Saltley Tales

[Saltleyman]

In the mid 1980's Saltley got a new diagram which meant booking on duty at 01.00 hrs. Walk to Landor Street Junction and Relieve 6E88 (Trostre to Whitemoor) and work forward to Leicester,then after a break relieve 1D00(St.Pancras to Derby),usually formed of four coaches hauled by a class 45 diesel.
This train was booked to call at Loughborough and Long Eaton.
On the first day that Saltley worked this turn,a Driver R.E. was rostered to the diagram.After a uneventful run to Leicester with 6E88,and after having his food break he releived 1D00, which was running to time, and "set sail."
The first problem he encountered was the "braking point" to stop at Loughborough from about 110 mph,with a class 45 and four coaches !
This he achieved and set off again for Derby where he arrived quite a few minutes before time,on arrival at Derby an irrate platform inspector came up to his cab and said " the wires are red hot about you mate,why didn't you stop at Long Eaton ?".
So the next day Driver R.E. on the same job convinced himself " I must stop at Long Eaton,I must stop at Long Eaton,I must stop at Long Eaton" which he did, unfortunately he ran through Loughborough,non-stop,at 100 mph !:-x

 

[Aictos]

Poor bugger, I bet he got some stick for a while!

 

[Old Timer]

Possibly.........bearing in mind that 45s were limited to 90mph !

Mind you I have had 114 mph measured by stopwatch going Down Harlington bank towards Flitwick with 10 on, and I know that the last Up Derby to St Pancras fast service took TWO Class 45s south and there were some VERY lively performances on that service as it was Leceister then r/a St Pancras.

In those days, we trusted our Drivers to drive with due care, and they certainly did because I can only recall Eltham Well Hall, and Morpeth as being two accidents where driving at excessive speed was the single factor, and even then it was by Drivers who were not fully fit to be in the seat, rather than a Driver using his road and traction knowledge to the best advantage.

These days you join a late running train in the almost certain knowlege that not only are you x minutes late, but that this will have expanded to y and probably z by the time you reach your destination.

And all of this because of needless meddling, generally by people with no footplate experience, and with little Railway operating experience to support their "judgements", which are sometimes invariably based on the most ridiculous of scenarios.

In BR days I would happily have put my wife and kids on a late running train driven by a Saltley man with absolute trust and in the sure knowledge that he was a master of his trade, whose judgement on driving and making up time, would be professional, safe, and impeccable.

 

[Death]

This is a much later foto taken in the 1970's,it shows the fuelling point taken at night.

I know that several have noted Saltley Seagulls as working some very far and wide workings out of Brum...But can I ask what on Earth the NSE loco visible in that photo is doing that far North?

Although I sadly had never heard of Saltley before this thread came about, I think that I might know the site that the depot used to occupy. I've marked it in two parts - Phase I (Pre 1868CE), and Phase II (Post 1868CE) - On Google Maps, and it may be found Here 8)

Farewell...And it's great to hear some decent tales back from when BR was still going good and strong!
>> Death <<

 

[Lower Quadrant]

I know that several have noted Saltley Seagulls as working some very far and wide workings out of Brum...But can I ask what on Earth the NSE loco visible in that photo is doing that far North?

Although I sadly had never heard of Saltley before this thread came about, I think that I might know the site that the depot used to occupy. I've marked it in two parts - Phase I (Pre 1868CE), and Phase II (Post 1868CE) - On Google Maps, and it may be found Here 8)

Farewell...And it's great to hear some decent tales back from when BR was still going good and strong!
>> Death <<

The furthest Saltley men went (by design ) was when subterfuge was used to get a trip to Plymouth.They conjured up a classs 58 to haul an HST from Birmingham New Street to Plymouth,and went back light to Saltley.The photograph shown in Saltleymans post is not from the seventies, as there is a class 58 in the shed.These were introduced in 1982/3

Could this be Plymouth and the 58 with Saltley crew on board?

