Picture Quiz ~ Through the ages

Well, through my ages anyway!

I was looking at my old Pentax film camera the other day, and thought I'd do a little picture quiz as it's been a while since I've done one. All were taken by me since I got my first camera in the late 70s, through the 90s and early 21st century with my Pentax, and a few more recent ones on one of my digital cameras. Roughly half are in or near the FGW^▸ area, and I've even chucked in a couple from foreign shores. Some are fairly easy and some should be a good test for the more seriously travelled of you!

WELL DONE ALL - ALL PHOTOS HAVE NOW BEEN CORRECTLY IDENTIFIED

FROM THE 1980s:

1) MICHELDEVER

2) BICESTER NORTH - One of the 4-Car Class 115 DMUs^▸ that used to chug up and down between Banbury and Marylebone. Known for their high standard of interior fittings (compared to most other DMUs of the time), and slow acceleration - only 2 out of the 4 vehicles were powered - it's fair to say that the service on the Chiltern Line has been completely transformed since the early 80s when this picture was taken.

3) ABINGDON - Final day with special trains running to and from Abingdon on 30th June 1984. This large town of over 35000 was left without a passenger service in 1963, though freight continued until shortly before the specials on the final day. Radley is now the nearest railhead for Abingdon and is about to see its car park extended for a second time proving how useful the link would be today.

FROM THE 1990s:

4) LELANT

5) GILLINGHAM (DORSET)

6) KILLARNEY - Rather time-consuming shunt manoeuvre required for through trains from Tralee which come round the curve, stop at the points beyond the signal box, before reversing back into the platform!

7) TACKLEY - Local services from Banbury to Oxford became local services through to Reading in the very late 80s and were operated by 3-car DMUs (either Class 101, or 117 DMUs) for a short while until Turbos took over around 1992/3.

8 ) BERWICK-UPON-TWEED

9) TAPLOW

10) TEIGNMOUTH - I remember being delighted when this came back from Bonusprint - one of the first shots taken with my new Sigma zoom lens and in pin-sharp focus.

11) NARVIK - The locomotive (or locomotives really as there are three semi-permanently coupled together) is the Norwegian equivalent of the Swedish Dm+Dm3+Dm, known as NSB El 12. Both types are rather special with almost 10000hp of power which made them the most powerful engines in the world for a while. The were used on Iron Ore trains on the line between Narvik in Norway and Lulea in Sweden. Well worth tracking down a bit of footage on youtube to see them in action, and I was very lucky to catch this one running light loco through Narvik in the final few months of regular running.

12) BODMIN PARKWAY

FROM THE 2000s:

13) PRESTON - On loan to Northern in 2009, this Class 180 is now back working Cotswold Line services with FGW.

14) MACHYNLLETH

15) LINCOLN - Taken in 2009 just after the signalling and track modifications that make operations at the station much more efficient. Just those level crossings to sort out now!

FROM THE 2010s:

16) THE HAWTHORNS - Midland Metro trams at the tram stop with the Network Rail station beside it - hopefully ridership should improve now that the City Centre extension is under construction.

17) TENBY

18) AYNHO JUNCTION - Shown just before the modifications to the track layout for the Chiltern 'Mainline' service.

19) TINTERN - on the former Wye Valley Railway, which closed as early as 1959. Well worth a visit as there's some great walks in the area as well as the preserved station buildings and visitor centre.

20) BERNEY ARMS - Shame to see the wooden sentry box waiting shelter has now gone. On the plus side I enjoyed a cracking baked spud and a couple of pints in the nearby Berney Arms!