Church Link
(here) at approx 1015
Play The Game, Stagecoach!
Many of us will have enjoyed a seemingly eternal game of Monopoly (Aim for the orange and all four stations and grow your empire from there!) on the traditional UK board. fbb omce played the Brussels version with a family in the Belgian capital but was far from fluent and was, additionally, doubtful about his host's interpretation of the rules. He failed.
Abysmally.
Regional variants of the game have become something of a growth industry in recent years. The latest uses locations in the Lake District.
Here is "Mr Monopoly" at the launch.
Look closely and you will see a Stagecoach open top bus pictured in the centre of the board.
The designers might struggle to find four big £200 railway stations. Anybody know which they are?
The Skills Of The Graphic Designer
Now that the Northern rail company (formerly Arriva) is state run, we could expect to see changes; but, as the company warned us, such improvements will take time. Undoubtedly, the most important part of the new-look nationalised company is to give us a smart with-it new identity.
Here is the old privatised company logo.
Like the company itself, it is not very exciting; not go-getting or at all with-it.
But after months of consultation, meetings of focus groups and poring over stuff provided by brand awareness consultants - and no doubt some pretty hefty expenditure - the state owned company has recently revealed its image.
Steps back in amazement!
The reaction of all age groups is palpable.
The reaction of all age groups is palpable.
Whoops, wrong picture - try again.
The reaction of all age groups is palpably bad.
No Nights Out Till 2021?
fbb has never been a great one fo night time entertainment and activity. Until a few years ago, he and Mrs fbb did manage to stay awake until just after midnight on 31st December/1st January - but even that pitch of frenzied partying has faded from the old folks' social calendar.
But many who live in London are waiting for the lockdown to end so they can go clubbing ...
... an activity of little attraction to the oldies - will be disappointed at this news.
The news item explains further.
Late "nites" are rare in Sunny Seaton since the closure of "The Grove" nightclub.
Oddly, its replacement, a "fitness centre" is not a frequent destination on fbb's weekly schedule.
Forgetful fbb!
Always ready to report on the unusual and quirky, fbb picked this bus picture up from Twitter.
It's a bit spartan on the inside ...
... and not open top; but open sided!
Amongst other things, it lacks wheels!
It is not a bus. It's a bus shelter, innit!
If only the old chap could remember where it was?
Leicester Is Not For fbb!
The city council has a plan, drawn up by consultants (who else?) to begin a substantial programme of enhancing the city's streets.
One illustration was of interest to a Twitterer recently.
The writer pointed out that the new-look city was only populated by young things of 30 and below - not an oldie in sight. Another contributor pointed out that upper left appeared to be a multi-storey car park but there were no signs at all of buses, either in the picture above or elsewhere in the press briefing.
A Bargain For All Collectors
Bet you would really like a genuine pre-war Hornby Dublo brick wagon.
If you look closely you can tell it is pre war as it was made and sold before Hornby adopted couplings designed by Peco.
As you can see it has a few "issues"
Bearing in mind that it is almost impossible to correct the chassis which has been trodden upon by a small pachyderm and shows just a smidgen of "fatigue" as a consequence.
You could replace the chassis with a post war version ...
... identical in every way except for the couplings. Indeed the wagon was still available almost to the very end of Dublo in the late 1960s.
But then it wouldn't be a "real" pre-war model, would it?
This pre-war batch was sold by auctioneers Bonham's for ...
... £752; and there you have the answer top right. Just put the bogies and pre-war couplings onto the chassis and body from Bonham's and there you are!
Not quite sure where you are?
fbb would have liked a pre-war Dublo tank wagon for his now extensive collection; but ...
... possibly the finance director would not approve! Now, if anyone out there has one that they would like to go to a good home, rather than get into the hands of a dealer, fbb's you man!
Unlikely!
The Puzzle Picture
The top picture is the front - yes really - and the bottom is the rear view.
This was the Reid-McLeod turbine electric locomotive built in 1910 by the North British Railway company.
The locomotive carried a conventional loco-type boiler with superheating, feeding an impulse turbine running at 3000rpm. This was directly coupled to a dynamo that produced between 200 and 600 Volts DC. This energised four 275 HP series-wound traction motors, built directly on the axles of the larger wheels visible on the diagram below. It was therefore an expression of the "power station on wheels" philosophy.
The turbine-generator assembly was installed in the central section between the boiler and condenser. Both vacuum and Westinghouse compressed air brakes were fitted.
You have heard of diesel-electric locos but "steam electric" was something much rarer.
It was a failure!
The company then came up with a simple (?) turbine driven steam engine. The Reid-Ramsay was also a failure.
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Next Virus Variety blog : Monday 15th June
North British LOCOMOTIVE Company, surely?
ReplyDeleteThe "stations" (which I think were chosen by people writing in) are Ravenglass, Whitehaven Harbour, Windermere Ferry ... and Stagecoach 599 bus"
ReplyDeleteBut not Oxenholme Lake District!