A few years ago new had the privilege to stay for a weekend in the old station masters house at Settle Station when it was a B & B. On the Saturday morning we woke to crisp blue skies and a fresh covering of snow on the hillsides. After breakfast we caught the 9am train to Carlisle. It was manned by Settle to Carlisle volunteers who acted as guides and shared their love and knowledge of this famous track length, which was fascinating to listen to as they explained in great detail the history and old workings along the line… On returning to Settle that same day we jumped off quickly to try and catch the volunteer in the old signal box. He had just locked up and was about to jump on his bike when I turned up. He happily unlocked to allow me time to spend in the box whilst explaining the original site for the box was several hundred yards up the track. It made my day and certainly a day I shall remember till my dying day…. Over the years I have visited Garsdale station several times and sat there on the station to soak up the atmosphere of one of its iconic stations. What a beautiful yet desolate place it is… Now some 20 years later I’m watching this gem of a film with fondness and nostalgia. Thank you for sharing!!
I did the Thames-Clyde as a teenager. St. Pancras was run down, and the journey was a long one, but OMG I wish I could do it today in a Mk1 coach with a 45 on the front...
I made a special trip on this line in 1985 when it was threatened with closure. There was a 4 coach train at Leeds but such was the demand that BR managed to rustle up 3 additional coaches and still the train was full. I had travelled up from Birmingham for this trip, such was the importance of keeping the line from closure. It seems that all who travelled on that day were of the same mind. And of course it seemed to have an effect. Reports say that the WCML is now full to capacity and so without the Settle line, many trains would not be able to run. So thank you Mr. Portillo, a far sighted railway enthusiast and thumbs down for BR, who reduced the service on the line to such an extent that they could argue that no one was using it and so were justified in closing it. Thank you for posting this. Immensely interesting and informative.
If the basic fare London to Glasgow and Edinburgh was correspondingly lower 8hr diesel ran train times with much lower sress and strain n the rail infrastructure it might have all that was desirable for the Scottish trains on the ECML and WCML. The GCR, Settle and Carlile and Waverley route should have been the ne HST, Tokaido or if done in the 1990s or 21C TGV to Scotland
What an absolute gem of a film, such a valuable document ❤. Thank you for sharing it. I lived in Carlisle for 10 years and love this line so much. Greetings from 🇦🇺😊.
Photographed and edited by Peter Boocock the credits say. Was he the father of Colin Boocock (born 1938) who has written many railway books and was a mechanical engineer with British Rail (and by 1962 was already working on BR)? Or older brother?
Yes! An absolute gem. We live in the north of England. My husband used to use the £5 offer by BR in 1988 to promote this line. Absolutely amazing families who built it-men, women and children. Men who had the holy fear of God. Amen
Fantastic film a joy to watch. How times have changed. No hi vis clothing and a complete lack of adherence to H+S. Network Rail operations managers of today would have heart failure as the man walked alongside the track with a train approaching at speed!
What an absolutely remarkable and wonderful film. As mentioned in a previous comment the fortitude of the filmmakers practicing their craft in Winter was magnificent, and even from a Canadian perspective it still looked cold and foreboding!
An excellent film of a much-loved route and with your usual quality! Thank you for sharing this, a real adventure for its makers too, it seems. I respect anyone that took footage in the depths of the 1962-3 Winter!
What an excellent and informative record of what went on all those years ago!! Some parts of this reduced me to tears of pride at what all those people achieved all those years ago. To think it was nearly closed is an absolute disregard of all those who toiled and in some cases gave their lives for this railway. I have travelled it several times and once behind Sir Nigel Gresley as well as spending many afternoons up to Ais Gill on the Carlisle side with a friend from Great Salkeld where I farmed for some years from 1985.
1963 experienced the second coldest winter of the 20th Century in Britain. This must have been filmed in late April or very early May. There is still snow on the hills.
Wonderful documentary film and so much of the environment seen in this film remains unchanged. Just the loss of some wayside huts removed quite recently until Friend S&C put a stop to it. Lucky to live next to this line and see the many interesting things going by each day.
Excellent archive material. Would love to see something similar about the Waverley Route. Leeds to Edinburgh via Carlisle must have been an amazing journey.
Like the pyramids in a few thousand years time archeologists will be wondering how they were built with the tools of the time. Others will be saying we couldn't have done it, or accusing aliens of doing it.
