Peter Kazmierczak

I could say get a life..., but thanks Nigel. I presume the bridge has long gone. I left Derby long ago when Thatcher was still the PM. Despite my good old English name, my maternal ancestors all came from the Twyford/Barrow/Swarkestone/Chellaston area. Even a bridge over the Trent & Mersey Canal is named after the family. One of my favourite lines was the MR between Stenson Jn and Sheet Stores Jn; I suppose I had a subconscious affinity with it. So I suppose a model set in this area was inevitable.

Swarkestone branch of the Derby Canal?

For some strange unknown reason, when I got in the car yesterday it ended up parked outside a model railway shop. It would've been impolite not to venture in... So I come out with a big tub of Woodland Scenics, a Wills goods yard crane kit and some fencing. I wanted some gates but they only had SR examples, but I was allowed to rummage in a tray behind the counter and found some old bits and pieces for a couple of ££. From these, I managed to create the scene illustrated.

More importantly, anything of MR interest up there? I think we should be told...

Northbound Freightliner.

West Coast catenary tunnel.

Coming and going at Kings Langley last month...

Saxby was (still is?) an interesting location. The illustrations are of the second station, so it is pure Midland; the first was located slightly north. Later the curve was eased on the mainline (after hostilities with the local landowner eased}, and the station relocated and enlarged.

Though it looks like it's heading EAST away from Nottingham. Either bound for the Lincoln line, or more likely via Grantham, P'boro towards March.

That Airfix 31 really was a game-changer when it appeared in the late 70s; smooth running, well-proportioned and nicely detailed.

If someone exhibits their layout, apart from the politeness to ask to take pics/vids, why would an exhibitor refuse? That would be perverse.

Derby must be short of suitable motive power, as a 2P is shunting at Aston.

I see no ships...

Progress after two weeks - apologies for the rug... None of the buildings are fixed down yet; still not sure where to (or if) locate the small stable building bottom right.. Might need a small water tower so steam locos can be topped-up - pondering on that too.

It would take someone really brave (or daft) to name their layout Buckingham, Charford or Borchester.

Completed the warehouse...

Surely they must have a can of off-white to paint the driver's cab windscreen surround. It's been like that for ages now.

70012 looks like to be in better nick than some of its classmates over here... I notice it hasn't got the revised air intake on the bodyside, though.

No, no, no, no, no. Fish, chips and mushy peas; yes, yes, yes. But washed down with a mug of Yorkshire tea - milk, no sugar please. Also don't forget the essential round of white bread and butter.

I actually ran a loco on the layout today; a secondhand Bachmann Ivatt 2MT 2-6-2T along the 40 year-old PECO track. Amazed how smoothly it ran, even over the small radius insulfrog points. A couple of the buildings I'll pinch off the Shardlow layout; notably the stables from Darley Dale that'll fit in with the horse-drawn tramway theme. However, I need a larger building at one end to "balance" the look of the layout. I downloaded a free Scalescenes low-relief warehouse. I noticed it had a vague MR feel about it; noticeably the roofline. I put some lettering on the side based on examples found on warehouses at Burton. I've tried to do it so it looked like the LMS overpainted the "Midland" bit of the lettering. What'd you think?

Depends on the quality of the marmalade, I suppose.

A 69 down in my neck of the woods this afternoon. 69008 on a 458/4 unit drag from Widnes to Bournemouth, enters the sidings at Poole to run-round.

Always interesting to see photos around Trent. I've parked in the same lay-by as you, David!

Right, I've calmed down now... Off to prepare stuff for our "Talking Newspapers" recording tomorrow, as I'm editing it this month. I will NOT be including any articles that mention photoshopping, though...

The country is going to the dogs (apologies to any dogs watching). We are led by an incompetent "elite" with little or no direct democracy. There is no sense of "goodwill"; everything is black or white - you are for me or against me. Same with countries elsewhere in the world. There are wars. There is poverty. And all the newspaper headlines are going on about is some mother who slightly edited a family pic of hers with a bit of dodgy photoshopping. Who noticed? Who cares? Right, I'll start my rant now...