 

[Saltleyman]

I know that several have noted Saltley Seagulls as working some very far and wide workings out of Brum...But can I ask what on Earth the NSE loco visible in that photo is doing that far North?

Although I sadly had never heard of Saltley before this thread came about, I think that I might know the site that the depot used to occupy. I've marked it in two parts - Phase I (Pre 1868CE), and Phase II (Post 1868CE) - On Google Maps, and it may be found Here 8)

Farewell...And it's great to hear some decent tales back from when BR was still going good and strong!
>> Death <<

The class 50 in the foto in NSE livery would have arrived after working a Paddington to B'ham New St or Manchester train (re-engined at New St by an electric(class 86)'
As to the date of this foto "Lower Quadrant" is qite correct in saying that it was taken in the 1980's,(the reason I said 70's is simple pressed a 7 instead of an 8 and didn't check before posting 1)
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Possibly.........bearing in mind that 45s were limited to 90mph !

Mind you I have had 114 mph measured by stopwatch going Down Harlington bank towards Flitwick with 10 on, and I know that the last Up Derby to St Pancras fast service took TWO Class 45s south and there were some VERY lively performances on that service as it was Leceister then r/a St Pancras.

In those days, we trusted our Drivers to drive with due care, and they certainly did because I can only recall Eltham Well Hall, and Morpeth as being two accidents where driving at excessive speed was the single factor, and even then it was by Drivers who were not fully fit to be in the seat, rather than a Driver using his road and traction knowledge to the best advantage.

These days you join a late running train in the almost certain knowlege that not only are you x minutes late, but that this will have expanded to y and probably z by the time you reach your destination.

And all of this because of needless meddling, generally by people with no footplate experience, and with little Railway operating experience to support their "judgements", which are sometimes invariably based on the most ridiculous of scenarios.

In BR days I would happily have put my wife and kids on a late running train driven by a Saltley man with absolute trust and in the sure knowledge that he was a master of his trade, whose judgement on driving and making up time, would be professional, safe, and impeccable.

Although theoretically a 90mph locomotive a class 45 loco was quite capale of exceeding 100 mph when called upon tp do so(and quite often did),of the state of the PW the location and gradient also came into play.In BR days when a train was running late it was a driver's remit to try and make up time,and as your mentioned OT,time was often made up.This was done mainly by "pinching" the odd mph here or there,obviously taking all the pre mentioned things into consideration,and also the driver's route knowledge as to when to "push it" or not.Also there were no "computers" on loco's monitoring your every move as there are today, and loco's were not m"governed" to shut of power at a given speed as they are today.

 

[Aictos]

These days you join a late running train in the almost certain knowlege that not only are you x minutes late, but that this will have expanded to y and probably z by the time you reach your destination

That might be true in some cases but I was coming home one Sunday after a night shift and we were 18 late at St Neots or Huntingdon, got into Peterborough only 8 late!

Which was some going!

 

[Saltleyman]

In the late 1960's, at Christmas time, before its closure, Saltley Train Crews used to work Mail/Parcel specials out of Camp Hill goods depot one such working was to York which went via the Stenson Branch to Nottingham PCD then via the Erewash route to Sheffield then via the S&K to York.
This required the loco (usually a class 25) to run round its train at Nottingham PCD.On one occasion, after uncoupling the loco the shunter jumped into the rear cab to "handsignal" the run round move.On arrival at the other end of the sidings the shunter saw a ground signal cleared so he called the driver back to clear the points.On this occasion however the ground signal that had been cleared, "read" off another line and was cleared for another train to move.On receiving a hand signal to proceed the diriver "opened" up the 25 and ran through a set of "trap points" at some speed,on running through these points the loco turned over on its side "crushing" a car standing close to the line.
A few weeks went by and then the Driver was summoned to Furlong House at Nottingham for an inquiry into the "accident",having arrived at the offices he reported to the reception,when he reported to her the receptionist burst out laughing,"what are you laughing at ?" enquired the driver,you'll soon find out she replied.
Aparently the inquiry was chaired by the local Area Manager,guess who's car the Saltley Driver had "squashed" ?
That's right the AM's.

