programs over here in the UK (have done for decades, in fact) but are Americans as familiar with British TV programs & characters? You need a TARDIS, by the way.... You get Kudos for driving your trains on the left, certainly - unlike an OO layout in Kalmbachs "Great Model Railroads 2012" where the builder (American), despite having a friend who was a "British Railway Expert", had all his trains driving on the right..... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Alister_G Posted July 10, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted July 10, 2014 What a great layout! And I love the idea of all the little cameos, a great way to attract interest at shows. Brilliant. Al. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
daftbovine Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 I think your layout is is absolutely great, I would love to see it at a show but I'm thousands of miles away in Africa : ) The cameos are so typically English they make me homesick and the scenery is superb. Your hard work and enthusiasm shine through and above all it looks as though you had great fun building and researching it which in my opinion is what this hobby is all about. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Grafarman Posted July 10, 2014 RMweb Premium Share Posted July 10, 2014 (edited) Wonderful layout; just the thing for exhibitions where apart from the trains the interest is held by so many cameos and great buildings - love the aqueduct especially as I mentioned in the other thread - very well executed. You might want to check out Kal & Jaz's Arboretum Valley for examples of cameos and great features: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/72163-arboretum-valley-just-another-brick-in-the-wall/ Looking forward to seeing more pics and updates... David Edited July 10, 2014 by Grafarman Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vulcanbomber Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 Fantastic layout I love all the little cameos, and the freelance element, I've tried to do something similar on my layout A great layout for kids to look at and look to observe little details. The trees are especially good as well. Please keep posting Oh by the way where is Allentown PA in the states? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Wintle Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 In general terms, Allentown is just over a third of the way up the east side of Pennsylvania. It is about 45 miles north of Philadelphia and about 50 miles west of New York City. Best known for iron/steel and other heavy industry (and a Billy Joel song). And Angloshire is a great layout to see in the flesh. Adrian Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
allan downes Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 Oh by the way where is Allentown PA in the states? It's where they locked up Jo Stafford's lover for nicking her a diamond ! Cheers. Allan Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLOSS Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 wow what an amazing looking layout, you certainly have captured a British feel, great attention to detail Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LNER4479 Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 Really enjoyed reading about your layout and hope to see more of it. Those viaducts don't half look like those at Chirk in the Welsh borders between Shrewsbury and Wrexham. The railway crosses on a double track viaduct and, at a slightly lower level, is the Llangollen canal. Did you base it on that at all, or is that just a 'fluke'? http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.mikehaywardcollection.com/image/Product-7518-Image-1-800-800.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.mikehaywardcollection.com/product/7518/narrowboats-on-chirk-aqueduct.htm&h=531&w=800&tbnid=zYWaXJpvJkbq8M:&zoom=1&docid=GKv3LEhIo5oFVM&hl=en&ei=BNa-U9HLLMLoOqPngKgN&tbm=isch Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium The White Rabbit Posted July 10, 2014 RMweb Premium Share Posted July 10, 2014 Where did you get the figures from? Or, how did you make them? I know you said about the Dad's Army ones, but I've never seen HO/OO figures of TV characters - there's several I rather fancy having! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
F-UnitMad Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 Really enjoyed reading about your layout and hope to see more of it. Those viaducts don't half look like those at Chirk in the Welsh borders between Shrewsbury and Wrexham. The railway crosses on a double track viaduct and, at a slightly lower level, is the Llangollen canal. Did you base it on that at all, or is that just a 'fluke'?http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.mikehaywardcollection.com/image/Product-7518-Image-1-800-800.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.mikehaywardcollection.com/product/7518/narrowboats-on-chirk-aqueduct.htm&h=531&w=800&tbnid=zYWaXJpvJkbq8M:&zoom=1&docid=GKv3LEhIo5oFVM&hl=en&ei=BNa-U9HLLMLoOqPngKgN&tbm=ischSee Post #91 in this Thread...http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/86573-are-backscenes-essential/page-4 Fluke it most certainly isn't.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Posted July 11, 2014 Author Share Posted July 11, 2014 More pics to follow, but here are some answers in the meantime. Sorry it's so long. 'are Americans as familiar with British TV programs & characters?' The answer is a simple 'no.' There are some that are more familier. Of course Thomas and Harry Potter, but a lot will also know Austin Powers, My Fair Lady, Mr Bean, and Doctor Who. Some will know Are you Being Served?, *Keeping Up appearances, *Inspector Morse, Poirot, Miss Marple and *Fawlty Towers. A few will know Little Britain, *Waiting for God and *As Time Goes By, and NONE will know Ivo Peters, Dad's Army or On The Buses! (*planned but not yet on the layout.) 'You need a TARDIS, by the way.... :sarcastic:' I already have on that will be seen in future pics. 