Mallard Documentary on BBC Radio 4 extra

[bspahh]

Anything You Can Do is a radio documentary from 1988 on the Mallard steam engine record. It was repeated last Tuesday and Wednesday and is available for another 24 days at

BBC Radio 4 Extra - Anything You Can Do

Piers Bishop reflects on Sir Nigel Gresley’s 1938 ‘Mallard’ steam engine speed record.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Blinkbonny]

Yes, I heard that. I thought it wouldn't tell me much I didn't know, but I thought it was great at giving you a sense of the times.

Did I hear aright that the driver wasn't chosen because he was a good driver, but because he was known as a bit of a thrasher?

 

[DelW]

Yes, I heard that. I thought it wouldn't tell me much I didn't know, but I thought it was great at giving you a sense of the times.

Did I hear aright that the driver wasn't chosen because he was a good driver, but because he was known as a bit of a thrasher?

Without going back to check, I think it said that he was more fearless than most. Possibly drivers were aware of how close the LMS had come to a derailment on their record run the year before.
I have to say I'm not sure I'd want to stand on top of all that reciprocating motion at that speed either.

 

[bspahh]

Without going back to check, I think it said that he was more fearless than most. Possibly drivers were aware of how close the LMS had come to a derailment on their record run the year before.
I have to say I'm not sure I'd want to stand on top of all that reciprocating motion at that speed either.

This is from 15 minutes 56s:

The job of breaking the record was entrusted to one of Gresley's fastest drivers, driver Joe Duddington.
"Duddington was a pretty stolid sort of man, but probably not at all nervous. He was noted as a fast driver."

"I think he was a fairly typical dour Yorkshireman - didn't have a right lot to say. He was certainly known as a fearless engineman. He wasn't frightened to run hard and run fast.

Harry Wilson:
"In general opinion, driver Joe Duddington was not a skilled driver, but he was a driver without nerve and thats what Gresley wanted. Gresley told them at Doncaster 'I want a driver with strong nerves, steel ??? nerves' because he knew, he envisaged this locomotive going fast but it did go fast and they wanted a man capable of doing it without say at 110 packing it in."

I don't know if going for a world record attempt without telling the passengers until after the train had set out, would pass a modern risk assessment.

 

[BrandanM]

Just listened to it. Good programme.