 

[Bill EWS]

I too would love to have a £ for the hours we spent at Saltley Depot. Didcot crew had contact with Saltley men from early years but it built up when Didcot Power station opened in the early 70's and they worked all the northern coal train. I moved to Didcot from Aberdeen in 1964 and there was a number of turns that took us to Saltley depot. One regular train was the Fawley-Bromford Bridge oil trains. I cut my eye teeth on these trains as most times the driver would let me drive back home with the empties.

I should say 'trains', as there were two turns, one late in the evening and the other in the daytime. More than often we were booked to go onto Saltley depot for refuelling. These trains always had 2 x Class D65xxx Cromptons on. Now Class 33's. They were long and heavy trains, known as 'Long Toms'.

http://billreid678.fotopic.net/p30413545.html
This is a 1970's shot taken from a passenger train.
There are two Class 47's, a Class 20 and a Class 45 or 6 on the depot.

http://billreid678.fotopic.net/p30413970.html
These next two photos are not at Saltley but are of two D65's (33's) at Bromford Bridge, on the Fawley-Bromford Bridge oil train. In this photo
we had just completed splitting the train into two sections in Bromford Bridge oil sidings.

http://billreid678.fotopic.net/p30413974.html
In this photo we are just waiting to go light Loco's to Saltley Depot.

This is the first time I have used Fotopix as a link. I hope that these photos come up OK.

I just remember the coaling stage at Saltley as it was already well reduced and the new diesel fuelling and servicing point came about. Likewise with the steam shed(s) I only ever parked loco's on the old depot when there was just a few sidings left.

Over the years we had numerous regular turns that took us to Saltley depot, where we would wait for our next back workingd. We had turns to Washwood Heath or Lawley Street and also turns where we worked to Bescot and travelled to Saltley for our back workings, or vice versa.

Before privatisation we also had numerous passenger workings to New Street where we also mixed with Saltley crews regularly. We got to know them pretty well over those years. As with all depots you had your good, bad and indifferent. You seldom knew their full names, many became known by their by-names. A few became good friends and it is impossible to forget them, if not their names. But even now in retirement everytime Saltley is mentioned or I pass by on the train on my wanderings, as I did this last Bank Holiday these memories are awakened.

As we worked to many different depots you could never really get to know crew's names and much of the time we would simply greet each other with "Hello Saltley", Hello Bristol, or whatever. Sometimes it would be "Hello You old Didcot/Saltley/Bristol/Eastleigh B------"! All taken in good fun and with respect for each other.

It's sad to see just how rundown the depot is and how much of it has gone. I thought that it had closed completely but noted an Ex EWS 66 parked up there on the Bank Holiday and was interested to read here that it is still used ocassionally by DB Shenkler crew. I wonder how much of the large mess rooms and facilities still exisit!

My regards to any Saltley crew who may be looking in.

 

[curly42]

I had to go to New Street to pass out on the 47s.I duly reported to the correct room to be greeted with "Hello you Gloucester ba****d,what do you want".This was my introduction to the inspector,a rather large Fat Controller type called,I think,Jim.I'm sure he was ex-Saltley.
"Right,we're going to Reading.You drive,and we will not lose any time" he said as we made our way to the platform.I thought it best to mention that I didn't know the route at all - "What's the problem,only used to f****n' broad gauge ?".Oh dear,it's going to be a long day.
Once I'd explained that my father had worked on the Midland everything was fine and the trip to Reading and back went o.k. if a little hairy (to say the least).
"There's the Saltley way and the wrong way,remember that.Now f**k off and tell your poncy Western friends."
A real character.There were so many of them in the old days.Ah,the old days,now that reminds me........

