Bernard Otto

[musky]

Whilst having a quite time dozing in my armchair the name Bernard Otto popped into my head.I seem to remember he had what was then the worlds largest model railway,I'm sure I also had a booklet about it telling the history and how many items he had.The more I think about it I'm sure I saw it at a boys and girls exhibition possibly at Qlympia.

Does anyone else remember or know what happened to him and it?

 

Bill

[gresley]

Bill,

 

Sorry, I don't know anything about him. However, although it is not strictly yiuzr subject, you might like to know that the current largest HO model railway in the world is situated in Hamburg. The buildsing of it started some 8 years ago and it is estimated to be finished in around 2014.

HOwever, that which is already finished is certainly worth a visit if you are ever in Hamburg.

 

gresley

[brixham]

Fairly sure the chaps name was Bertram Otto. I have the booklet somewhere....it came with a box of junk, and now is carefully filed somewhere...

 

Malcolm

[Shadow]

Look like it's moved to Ireland!

 

Must have been a big box.

 

Some details here

 

http://www.beaulieulightrailway.co.uk/model.htm

[Pennine MC]

Fairly sure the chaps name was Bertram Otto.

 

So am I, I saw one of his displays in my teens. Think it was at Scarborough.

[Colin]

The "Worlds Largest Model Railway" I saw used to be at the Winter Gardens in Eastbourne back in the early 60s - I saw it when I was about 8, while on a family holiday in the area. That would date it as around 1961. I'm not sure when it closed down - maybe the one at Beaulieu was the same layout moved to a new location. A Google search (worlds+largest+model+railway+eastbourne) turns up some Pathe footage BTW.

 

I seem to remember that the chap who built it was called Bertrand Otto but stand to be corrected!

 

The Eastbourne layout included several countries(!) also a "City of the Future" complete with flying saucers (which must have looked pretty odd when the Triang Britannia and shortie Pullmans raced past ), a Wild West scene and possibly also a "Lost World" with some dinosaurs.

 

As an aside, does anyone remember the big 0 gauge layout on Brighton seafront? I think the proprietor was called Harold(?) Ellis and may have written, or been involved with, a series of books about "Sammy the Shunter" (eclipsed by a certain blue 0-6-0T and friends perhaps?)

 

 

[Softvark]

I remember seeing it at Colchester zoo, I guess it must have been the mid to late 60s. Every 10 minute or so the lights dimmed to a night time scene before coming back on again. As a child I thought it was the greatest thing ever and far better than the animals in the zoo.

 

Julian

[Trainshed Terry]

I remember seeing it at Colchester zoo, I guess it must have been the mid to late 60s. Every 10 minute or so the lights dimmed to a night time scene before coming back on again. As a child I thought it was the greatest thing ever and far better than the animals in the zoo.

 

Julian

 

I can remember seeing that layout at "Colchester zoo" in the mid to late 70's. I have always wondered what happened to all the stock that was on it. Could it be in a secure storage some where.

 

Terry

[steve1]

Now you mention it, I remember seeing it at Beaulieu in my youth. That would have been in the 1960s by my reckoning. I didn't remember the chap's name but I do remember the layout.

 

steve

[gordon s]

Can't recall seeing that one, but without wishing to hijack the thread, anyone recall this one at Alton Towers? I would have seen it in the early 90's. It says it was sold at auction, so I wonder where it went?

 

http://old.towerstimes.co.uk/history/oldrides/modelrailway.htm

[gresley]

Yes, I can remember seeing the Alton Towers layout. Was quite impressed because at that time there were very few permanent layouts on display.

Reckon it was around 1958/59 when I saw it.

 

gresley

[musky]

Thanks guys.

Its funny how something like this lingers in your mind and then suddenly pops out all these years later.I wish I could remember what I did with the book,I suppose theres a faint chance that its in the roof gathering dust,next time I'm up there I'll have a rummage

Thanks again for responding.

 

Bill.

[Baby Deltic]

I remember seeing it at Colchester Zoo when I was young.

[The Stationmaster]

 

As an aside, does anyone remember the big 0 gauge layout on Brighton seafront? I think the proprietor was called Harold(?) Ellis and may have written, or been involved with, a series of books about "Sammy the Shunter" (eclipsed by a certain blue 0-6-0T and friends perhaps?)

 

 

I saw it at Scarborough, complete with 'Sammy the Shunter'. I presume it moved from there to Brighton as it would have been the late 1950s when it was at Scarborough.

[Colin]

I saw it at Scarborough, complete with 'Sammy the Shunter'. I presume it moved from there to Brighton as it would have been the late 1950s when it was at Scarborough.

 

When I saw it, the loco fleet included, among others, a live steam ER pacific (A3 most likely) and a couple of 0-6-0Ts of freelance outline (Bonds? Bassett-Lowke?) all travelling at great speed. Scenery was minimal IIRC, it was very much a 30s era layout with loads of track.

[edward66]

The one in Hamburg is just HUGE and pretty impressive with many moving road vehicles as well as railways. Some European/Scandinavian, some American. Not just a "Mickey Mouse" exhibit either, it looks like a quality production.

You can see video on their website or on You tube......... www.miniatur-wunderland.com/exhibit/video

 

Edward

[melmerby]

There is one in Interlaken, close to Interlaken West which I thought was fairly good:

 

"Modelleisenbahn-Treff, Interlaken"

It moved from it's previous location to a new one in Rugensparkstrasse in 2004.

 

Can't find any info unfortunately.

 

I had a town map of Keswick, Cumbria for the 1960s and there was a "Model Railway Exhibition" marked in the town centre. Anybody remember it? What was it like?

