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Famous people on trains

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ChiefPlanner

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I have a splendid story regarding the late Princess Margaret (in a very positive manner) , but will save it for my book - if I ever get around to writing one.....
 

ChiefPlanner

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Indeed. And a 'famous person' worthy of the accolade. I remember a film series about his life on Welsh TV in 1975, Sunday evenings. His account of the British Army liberating the Bergen-Belsen death camp is seared in my memory. He said something like: "What I witnessed at Bergen-Belsen meant I knew that whatever the cost was fighting this war, it was worth it."

Lovely man in all respects , and very much a supporter of the Great Little Trains of Wales , his autobiography - "Trust to Talk" is a splendid read , he had an interesting and useful life. Saw him twice on the train and enjoyed his company. His "live" recording of a bombing run over Berlin in a Lancaster is pretty impressive and was on BBC R4 not a very long time ago.
 

Monkeyhead

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Not sure whether to disclose this one, but I once saw Jimmy Savile in First Class on a Virgin Cross Country from Newcastle to Leeds. Two things stick in my mind from that, first was that he didn't seem to be the jovial character I remembered from childhood tv, he seemed, well, sinister (which I guess was proven in later years) and secondly, he had this weird ticket, my memory suggested that it was a maroon oblong with a gold star on it - whatever it was, the guard let him sit in First Class with it - wondered at the time whether it was a special ticket from him advertising the railways.
 

LOL The Irony

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my memory suggested that it was a maroon oblong with a gold star on it - whatever it was, the guard let him sit in First Class with it - wondered at the time whether it was a special ticket from him advertising the railways.
Correct. It was his lifetime gold card for his advertising work.
 

geoffk

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Timothy West at Halifax recently, Roberto Mancini at Macclesfield station (not actually on a train).
 

fowler9

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I see you failed to read the "famous people" part of the thread.

Never mind.
Ha ha, Carcass still tour the world, were mentioned in Friends and the vocalist was in Red Dwarf (One episode).

Cathedral also a big band in the field of extreme music.
 

trainophile

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How can you all be sure that it’s not just a lookalike? I wouldn’t trust my memory to be certain, but I may have just been across the aisle in 1st from Michael Palin, who boarded the 1140 Euston ex-Glasgow at Penrith. The guy was using a small old keyboard phone though, which put a doubt in my mind.
 

Harshil

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Saw Stacey Dooley a BBC documentary journalist on a train back from Brighton last year. She came down with her partner for Pride as did I visiting my friends and seeing the festivities for the weekend.
 

baz962

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About three hours ago I had the pleasure of driving Barry Cryer out of Euston.
 

Rail Blues

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About three hours ago I had the pleasure of driving Barry Cryer out of Euston.

That makes it sound like you'd formed a mob to forcibly eject Mr Cryer from the station!

I saw the comedian Arthur Smith on an Edinburgh bound east coast service around about festival time. He was picking at muffin in a half-hearted manner and looking slightly doleful.
 

baz962

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Ha no , I had the pleasure of chauffering him as well as many others .
 

gimmea50anyday

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One of my driver colleagues tweeted recently he had Michael Portillo on his train. He was travelling from Newcastle to Durham as part of another Bradshaw series he is currently filming. Let's hope they get the continuity right this time ;)
 

RichJF

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Saw Nicholas Owen (BBC news presenter, Bluebell Railway patron, voice of Croydon Tramlink) on my train from Redhill when I used to commute from there!
 

scragend

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I once saw Alan Hansen get on a northbound Virgin train at Preston with an elderly lady who I assumed to be his mother. He didn't travel, he just helped her to her seat then he got off again. It was 30th December and the train was rammed. I stood in the vestibule all the way from Wigan to Edinburgh :'(
 

Mikey C

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I once saw Alan Hansen get on a northbound Virgin train at Preston with an elderly lady who I assumed to be his mother. He didn't travel, he just helped her to her seat then he got off again. It was 30th December and the train was rammed. I stood in the vestibule all the way from Wigan to Edinburgh :'(

Was it Mark Lawrenson? :E
 

Dave91131

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Many moons ago I saw Kieron Dyer board a northbound GNER mark 4 set at Peterborough.

Also on the ECML, I was once 'invaded' in a bay of 4 by the actor who plays Cain Dingle in Emmerdale from York to King's Cross.
 

Glenn1969

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I met and spoke to Michael Portillo on a Heart of Wales train in Summer 2014 when they were filming his Great British Railway Journey from Swansea to Church Stretton
 

Mitchell Hurd

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I was on the 13:45 from Leeds to London Kings Cross on the 04/04/19 and I swear I saw an Emmerdale actress come through Coach M on the now withdrawn NL65 HST!
 

Clayton

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Stuart Maconie between Carlisle and Glasgow, wearing a blouse like yer mam’s
 
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