 

[Saltleyman]

Hi Curly 42
The Gentleman ( I use the term very loosely) you referred to may have become a loco Inspector,but wasn't really a true Saltley man,but an import from elsewhere,however saying that once you got to know him he wasn't that bad a guy,he played a major part in a tale that will shortly appear on this thread.

 

[Bill EWS]

I wonder if we are talking about the same inspector! Was he a smallish, slim chap who wore a trench coat, trilby hat and smoked a pipe? If I remember correctly I think he came from Sheffield or up that way. If it's the same chap the first time I met him was at Didcot when still a secondman. I was driving a coal train around the power station, which I had done many times and was respected by our drivers to handle a train without any problems. However, this inspector turned up and got onto the engine part way through the coal plant and told my driver off for allowing me in the chair. With that the driver told him to go away, or words to that effect, which to both our surprises, he did. The driver added that he would decide when his secondman was capable to drive HIS train. I had been on the job about 11 years at the time.

This would have been about 1974 as it was not long after that when that I got my driving job at Marylebone, where I was for six years before returning to Didcot.

I had not long been passed out on traction and route learning again when I was in Saltley depot having a break and during that time this same inspector came into the cabin at one point. He said hello, then asked where my driver was. I explained to him that I was the driver and had been driver for just over six years at the time. Give him his due, he then shook me by the hand and said well done. He wasn't all bad.

P.S. It just came to me. I probably just described about every inspector on the railway at the time. However, he was a smallish, slim chap, as against a much larger character.

 

[Lower Quadrant]

I wonder if we are talking about the same inspector! Was he a smallish, slim chap who wore a trench coat, trilby hat and smoked a pipe? If I remember correctly I think he came from Sheffield or up that way. If it's the same chap the first time I met him was at Didcot when still a secondman. I was driving a coal train around the power station, which I had done many times and was respected by our drivers to handle a train without any problems. However, this inspector turned up and got onto the engine part way through the coal plant and told my driver off for allowing me in the chair. With that the driver told him to go away, or words to that effect, which to both our surprises, he did. The driver added that he would decide when his secondman was capable to drive HIS train. I had been on the job about 11 years at the time.

This would have been about 1974 as it was not long after that when that I got my driving job at Marylebone, where I was for six years before returning to Didcot.

I had not long been passed out on traction and route learning again when I was in Saltley depot having a break and during that time this same inspector came into the cabin at one point. He said hello, then asked where my driver was. I explained to him that I was the driver and had been driver for just over six years at the time. Give him his due, he then shook me by the hand and said well done. He wasn't all bad.

P.S. It just came to me. I probably just described about every inspector on the railway at the time. However, he was a smallish, slim chap, as against a much larger character.

Is old Chopsy still at Didcot,Bill?Last I heard he was green carded and on the Pilot.I`ve been retired three years,mind.

 

[Bill EWS]

Hi Lower Quadrant. Chopsy retired about a year back. He's still on the Staff Club Committee. I have joined him and other retired drivers on Attending Retirement Do's at Eastleigh and Reading a few times. I also retired three years back, although I left a year early.

A few Saltley & Bescot drivers have come down to Didcot for the Annual Gathering and the ocassional retirement party but I have not heard if they every hold any retirement gatherings themselves. Would love to meet up with some of them again.

I take it we would know each other!

 

[Saltleyman]

I wonder if we are talking about the same inspector! Was he a smallish, slim chap who wore a trench coat, trilby hat and smoked a pipe? If I remember correctly I think he came from Sheffield or up that way. If it's the same chap the first time I met him was at Didcot when still a secondman. I was driving a coal train around the power station, which I had done many times and was respected by our drivers to handle a train without any problems. However, this inspector turned up and got onto the engine part way through the coal plant and told my driver off for allowing me in the chair. With that the driver told him to go away, or words to that effect, which to both our surprises, he did. The driver added that he would decide when his secondman was capable to drive HIS train. I had been on the job about 11 years at the time.