 

Keith

[Sc59401]

I visited this one in Berlin in 2009. It's a very detailed model of the city itself, complete with huge Fernsehturm (television tower). Not quite as big as the Hamburg layout but still pretty impressive and complete with working airport:

 

http://loxx-berlin.de/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&id=8&Itemid=76

 

Also purchased some very nice model Wartburg cars in the adjacent shop

[045099256]

Whilst having a quite time dozing in my armchair the name Bernard Otto popped into my head.I seem to remember he had what was then the worlds largest model railway,I'm sure I also had a booklet about it telling the history and how many items he had.The more I think about it I'm sure I saw it at a boys and girls exhibition possibly at Qlympia.

Does anyone else remember or know what happened to him and it?

 

Bill

Bill, I'm a bit late replying to your posting re Bernard (Bertram) Otto but I've only just seen it.  Like another respondent, I remember seeing this layout at the Winter Gardens in Eastbourne but I would say it was a bit earlier - about 1955 possibly. I expect it was there every year, at least during the summer season as it would have been popular with visitors I should think (especially if it was raining). Like you, I had a small booklet with information about the layout - I seem to remember there were two chaps operating it and it said it took a couple of months to train them.  Do you still have your booklet, sadly mine's been lost over the years. Fond memories of holidays in Eastbourne. Regards, Glyn Roberts.

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

I had a town map of Keswick, Cumbria for the 1960s and there was a "Model Railway Exhibition" marked in the town centre. Anybody remember it? What was it like?...

Saw that in the mid 60s on a day when the intensity of the liquid sunshine made the normal outdoor activity on the fells inadvisable. It was located in the former railway station building and was an automated sequence circuit. I very strongly recollect the sound of relays! Click went a relay, and one of the trains in the storage yard began to move as its wheel spinning loco got 12V. When the train returned to the storage yard, click again and the loco skidded to a halt.

 

I may be wrong, but I think it was exclusively passenger trains of variously liveried mk1 stock with steam locos. There was an impressive feature: the trains were long, a good representation of reality for length / number of coaches. That got my attention as my locos couldn't move anything like that, and I had a good look. The bogies were all Commonwealth type, and later enquiries at HA Blunt revealed this to be the Trix bogie moulded in a very slippery polymer, still my benchmark for free rolling. So it had been worth a look.

[The Johnster]

I saw it at Scarborough, complete with 'Sammy the Shunter'. I presume it moved from there to Brighton as it would have been the late 1950s when it was at Scarborough.

 

Also saw it in Scarborough in probably 1957 or 8, so I'd have been 5 or 6; to be honest all I remember was that a) it was the best model railway I'd ever seen and b) of course Sammy's mischief, a brilliant bit of playing to the crowd.  But some years later, when I was 11, I saw the big 0 gauge layout above the workshops at New Romney on the RHDR, and remember that it reminded me quite a bit of the Scarborough layout, which I probably remembered more clearly in those days.

[St Enodoc]

I saw it at Scarborough, complete with 'Sammy the Shunter'. I presume it moved from there to Brighton as it would have been the late 1950s when it was at Scarborough.

Harold Elliot, not Ellis.

 

More here:

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/131054-sammy-the-shunter/

 

https://www.lner.info/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=2638&sid=8c34ac0a8b6baf2964cd88b3c4404be9

 

https://www.thescarboroughnews.co.uk/news/your-say/railway-attraction-article-aged-50-years-1-1419796

 

I've still got a couple of Sammy the Shunter books somewhere...

[cypherman]

Hi all,

When I was about 14 I used to go on holiday to a place called Mablethorpe in Lincolnshire. So that would be in the early to mid 70's. There used to be a Huge model railway there easily as big if not bigger then the Alton Towers one. It as about 200ft by 30ft if memory serves me right. The one clear memory I do have of it was of a huge American style wooden tressel  bridge at one end that carried 2 of the high level tracks curving back at a height of about 3ft. Although I have clear memories of the railway I can find nothing about it online. I did go back to Mablethorpe a couple of years ago and went to the model shop there. They told me that the chap who owned it had died in the mid 70's and that it was dismantled and sold off. A real pity

[Stentor]

On 26/02/2011 at 20:36, Softvark said:

I remember seeing it at Colchester zoo, I guess it must have been the mid to late 60s. Every 10 minute or so the lights dimmed to a night time scene before coming back on again. As a child I thought it was the greatest thing ever and far better than the animals in the zoo.

 

Julian

 

I too remember seeing it as a 6 year old at Colchester Zoo and the dimming of the lights made a big impression on me.

 

Going through some old papers at my Dad's house I found the booklet that described the railway and I attach a few scans from it, the ink stain was not an original feature of course. 

 

The scenes included: the Channel, France, Germany, Switzerland, Ocean and City of the Future.

 

The booklet describes the construction and gives plenty of hints and tips for building your own layout.

 

Fond memories of an inspirational layout.

 

//Simon

 

 

Dear Mods, I assume that I'm not breaking any copyright here as there are no declarations on the pamphlet of copyright and it is more than 50 years old now. If I am please take it down.

[5050]

On 27/02/2011 at 10:19, gresley said:

Yes, I can remember seeing the Alton Towers layout. Was quite impressed because at that time there were very few permanent layouts on display.

Reckon it was around 1958/59 when I saw it.

 

gresley

It was there in 1968, last time (and possibly only time) I went to Alton Towers.  I was riding a closed circuit bike race around the grounds and I won - which is why I remember it well!