Cracking film! I've never understood how people, 200 years ago were able to build a bridge across water. How to they get those columns in the water and fix them to the river bed?
Some of the foundation depths quoted are incredible!! I am a retired farmer and builder and marvel at how they achieved what they did in such inhospitable surroundings by hand!!
Brilliant film. Thank you! Does anyone know why it was made? Who funded the film? Does the original film exist? It looks like 16mm so worthy of a higher definition transcription and without the poor sound "compression". As a trainspotter in Leicester I remember the Thames-Clyde Express but had no idea about the gruelling journey the train had to do on the northbound section. A testament to the "Peaks" reliability and the men who maintained them.
Staggering industry in these islands. It's very fortunate indeed that they were prepared to kill themselves to create these lines, then, as I suppose they'd be completely unaffordable now.
A few years ago new had the privilege to stay for a weekend in the old station masters house at Settle Station when it was a B & B. On the Saturday morning we woke to crisp blue skies and a fresh covering of snow on the hillsides. After breakfast we caught the 9am train to Carlisle. It was manned by Settle to Carlisle volunteers who acted as guides and shared their love and knowledge of this famous track length, which was fascinating to listen to as they explained in great detail the history and old workings along the line… On returning to Settle that same day we jumped off quickly to try and catch the volunteer in the old signal box. He had just locked up and was about to jump on his bike when I turned up. He happily unlocked to allow me time to spend in the box whilst explaining the original site for the box was several hundred yards up the track. It made my day and certainly a day I shall remember till my dying day…. Over the years I have visited Garsdale station several times and sat there on the station to soak up the atmosphere of one of its iconic stations. What a beautiful yet desolate place it is…
Now some 20 years later I’m watching this gem of a film with fondness and nostalgia. Thank you for sharing!!
A really good story of settle And Carlisle in all conditions very well explained thanks Tony Simpson
I did the Thames-Clyde as a teenager. St. Pancras was run down, and the journey was a long one, but OMG I wish I could do it today in a Mk1 coach with a 45 on the front...
I made a special trip on this line in 1985 when it was threatened with closure. There was a 4 coach train at Leeds but such was the demand that BR managed to rustle up 3 additional coaches and still the train was full. I had travelled up from Birmingham for this trip, such was the importance of keeping the line from closure. It seems that all who travelled on that day were of the same mind. And of course it seemed to have an effect. Reports say that the WCML is now full to capacity and so without the Settle line, many trains would not be able to run. So thank you Mr. Portillo, a far sighted railway enthusiast and thumbs down for BR, who reduced the service on the line to such an extent that they could argue that no one was using it and so were justified in closing it. Thank you for posting this. Immensely interesting and informative.
Settle Carlise line - one, HS2 - nil.
I would rather travel for 8 hours on those seats than 4 hours on modern bum numbing, back hurting, so called ergonomic modern seats.
I think of modern train seating as PTR - "Plastic Toast Rack."
If the basic fare London to Glasgow and Edinburgh was correspondingly lower 8hr diesel ran train times with much lower sress and strain n the rail infrastructure it might have all that was desirable for the Scottish trains on the ECML and WCML. The GCR, Settle and Carlile and Waverley route should have been the ne HST, Tokaido or if done in the 1990s or 21C TGV to Scotland
What a beautiful shot of the viaduct and the freight train crossing it at 12.57.
Brings back my memories of the THAMES-CLYDE EXPRESS, which served luncheon in the Restaurant Car every day as it climbed The Long Drag. Happy days.
What an absolute gem of a film, such a valuable document ❤. Thank you for sharing it. I lived in Carlisle for 10 years and love this line so much. Greetings from 🇦🇺😊.
One word to describe this film...excellent!
The original 52 minute long film was made by the members of the Halifax Cine Club. Their work should be acknowledged.
Photographed and edited by Peter Boocock the credits say. Was he the father of Colin Boocock (born 1938) who has written many railway books and was a mechanical engineer with British Rail (and by 1962 was already working on BR)? Or older brother?
Great film thanks. So many Peaks in both senses of the term.
Wonderful film a real gem of a iconic line and locality thanks for sharing
A beautiful film, a real window into a past now sadly gone...
Brilliant film and informative commenary. Thank you for posting.
they did a marvellous job way better than any tv production
Yes! An absolute gem. We live in the north of England. My husband used to use the £5 offer by BR in 1988 to promote this line. Absolutely amazing families who built it-men, women and children. Men who had the holy fear of God. Amen
Loved seeing the Peak and the Brit😊
What a marvellous film
Fantastic film a joy to watch. How times have changed. No hi vis clothing and a complete lack of adherence to H+S. Network Rail operations managers of today would have heart failure as the man walked alongside the track with a train approaching at speed!