This would have been about 1974 as it was not long after that when that I got my driving job at Marylebone, where I was for six years before returning to Didcot.

I had not long been passed out on traction and route learning again when I was in Saltley depot having a break and during that time this same inspector came into the cabin at one point. He said hello, then asked where my driver was. I explained to him that I was the driver and had been driver for just over six years at the time. Give him his due, he then shook me by the hand and said well done. He wasn't all bad.

P.S. It just came to me. I probably just described about every inspector on the railway at the time. However, he was a smallish, slim chap, as against a much larger character.

The loco/traction inspector you mentioned would have been Ray Durnell,also knicknamed "tweety" by Saltley crews,he arrived at Saltley off the WR from Oswestry and eventually moved on to the ER as a senior instructor at Ilford Electric Depot,he sadly is no longer with us.RIP.
I too would probably know you as I retired in 2006 the same year as "Lower Quadrant"( having being at Saltley since 1963)and spent many "Miserable" hours in the "shed" at Foxhaul Jcn. waitng for you lads to come back out of the power station.:cry:

 

[Bill EWS]

Thanks for that piece of information Saltleyman. I forgot to add that the inspector I mentioned also had a very pale complection, that added to his rather austere look.

As mentioned, while you only knew most others by association, you did build up friendships with a few. I struck up a freindship with a Dave. Ward, who like myself was just waiting for our home workings. It started off when I mentioned my fondness for the DC Electrics that ran between Manchster and Sheffield Victoria and connecting lines. It turned out that he was originally based at Darnall and worked on these locos.

He kindly gave me two photos of himself on a DC Loco. If I remember correctly moved to Rotherham after Darnall depot closed.

Here are the photos. Perhaps you or someone may recognise him and know if he is still around.

D.Ward on 26302

D. Ward on 26055

http://billreid678.fotopic.net/c758172.html
DC Locomotives & Trains 1980's

Indeed Saltleyman, if you shared those long waits at Foxhall cabin waiting for the empty coal trains coming back out of the Power station, then we will certainly know each other by site.

 

[Lower Quadrant]

Les Durnell was a Shropshire Lad,and certainly didn`t have a Sheffield accent.He was a Dunna,Canna Wanna man.(Shropshire speak).My first episode in Foxhall was spent twiddling my thumbs.I was joined by a real gentleman from 81E,although possibly ex 81F.He had a love,or liking for the Fairford Branch and the regular engine on the job.Was ir Fair Rosamund,or something similar?

 

[Saltleyman]

Les Durnell was a Shropshire Lad,and certainly didn`t have a Sheffield accent.He was a Dunna,Canna Wanna man.(Shropshire speak).My first episode in Foxhall was spent twiddling my thumbs.I was joined by a real gentleman from 81E,although possibly ex 81F.He had a love,or liking for the Fairford Branch and the regular engine on the job.Was ir Fair Rosamund,or something similar?

The reason I thought it may Les Durnell (not Ray as I said, who I did mention came from Oswestry) was because he was at Saltley round that time,the only other Inspector I can remember who might fit the description was the one who came from Toton,(and appeared with me on TV in 1976 on Clun Castle),unfortunately he wasn't at Saltley for long, I think he moved on to Norwich or that way.Perhaps he was replaced by Les Durnell ? Did Les Durnell smoke a pipie,I can't remember. The only Traction Inspector I can Remember with a "Sheffield" accent would be Terry Curson who arrived at Saltley from Sheffield (at about the same time as Pete Crayon from Barrow Hill in 1964) he later moved on to XCountry as you will know.However I don't think he bacame a TI until much later, possibly in the 1980's or even 90's ?Perhaps you can throw some more light on the subject"Lower Quadrant" ?

 

[Bill EWS]

It looks as if we will never be certain of this particular inspector. However, he has played a part in our memories of Saltley and great respect to him wherever he may be.

