'The Titfield Thunderbolt' - merged posts, for fans ;-)

[whole diary]

[JayMac]

Our final stop on the morning out was Midford. Lunch was partaken first in the Hope & Anchor, whose car park is on the former trackbed of the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway, just before it crosses the road, Midford Brook and the Camerton Branch. Nice food, friendly manageress. I had a Provencal fish soup, followed by a steak & mushroom in ale pie. bobm had baked Camenbert followed by a chicken curry. Finn had what I dropped on the floor!

Here's the opening scene of Titfield Thunderbolt, with a Bullied locomotive crossing the viaduct. First building you see as the camera pans right is the pub - soon obscured by steam.

https://youtu.be/-pRrTlOZyqM

And a then and now comparison:

1952


2020


Really not possible to match the first shot more closely. It was likely filmed either from a dolly or a crane. I had to stretch over the parapet.

There is some remaining evidence of the Camerton Branch in Midford. The abutments where it crossed the road remain. As does part of its viaduct over the Midford Brook. You can access some of the remaining infrastructure below the S&DJR^▸ (Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway) Midford Viaduct, but it's very overgrown and as it's always in shade its invariably muddy. bobm and I decided against. This was probably one of very few locations where a railway viaduct crossed a railway viaduct. The GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) Camerton Branch viaduct running through one of the S&DJR Midford Viaduct arches.

Finally, I'll finish with a few photos of what remains of Midford's S&DJR station.

[TonyK]

Nice report of a grand day out!

I tipped you off to the film being on TV^▸ (Thames Valley) early in the Days of Lockdown, and recorded it myself. I still haven't gotten round to watching it, although it won't be for the first time.

[Bmblbzzz]

Ah yes, I have ridden my bike along that platform! And the track bed. Neither of which would have been possible in 1952, obviously.

[JayMac]

Ah yes, I have ridden my bike along that platform! And the track bed. Neither of which would have been possible in 1952, obviously.

Well, you could have tried out running the Pines Express. Bit bumpy over the sleepers though!

[JayMac]

I have seen the film, the bits I remember are that if you blow the steam whistle for to long it drains the boiler! and you can get a drink on a train when the pubs are shut?

That latter point is a major plot point of the film. The residents of Titfield want to run the railway as a going concern but they realise the costs of doing so will require raising something in the region of £10,000. Step forward a local benefactor who is something of an old soak. He's persuaded to invest in the railway when it's pointed out that he can get a drink (or four) on board the train outside of normal licensing hours. 🍷🍺🥃🥂

[chuffed]

You correct BNM at your peril! He is the source of All Things Titfield!

[JayMac]

You correct BNM at your peril! He is the source of All Things Titfield!

To be fair, my knowledge is only coloured by what I can research on t'internet.

[johnneyw]

A couple of years of so ago, I walked a good deal of the Limestone Link trail from Radford, near Timsbury, through Camerton, Dunkerton, Combe Hay (including the lock flight) and Midford, then through the 2 tunnels/Linear Park in Bath.  The walk has the advantage of including a good deal to see of both the Camerton branch and the old canal set in almost unreasonably lovely scenery. There's even the occasional mining relic/memorial such as around the now wooded spoil heaps....one of which can clearly be made out, minus the trees, in the Titfield Thunderbolt.
For anybody thinking of having a stroll there,  there are 2 things that I think are worth a mention.
The path from Radford, just before Camerton is/was perhaps a little confusingly marked as it is accessed though a garden (the owners were very helpful and friendly people). If in doubt you can regain it a short distance later by continuing along the country lane.

A little further East the path goes through another private property where the gate was guarded by a pair of visibly and audibly unfriendly dogs. It seems the owner here is cynically trying to stop people's right of access. This required me to make a modest detour North by road and footpath adding about 15 minutes to the walk. Perhaps they've been tied up and removed now....and the dogs as well....but I thought it worth a mention.

Note: Near Radford, my starting point, you can take a short detour West to view where the canal society have restored a section including the impressive basins and the unusual bridge over the entrance to one. If it's not been too drought like, it usually is quite well in water.  A keen eye and OS^▸ (Ordnance Survey) map can also just about facilitate making out the course of the railway there.

[bobm]

It was a good day out, made even the more enjoyable by being accompanied by a guide who had obviously done his research.

Also pleasing to note that, should I want to go back, the sites are easily accessible by public transport.

[rogerw]

This iconic film had its London premier on 5th March 1953. It is now 70 years old!

[JayMac]

Seems appropriate then to link back to this thread.

On the trail of 'The Titfield Thunderbolt'

[bobm]

Seems appropriate then to link back to this thread.

On the trail of 'The Titfield Thunderbolt'

T'was a grand day out.