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1970's BR Rail Tours and Mystery Tours

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Requeststop

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1975-80, at Uni in Bristol, a cheap way to travel the nation was by British Rail Tours, Mystery Tours and Specials. For 5 pounds you'd get a days outing on a Saturday/Sunday to some fantastic rides covering some lines, loops and curves not usually used. You'd normally get to spend 3-5 hours at the destination, for a lookaround/shop/bite to eat. (no catering on board)

I recall a Heart of Wales Special - Bristol-Swansea-Shrewsbury-Newport-Bristol; Bristol-Edinburgh; Bristol-Lincoln (around Sheffield-Retford- Gainsborough Lea Road); Bristol-Nottingham; Bristol Canterbury West; Newport- Weymouth (not such a surprise) Newport-York (a better surprise) Bristol-Exmouth (via Yeovil Pen Mill-Junction and a reversal at St James Park) and an exceptional Bristol-Norwich (via New Street-Leicester-and Ely Loop).

Was this just a Bristol/Newport thing, or did other areas do the same at such a cheap price? I remember that they were very popular and in fact the Bristol-Edinburgh was sold out on the first day of sale, over the counter at Temple Meads, even though the departure was somewhere around 5 am and we didn't return until 5am on the Sunday.

I'd be happy to hear of other BR Tours of the time that may have been out of the way and unusual.
 
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Welshman

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I remember going with a party from my church on a mystery tour from Huddersfield in 1973/4.

We were all seated together in one coach - a Mk 1 open. I remember we went through Mirfield, but unfortunately I was chatting to other people in the group and didn't pay too much attention until I noticed we were at Rotherham Masborough. I wish now I could remember the route we took [was the Midland line through Middlestown and Crigglestone still open then?].

From Masborough we traversed the "old" route avoiding Sheffield through Treeton, then Chesterfield, Derby and Birmingham, where it was announced we were heading for Worcester Shrub Hill. They handed-out information about Worcester and a city guide, and we had about 4 hours there before returning.

It was a good day out, for, I think, about £10 each, in an age when the railways had the resources to provide pleasure trips and mystery tours.

Happy days!
 

Mvann

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We went on three of these tours. One to margate, one to littlehampton and one to Rhyl. All three times we started at Kettering. I think they all had a tea trolley in the luggage area of the brake coach. At least one run was behind a peak.
 

Greenback

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We did quite a few of these trips from Swansea in the 1970's. I can remember going to Hastings, Portsmouth, Weston Super Mare, Paignton and Ramsgate.

Staff came through the train just after departing Bridgend (usually) with a map of the destination, showing the station, the town and any places of interest, plus info on what time you had to be back on the train.

Good days!
 

theblackwatch

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I think the £10 fare is a bit wide of the mark - tours were much cheaper than that! I'll have a look for some leaflets at some point.
 

neilmc

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These were great for a cheap day out - plenty of mileage, some spotting opportunity and maybe a pint or two in somewhere you wouldn't normally go. Leeds to Clacton is one which stays in the memory.

On the other hand, there were plenty of complaints on another occasion when families with kids and buckets and spades found out that their destination was Birmingham.
 

AJP62

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Went on many of these from Carlisle in the mid 70s - Nottingham, Cambridge, Cardiff/Barry Island, Bristol/Weston Super Mare (Western hauled from New St!), Oxford and Brighton come to mind.

There were also regular trips to York via the S&C - on departure at night from York there'd be a blackboard with details of maybe over a dozen returning excursions to various parts of the country!
 

pitdiver

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I can remember going on a number of these trips mostly from St Pancras, to Newport, Sth. Wales via I think Birmingham. Another to Morecombe then another to Paington from my then local station, Bowes Park. Also did one from Bowes Park to Blackpool. That was interesting as it ended up bringing a load of Football Supporters back to North London.
 

Driver Bob

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Great memories...

A Mystery Excursion from Swindon that went to Aberystwyth, and struggling back up Talerdigg with a single class 24.

Swindon to St Erth for St Ives and coach to Penzance for the return.

Swindon to the Lake District, a trip on a steamer on Windermere, coach trip around The Lakes and return from Grange over Sands.

A half day Mystery Excursion by DMU from Swindon. We went via Didcot, Oxford, Leamington Spa to Stratford on Avon, and continuing home via the old line via Toddington to Cheltenam, that is now partly the Gloucestershire and Warwickshire Railway.

These excursions used stock that was otherwise sat idle at the weekends and were extremely good value for compararively little money! They could also produce some interesting haulage! :)

Bob.
 

Bevan Price

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Liverpool area also ran excursion and mystex trains. Destinations I recall include Largs (40111 both ways), Skegness, Hereford, Portsmouth (Class 33 south of Coventry), Windsor & Eton Central.
 

Moog_1984

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I think the £10 fare is a bit wide of the mark - tours were much cheaper than that! I'll have a look for some leaflets at some point.

They were a tenner in the mid eighties....and still mrk Is.

Usually a bit off season, spring and autumn saturdays.

From Glesga' C, if you got to warrington it would be Rhyl, 'Dudno or Chester. Crewe and it could be Shrewsbury or Chester.

A really fast diagram whatever, those 1Z's : When they started adding stops to the 87 hauled trains (like the metropolii of Penrith and Oxenholm) then I reckon these Mystexs were a fair bit faster despite being "roarers".

I don't know when they ended actually, but I have seen a Mystex board on this here web site so I guess some post privatisation operators ran them.
 

50047

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I did a few of these in the 70s and 80s. The most memorable.......

The first was actually my first ever recorded haulage...
22/07/76 25266+25250 to Skegness and back. Train started and finished at St.Pancras.

Next up was a Mystex
29/07/80 A very disappointing 47509 tuned up at Bedford. Destination was Lowestoft

10/10/81 An Adex that dad wangled.....
82005 Coventry-Carstairs
25050+27043 Carstairs-Edinburgh-Carstairs
82005 Carstairs-Crewe
46005 Crewe-Coventry

09/09/84
Mystex to Eastbourne. Started with 45077 to Cricklewood, 33059 forward. Same locos on the return. This turned out to be my last

Happy days :)
 
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ChiefPlanner

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Treherbet to Ramsgate MUST have been a killer.

Did a non mystery from Swansea to Edinburgh - 0400 Sat am departure , - back sometime Sunday morning (LHCS Mk2) -£8 I think. A stamina tester that was. No heat for the first bit to Cardiff where the loco was changed for one with ETH !
 

12CSVT

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A circular trip hauled by 40018 from Carlisle (September 1978 if my memory is correct), to Edinburgh via Beattock and Carstairs East Curve (then rare track for passenger trains), then onto Berwick via Penmanshiel Tunnel (which collapsed early the following year), then back to Carlisle via Newcastle.
It was on the return to Carlisle that things got really interesting. The 40 failed near Blaydon, and the rescue loco, 47323 then propelled (yes, propelled) the train to Hexham where the plan was for the 47 to run round in the loop. One problem - the train was longer than the loop, so attempts were made to revive the 40. When this didn't work, a more unorthodox solution was tried. As Hexham is on a gradient, the 47 came off the rear and into the loop, then the brakes were released on the train so it could roll back far enough for the 47 to run round (passengers still on board) and haul the train back to Carlisle, about 3 hours late.
Not sure if any of these manoeuvres contravened the BR rule book.
 

Yew

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A shame something similar couldnt happen these days. Weekend HST (or the Olympic Mk2 rakes?) off to somewhere, for maybe 20 quid a head?
 
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