As far as I know Fair Rosemund didn't work on the Fairford Line, but it's not impossibe as it would have been serviced at Oxford. However, it was built for and was the regular engine on the Kidlington-Woodstock & Blenham branch.

 

[Saltleyman]

Talking about L.Durnell one of his favourite tricks was to wait on Derby Station.hidden behind a pillar and wait for you to arrive from Sheffield with a class 1.He would wait unseen until you stopped then jump into the back cab,then as you pulled away he would come thro' the engine room and appear in the cab,I think he did this to catch out drivers letting their mates have ago,This happened to me one day whilst I was secondmanning to my booked mate BA, Durnell had a go at my mate and insisted he drove the train.A couple of days later he came to me in the lobby at Saltley and said "why didn't you tell me you were passed fireman and signed the road when I rode with you the other day? Apparently my mate had reported him to the Shed foreman,and he( Durnell) had cheecked up and found out I wsa entitled to drive!

 

[Bill EWS]

It looks very mich as if I got this inspectors origins all wrong and from what you said about him sneeking into the back cab just to catch the driver out later, for anything he considered wrong doing, fits the description pretty well.

 

[Saltleyman]

Mr Durnell wasn't liked very much by Saltleymen,firstly because he was quite a lot younger than our regular Inspectors,also coming off the Western to the Midland posed some problems,there seemed to be a lot of differences between how things were done at Saltley and how they were done on the Western !
He was "put" off trains in a lot of different places by annoyed Saltley Drivers,for his meddling,interfering ways.
On one occasion I was secondmanning "Taffy" R and as we left Derby he appeared in the cab and as we continued towards Burton he started asking me a lot of questions re rules and regs,my mate "Taffy" got quite annoyed about this and brought the train to a complete stand at Wichnor Junction(midway between Burton and Tamworth) and said to Durnell "well mate are we going to have a rules exam or are we going to get this express to Birmingham ?" He started off again and stopped at Tamworth where we weren't booked and ordered him off.As we pulled away "taffy" shouted through the open cab window "and you can have all the lost time as well !"
However I must say that he mellowed a bit before he left,I suppose he'd learnt the error of his ways.

 

[Bill EWS]

Sounds like the same man, Saltleyman. However from your stories it appears that he didn't learn too much from being put off a train, and from drivers such as I explained, who told him where to go. I really don't understand that type of behavour.

There was indeed different ways between the Western and the Midlands, but then so it was with the Southern and when I moved down from Aberdeen I had to learn a lot of expressions for the same things that I had first learned up there, such as a Dolly and a Dummy signal being one and the same, or on the Western a 'Backing Board'. I hadn't a clue what my 'western' driver meant the first time I was asked "Is the backing board off"?

There was also the use of the word Cabin for a mess room, which we call a Bothy. I recall one time in Didcot cabin and one of our Welsh drivers was doing a crossword and was stuck. I wasn't aware of this but at one point he said to the driver sitting immediately next too him "What's a Scottish five letter word for a messroom. Of course being English the driver had no idea either. When I told the driver to try 'Bothy', he looked puzzled but checke dit out it immediately fitted. I then I explained about the word meaning a cabin, or in it's original Gaidhlig sense, a 'Booth', or Shop, or in our case, a Cabin. I believe it comes from the French.

They may have Nationalised the railway, or Midlandised it, as many considered but each region continued to use their original expressions as if nothing had changed.

 

[Saltleyman]

The term "Bothy" was quite well known to Saltleymen as we used to "lodge" at Carlisle Kingmoor,which as you know is an ex Scottish region Depot( 68A),also we had several ex Scottish region drivers at Saltley,two from Carlisle Canal (68C),one from Perth(63A),one from Thorton junction(62A),one from Haymarket(64B)(ex Muirkirk)and one from Dunbar plus a secondman from Polmadie(66A).