'You get Kudos for driving your trains on the left,' Thank you, but isn't driving on the left a given? lol I am bi-cultural with as many times as I've been to the UK, (I'd love to live between the two countries,) and this really is my little bit of Britain. '...little cameos, a great way to attract interest at shows.' Thank you and so very true. I found, especially at the local show, that I was able to draw people into my layout that were ready to walk on by when I suggested they look for things. They usually ended up viewing the whole layout as opposed to walking by and not seeing any of it. I believe interaction with show goers is essential and really does help promote our hobby. 'The cameos are so typically English they make me homesick.' Thank you. That was exactly my goal. Maybe you should build your own, now and create your own little bit of Britain in Africa? 'exhibitions where apart from the trains the interest is held by so many cameos and great buildings' Thank you, and yes, that's what draws so many people into the hobby more then just the trains. 'love all the little cameos, and the freelance element...A great layout for kids to look at...The trees are especially good as well. ... where is Allentown PA in the states?' I often see people post regarding which is better, modeling an actual place or freelancing. Obviously I'm in the freelance camp. I have so much fun when kids see things they can relate to. Very important for drawing people into the hobby. All the trees are off the shelf from numerous manufacturers. I wanted to have so many different kinds, as well as tons of them, so it would look realistic. I think many layouts are way under treeed. (Is that a word? lol) If you look on line you will find that Allentown is the main city in the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania. As Adrian posted, it's an hour NW of Philly and 1.5 hours W of NYC and, as I posted before, 8 hours SE from Toronto. (That's drive time, by the way.) This area was home to the Lehigh Valley Railroad and W of here was the Reading Railroad. PA, was of course, home of the world class Pennsylvania Railroad. Oh, and the famous preserved Strasburg Railroad is about 1.5 hours SW from here. And, as Adrian said, the Billy Joel song is about my town. And, speaking of Adrian, his club's layout is fantastic and was one of two that were a major inspiration for how I wanted mine to look. I took many pics of it at the last three shows and studied them when making mine. 'It's where they locked up Jo Stafford's lover for nicking her a diamond !' I never heard that so I'm gonna have to look into it. 'you certainly have captured a British feel' Thank you 'Those viaducts don't half look like those at Chirk in the Welsh borders between Shrewsbury and Wrexham. Did you base it on that at all, or is that just a 'fluke'?' The Tovis Valley Aqueduct (1861) and Viaduct (1903) were, indeed, inspired by the Chirk aqueduct and viaduct near Llangollen. I saw pictures of them a few years ago and on my 2011 Royal Wedding Trip to the UK drove up to see them, as well as the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and the Llangollen Railway. (I did take a boat trip across and back that aqueduct which was awesome!) I absolutely fell in love with that area of North Wales and went back to see them again in 2013 and drove over to the coast and saw even more railways. Anyway, after starting Tovis Valley I heard about the (Miss) Marple Aqueduct and Viaduct near Stockport and drove there in 2013 as well. Also fascinating and the locks going down to the aqueduct are different and really great. As far as I know those are the only two places in the UK where there is an aqueduct and viaduct next to each other. I simply had to model a set after seeing the set at Chirk, but mine are not intended to actually replicate them. 'Where did you get the figures from? Or, how did you make them?' Some are off the shelf, some are simply repainted, some have been beheaded, and some even worse. lol I'll try and explain them all here but don't remember them all. Also, some were OO and some were HO. Personally, that makes no difference to me. Unless stated otherwise they are as they came in the pack. I search through all the possible figure out there to find any that looked like the people I wanted to have on the layout. That's the best way to do it. Simply look to find people in the figures that are available. There are very few that are actually the people I modeled. Dock workers at Hogsmeade Station... Preiser 590-28084 Hikers... Woodland Scenics, I think HM the Queen and Prince Philip... Preiser 590-28132 I added a big hat made from an old buffer and repainted them both School boys trainspotting... Bachmann 36-401 Landscape painter... Presier 590-28050 Vicar and his wife sun bathing naked behind the vicarage... 15843Noch Riders on horseback... Presier riders w/horses 590-10501 Teacher and school boys... Peco? Harry Potter and Ron Weasley in their Ford Anglia... car driving figures Sir Topham Hatt... a figure from 15577Noch that I removed a walking stick from, added a hat to and repainted. Man selling balloons... Preiser 590-29000 Winston Churchill... figure repainted from 15577Noch. Looks just like him! Ivo Peters... a used photographer figure I found somewhere that I changed heads on and repainted Andy and Lou from ‘Little Britain’... Preiser figures repainted. 590-10479 I had to remove the breasts from the pusher before painting 'him' as Andy. The hair was perfect, though. Rev Geraldine Granger and Virger Alice Tinker from ‘The Vicar of Dibley’... Geraldine was the priest from 15577Noch. I simply changed the head to a woman with the right hairstyle from another figure. Alice Tinker was a Preiser priest in a cassock with the head changed to a blond woman. 