Buses Illustrated first appeared in late 1949 with the above (offered for sale on-line) being edition 2 from January (?) 1950. In the late sixties the mag was renamed simply "Buses" ...
... a title which it retains today. This name's the same, but the magazine has changed mightily, becoming bigger and printed in full colour.
No 1 Son always struggles with gifts for his parents (a common problem - what DO you buy for a couple of "old crusties"?), so, this year, Santa's sack (actually a carrier bag) contained food items (yummy, Cornish Blue, Garlic Yarg and Marmite Biscuits) ...
... PLUS the October 1972 edition of said magazine.
The editor aimed to provide an "interesting" picture for each front cover and, even in 1972, this vehicle would have "caught the eye". The explanatory text tells fbb that it is a 55 seater bus version of the M-type Leyland Leopard, part of a large batch delivered to CIÉ in 1971 and 1972.
Córas Iompair Éireann (Irish Transport System), or CIÉ, is a statutory corporation of the Republic of Ireland, answerable to the Irish Government and responsible for most public transport in Ireland.
From 1944 to 1964, the CIÉ logo was , rather unkindly, called the ...
... flying snail; a surprisingly modern loco for its day.
Today just letters in a broken doughnut suffice.
Oddly, the logo does not have the "acute accent" on the letter E.
The text also informed your blogging author that the bus was on O'Connell Bridge in Dublin. Google Streetview arrived there amidst a plethora of roadworks ...
... but the buildings and the statue of O'Connell himself are unchanged.
The text also informed your blogging author that the bus was on O'Connell Bridge in Dublin. Google Streetview arrived there amidst a plethora of roadworks ...
The 747 is Dublin Bus' overpriced Airport link.
Daniel O'Connell (Irish: Dónall Ó Conaill; 6 August 1775 to 15 May 1847), often referred to as The Liberator or The Emancipator, was an Irish political leader in the first half of the 19th century.
Daniel O'Connell (Irish: Dónall Ó Conaill; 6 August 1775 to 15 May 1847), often referred to as The Liberator or The Emancipator, was an Irish political leader in the first half of the 19th century.
He campaigned for Catholic emancipation - including the right for Catholics to sit in the Westminster Parliament, denied for over 100 years - and repeal of the Acts of Union which combined Great Britain and Ireland.
A view more in keeping with the bus comes from a news picture in 1963 of the motorcade that brought President J F Kennedy to Dublin as part of his visit to the Kennedy Homestead in Ireland.
And a modern picture from further back showing the splendid bridge itself.
Players no longer please on the corner block in the centre of the shot.
Back to the bus. Port Láirge on the stick-on paper blind ...
... is the Irish Gaelic for Waterford, about 120 miles from Dublin. Fortunately the wonders of the interwebnet can provide a picture of the same bus (79 1K) in colour. Taken a few years after the Buses shot, the M type is on its way to ...
... Ath Cliath, Gaelic for Dublin!
You might be wondering ...
Actually, fbb wan't wondering.
... why Baile Átha Cliath bears no resemblance to Dublin. The city of Dublin historically had two main settlements: The Viking settlement was known as Dyflin, taken from the Irish Dubh Linn ("Black Pool"), and the Irish settlement further up river was called Áth Cliath ("Ford of Hurdles").
One final snippet, before we open the magazine and explore its innards, is one of the adverts on the back.
Visionary, eh? The BBC computer and its associated schools IT project was still 9 years away when Buses featured the CIÉ vehicle on its front cover.
fbb's had 32K of memory!
Logology - some answers.
1. Trentbarton
2. GoAhead North East
3. London Transport
4. Norwich local branding : First Bus
5. Current operator based in Aylesbury
6. Former operator running competitive services in Redditch
More tomorrow.
Logology - some answers.
2. GoAhead North East
3. London Transport
4. Norwich local branding : First Bus
5. Current operator based in Aylesbury
6. Former operator running competitive services in Redditch
More tomorrow.
Next 1972 Nostalgia blog : Wednesday 3rd January
Slight typos in your first paragraph. BI started in in 1949, with your illustration dating from 1950. At this point it was not yet being produced on a monthly regular basis. I still have the slightly battered first copy given to me in March 1959 and have filled in gaps before an annual subscription became a regular Christmas present from my father in 1962.
ReplyDeleteThanks Anon - a slip of th stubby finger, now corrected above.
ReplyDeletePresumably all those roadworks on O'Connell Bridge were in connection with the construction of the Luas Cross-city tram which opened on December 9th.
ReplyDeleteThe flying snail logo originated with the Dublin United Tramways, although I don't have anything to hand to confirm the date of introduction - an internet source suggests circa 1941.
ReplyDelete