 

[Bill EWS]

Indeed Saltleyman. I am sure it was known at depots much further south, such as Stratford and Norwood where many Scottish train crew moved to in the latter 50's and into the 60's. But in these parts and further west there weren't s many Scots. Indeed I was only one of two for most of the years I have been here and the other retired way back in the 70's.

When we first worked over to Temple Mills and Stratford in the mid 60's I was surprised to go into the driver's 'bothy' and hear a fair number of Scottish accents. Three of them moved down from Keith. I had an inteesting meetingw ith these same drivers when on holiday with the family in Switzerland. On the return sleeper from Thun, which was packed out, we started to hear someone play the bagpipes. He passed our carriage door, so I went to see what was going on. When I reached the carriage he went into I found the three Ex Keith drivers, with their families, all having a great time, that carried on right on into the night.

In the middle 80's we started working over to Hither Green on the southern and there was a good number of Scots there too.

I believe that the Scottish drivers & secondmen at Norwood initially moved down to Kentish Town. After having found lodgings and homes and starting to settle in, Kentish Town depot was suddenly closed. All in a matter of months of them arriving there and they had to move again. The three Keith drivers I mentioned were among those.

There was quite a stink about it at the time and those moving depot due to redundancy, anywhere in the U.K. got a better deal because of it. Though, saying that, it still wasn't anything to shout about.

 

[Lower Quadrant]

As well as the Scots Satleyman mentions,Saltley had men from almost every County I should think.We had some from the Cow and Gate railway(S&DJR),some from Lancs,sheds,Liverpool,Manchester,Blackburn,Burnley,Wigan.Wales,North and South,the South Wales men via Tyseley.

 

[Saltleyman]

One summer Saturday my Driver JC and myself booked on duty at dinnertime the job was to take a LD to New Street and re-engine 1O12 Newcastle to Poole which we worked as far as Reading then uncouple and return wwith 1M76 back to New Street where we were to be relieved.On booking on duty the Foreman advised us that the incoming loco was going through with the train to Reading,so he sent for the locobus driver to take us to New Street.
We duly arrived at New St. and went down to platform 10 to relieve the incoming train.When the train arrived we found out that the Driver in charge of 45106 was a well known practical joker SR. I must add that the temperature was up in the 80's (it being one of the hottest days of the summer)
My mate told me to "jump into the back cab and I'll call you back from the front".On arriving at the back cab I put my hand on the cab door handle and found it was "Red" hot.On opening the cab door the heat nearly knocked me off my feet.
RS the driver we relieved had been told by the control at Sheffield that the loco was working through and had gone back and turned all the cab heaters plus the cooker full on.
You can imagine the situation we ran all the way to Leamington with both cab doors and both cab windows wide open and we were still sweating when we stopped there!

 

[Saltleyman]

When I joined the Train Crew complement at Saltley in 1963 we had a loco bus driver knicknamed "Lenny the Lion" who was a lovely chap but was very "gullible".One day the deputy outside foreman,SR who was a well known prankster, at this point I must add that there was a large water tank on the roof of the Admin. block which was accessed by a high metal ladder,SR said to "Lenny" I'm off on holiday next week and I shall be putting my prize fish from my garden pool into the tank on the Admin. building,I'll bring in a supply of food for them,will you feed them for me every day? So for days on end "Lenny" was seen climbing the ladder to the tank on the roof with his container of fish food ! I don't think he ever "cottoned" on to the scam.

 

[curly42]

I remember Lenny very well - he was something of a scary bus driver,thinking nothing of turning around to speak to you for ages while someone else watched the road for him.There was another driver had a very stiff right leg.He used to swing it into the van and jam it onto the accelerator,and there it stayed revving the guts out of the engine !!!

 

[Lower Quadrant]

I remember Lenny very well - he was something of a scary bus driver,thinking nothing of turning around to speak to you for ages while someone else watched the road for him.There was another driver had a very stiff right leg.He used to swing it into the van and jam it onto the accelerator,and there it stayed revving the guts out of the engine !!!

Bhogal was that chaps name IIRC.