590-28076 Mr. Bean... some seated figure I had that I thought looked like him. All I did was a repaint. Flower seller Eliza Doolittle and Henry Higgens... Preiser flower seller 590-38206 repainted and a groom from a wedding pack 590-10058 Austin Powers... I changed the head on a car driver and repainted it Stan Butler and Jack Harper from ‘On The Buses’... Preiser Conductor 590-28034 and Engineer 590-28038 Miss Marple... Preiser church goers 590-10559 Hercule Poirot... Preiser Standing Travelers 590-14044 Captain Hastings and Miss Lemon... A seated figure with the head changed and another seated figure repainted Mothers with their babies... Mostly Preiser, I think Cyclists... Preiser 590-10515 Woman scolding trainspotter on the footbridge at Hogsmeade... 15577Noch Woman hangout laundry... Preiser 590-28110 Planned but not yet on the layout are: Abbey Road Zebra Crossing w/‘The Beatles’... white metal figure that I forgot where I got them... or where I put them, at this moment. lol Chief Inspector Japp driving to meet Poirot... will find an appropriate seated figure to put in the existing car Daffyd Thomas from ‘Little Britain’... Preiser bathers 590-12135 Emily Howard from ‘Little Britain’... Preiser Victorian cyclists 590-12129 Mary Poppins and Bert the Chimney Sweep from ‘Mary Poppins’... 590-12194 Basil thrashing his Austin car from ‘Fawlty Towers’ ... Preiser 590-29006 Inspector Morse and his Jaguar from ‘Inspector Morse’... I already have the Jaguar Daisy and Onslo’s terrace house w/junk car out fron and with visiting… gotta build the council houses from scratch. Saw them in 2013 and took lots of pics. Hyacinth and Richard w/their Rover car from ‘Keeping Up Appearances’ 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Posted July 11, 2014 Author Share Posted July 11, 2014 This bridge sees a BR class 128 parcels railcar coming out from the fiddle yard. It has since been appropriately weathered. Along with the coach going over the bridge, the male cyclist on the right has to stop and take a break while the female cyclist on the left appears to have easily made it over the bridge and patiently waits for her friend to get there. The Prince albert pub with Great Waterton in the background. Looking through the bridge under the railway tracks into Great waterton. Will add some street lights when I can find matching ones, but will not detail this area since no one can actually see it. Still a great pic, though. 8 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
F-UnitMad Posted July 11, 2014 Share Posted July 11, 2014 HM the Queen and Prince Philip... Preiser 590-28132 I added a big hat made from an old buffer and repainted them both No no.... Prince Phillip IS the old buffer.... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Posted July 11, 2014 Author Share Posted July 11, 2014 The Laughing Queen pub, (Daffyd Thomas from 'Little Britain' will soon be standing front of this pub,) Ben's Books and the Post Office, both from 'Thomas.' Stan and Jack from 'On the Buses' goof off in front of their bus while passengers wait at the bus stop. The bus is parked at Cemetary Gates. The pub is a modified and detailed old Lima card kit. It was the closest I could find to the actual building in Great Waterton. The bus is the correct bus but with the wrong destination and numbers on it. My sister had a Renault like that when I was growing up. Eliza Doolittle is sellling flowers to Professor Higgins in front of St Paul's Church, just like in 'My Fair Lady.' Oh My! The TARDIS, from 'Doctor Who,' landed between the buildings. The church is a slightly modified old O scale Plasticville model. The fire engine is the correct one from 'Thomas.' Young mothers exchange baby stories while a worker brings an empty keg out of the pub. The truck he was going to put it in has disappeared. lol Personally, I think trying to sell balloons or ice cream near a war memorial is entirely inappropriate. A lad picking up a coin someone dropped, a businessman reading a newspaper, and a bloke scratching his leg. All while Sir Topham Hatt, from 'Thomas,' presides over Great Waterton Station. Hopefully the gentleman is offering to assist the lady with her large suitcase. Waterton Butchers, from 'Thomas,' Grace Brothers Department Store, from 'Are You Being Served,' (the windows are covered while the windows are being dressed,) and Austin Powers driving by. In the background is Central Market which is actually a low relief model of the main building at Swindon Works made by Bachmann for the museum, Steam. Grace Brother is a resin kit made by City Streets that I got on eBay. I have since been trying to get all the buildings made by CIty Streets. 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Posted July 11, 2014 Author Share Posted July 11, 2014 Looking down towards the fire station. An overview of Great Waterton. Thomas now faces the other direction. He kept derailing on the down/inside track so I gave up and said he could use the up/outside track. lol Cemetary Gates. It may be a small family cemetary, but hey, they named a bus stop after it on 'On the Buses.' I'm still trying to figure out if that bloke leaning on the lamp post is the same as the guy who sings 'I'm leaning on a lamp post...' in the musical 'Me and My Girl.' I don't think so, though, since he sings he's at the corner of the street. At the back is Waterton Blacksmith. Another view of Great Waterton. Before anyone tells me the double slip does not belong there, which it obviously doesn't, it's because I had it and wanted to use it somewhere... anywhere. And, since Great Waterton is a real, fictitious, animated place, and it doesn't show some parts of the track, I'm saying it belongs there! lol So, there you have it. 8 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeavyDuty Posted July 11, 2014 Share Posted July 11, 2014 Now, if we can just get you to exhibit at Trainfest in Milwaukee... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 Now, if we can just get you to exhibit at Trainfest in Milwaukee... I never heard of that before, but then again I'm on the East coast, but I checked it out and it looks awesome. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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