What a Wonderfull document. The busses in Settle were a lot more modern than I remember them as a child four years later.
A brilliant piece of film and history well worth preserving.
Beautiful historic British Rail 1963 film in HD!
Great days sadly gone forever.
What a fabulous film ! A real pleasure to watch 👍👍👍
What an absolutely remarkable and wonderful film. As mentioned in a previous comment the fortitude of the filmmakers practicing their craft in Winter was magnificent, and even from a Canadian perspective it still looked cold and foreboding!
I'm always amazed at the navvies work and end results through all kinds of weathers and conditions.
I did the up trip in the early 1970s, more like 12 hours than 8 but still worthwhile.
An excellent film of a much-loved route and with your usual quality! Thank you for sharing this, a real adventure for its makers too, it seems. I respect anyone that took footage in the depths of the 1962-3 Winter!
First class commentary about settle and calisle also the Thames Clyde express peak diesels which shows early sixties 😢
What an excellent and informative record of what went on all those years ago!! Some parts of this reduced me to tears of pride at what all those people achieved all those years ago.
To think it was nearly closed is an absolute disregard of all those who toiled and in some cases gave their lives for this railway.
I have travelled it several times and once behind Sir Nigel Gresley as well as spending many afternoons up to Ais Gill on the Carlisle side with a friend from Great Salkeld where I farmed for some years from 1985.
Wow! What a treat. Posting very much appreciated.
Thank you for posting this excellent film, and without the nuisance of the normal adverts - very kind of you
That was absolutely amazing, I've never seen that one before, thankyou so much for uploading that!
Peak diesels on the S&C, what could be better! 🚂👍
None!
Double headed would be something to see!!
Well, a Scot or a Jubilee would be great…….
When England was a nice place to live.
Yup, role on the invention of the time machine. There'll be a long queue!
1963 experienced the second coldest winter of the 20th Century in Britain. This must have been filmed in late April or very early May. There is still snow on the hills.
Wonderful documentary film and so much of the environment seen in this film remains unchanged. Just the loss of some wayside huts removed quite recently until Friend S&C put a stop to it. Lucky to live next to this line and see the many interesting things going by each day.
Once again first class documentary about the settle and Carlisle thanks Tony Simpson
A love letter to the men who built this nation. The tenacity and bravery of those that came before, should never be underappreciated.
Excellent.
Thank you so much for posting this. As others have said below, what a gem of a film.
Excellent ! Most enjoyable.
Tunnel s Bridge's mountains of graft and great British sweat and might enable us still to enjoy these wonderful railway's simply wonderful 👋🌻🍺🎥
When Britain was GREAT!!
Brilliant Anthony
Cracking film!
Wonderful.
Superb
Excellent archive material. Would love to see something similar about the Waverley Route. Leeds to Edinburgh via Carlisle must have been an amazing journey.
Like the pyramids in a few thousand years time archeologists will be wondering how they were built with the tools of the time. Others will be saying we couldn't have done it, or accusing aliens of doing it.
Cracking film! I've never understood how people, 200 years ago were able to build a bridge across water. How to they get those columns in the water and fix them to the river bed?
Some of the foundation depths quoted are incredible!! I am a retired farmer and builder and marvel at how they achieved what they did in such inhospitable surroundings by hand!!
Bitter battles batter bitters better bottles.
Brilliant film. Thank you!
Does anyone know why it was made?
Who funded the film?
Does the original film exist? It looks like 16mm so worthy of a higher definition transcription and without the poor sound "compression".
As a trainspotter in Leicester I remember the Thames-Clyde Express but had no idea about the gruelling journey the train had to do on the northbound section.
A testament to the "Peaks" reliability and the men who maintained them.
Any Alpine plants in Settle today I wonder?
Interesting archive , I wonder who funded all that expensive 16mm film.
Cigarette industry, I imagine :-)
interesting film. before Beeching and the beastly masts and wires mucked the landscape.
Well that was a good 45 minutes spent
Crossing that viaduct wouldn't do my pot herbs any good.
Staggering industry in these islands.
It's very fortunate indeed that they were prepared to kill themselves to create these lines, then, as I suppose they'd be completely unaffordable now.