I fully agree with you and believe it was a great pity nationalisation followed upon the 1923 Grouping in 1948 but alas that was almost inevitable the railways were in a calamitous state after the tremendous work effort they were out through in the six years of war and government control. I think the very existence of just four independent companies with their individual ways, and relatively diverse sizes, regions and concepts were ideal. They had a healthy spirit of competition and will to serve their respective regions and travellers, who if they didn’t like one of them it would probably be because he liked one or more of the others for whatever subjective reasons he might hold, and bully for him too! Instead, we got one mass of one single thought concept ideal and just too bad if it didn’t go your way! The other extreme had been of course the hundred and twenty or so private companies rivalling each other certainly, but perhaps falling over and out of each other, and hardly a single one making anything like a healthy profit, with the inevitable Great Western reigning supreme over all the rest as an ideal example of how a railway company ought to be run. I reckon the resultant 1923 Grouping into four companies the hundred or so companies existing was a good one. But even then not one of them was really going find it easy to cover all their charges, and as in other countries, private shareholders eventually get fed up with covering and absorbing losses and welcome being taken over! And today what have we got? A so-called railway system with pseudo private companies which hardly own anything at all and are more likely to be owned somewhere by a very non-railway thinking enterprise, almost taken “on the books” to offload some of of their profits elsewhere. Yearh, I know, it’s easy to criticise, and everyone does his best, and it has been the motor car the culprit, and road transport with the roads funded by the taxpayer, with little from the taxpayer to help the former “ big four” railway companies. Long live the memory and recollections of the LMS indeed!

​@@Cromwelldunbar j

It's a crying shame. But over the years we have progressed?? from being the best designers and best developers to the best in the world at destroying our own inventions and our own citizens. I used to be an electronics design engineer. and successive governments wore me down and destroyed my will to almost live!!!. Long live memories like this, we used to have an impressive empire. and memories like this puts a huge smile on my face. I am jealous of all you brilliant people who gave your years to working with the greatest rail in the world!!👏👏

1:06:04 Steam scrapping section starts.

Great footage! Makes one proud to be British. So many have tried to copy us. In fact today most trains don't go any faster than the best pre-war expressed. And the seats then were certainly more comfortable than modern seats. Pullman trains were fabulous, and I remember looking from another train enviously into the Brighton Belle at Victoria. The combination of speed and comfort is hard to experience in the modern age. Speed on the main line, or comfort on a preserved line, but seldom both. This is progress of course. Happy memories of a great age!

As if there was a spotter lookout at each end of Donny platforms the loud scream of "Streak" when an A4 came through!

i remember the capitals train blasting through hauled by Walter K Whigam

my late uncle was the steam raiser at 51G 1948 i was 8 years of age i went onto all of the engines in the depot Q6 J27 this was my intruduction to BR i am now 85 and still love the railways

@@peterdickenson424 Good for you Good Sir

Had the good fortune to experience 2 scenic steam locomotive train rides years ago.

Thank you.

I believe it is called "Coronation Scot" and was used for the series "Paul Temple". The Coronation Scot was also a named LMS Express train Euston - Glasgow. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/fbWpfMV1u7DepIE.html&ab_channel=BarryHodgson

British locomotives and railway technology were exported all across the world, to India, China, Chile, Egypt, Iran and many other countries. Assam tea is wonderful tea, definitely worth building a railway to get it to our teapots! Are those railways still working, do you know?

I seem to recall that the piece was called 'Coronation Scot' but was then used for The Paul Temple Radio Series; hence the commonly known title of 'The Paul Temple Theme'...... Back when radio painted a picture and stimulated the mind. Back when we had The Third Programme, The Light Programme and The Home Service, as opposed to the drivel now. James Hennighan Yorkshire, England

That music was also called coronation Scott, as I had the 78rpm record and if I remember was the signature music for down your way broadcast on the radio

"Horseguards, Whitehall" by Haydn Wood was the theme to "Down Your Way" and the music in the progamme was chosen by the its characters. This music is "Coronation Scot" by Vivian Ellis.

I do have plenty more, however it takes a while for me to get them off my old dvd recorder, edit them to work on a computer and then upload them. Plus I am busy studying so don't get much time. But keep watching this space as more will be coming.

Very grateful for the upload, cheers!

I believe the Great Western’s King Class George V went to America too and returning fitted with a complimentary bell too! ( Perhaps a gift from the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad? ).

@Aussie Pom Extra! Good reminder re Duchess of Hamilton dolled up for the trip…if I had known, I certainly had forgotten and if only repeated info’ they are always good reminders: but then up pops the Jack in the box as to “why did they do that?”…And as a quiz question to myself I confess ignorance, but can only venture a guess that the real CS was booked for inspections, and longish overhaul w/s procedures or had developed unforeseen problems? As they say, ‘thereby must hang an interesting tale [if not boring technical detail!’…!] Cheers Cobber! Pray give my best regards to The Seekers! (The greatest!)

I've just tried to find out where this was but nothing came up in my search. Anyone out there know of a GWR East Milton?

Sound is fine here.

Maybe she shouldn't have had her head out of the window the whole journey! I've come off an express with grubby face and gritty smuts in my hair; Happy Days!

Exactly what is slowly. taking place. Not just Brittany look at the rest of Europe. Look what's going on with open Southern borders in U.S. courtesy of Marxist democratic Obama/Biden white house administration😈

Attlee and his 'nationalise EVERYTHING' lunacy, far from getting the country off its knees, left us even MORE bankrupt than we were in 1945 - whilst adding a huge number of utterly unproductive civil service jobs.