This is a blast from the distant past, Geoff. My daughter used to attended the Thomas Adams School in Wem as a boarder. A friend of hers was coming home to Wem on the last train from Crewe when the train broke down near Prees. Passengers were told it would be towed back to Crewe but the only problem was that meant an overnight stay in the waiting room etc. My daughter's friend says he decided to jump-train and walk the country lanes, just as you did. Unfortunately for him, he was attacked by a Badger and got a nasty gash which meant he did indeed have to go to Crewe. To A&E!
Fun fact - Greg Davies (Taskmaster etc) used to live in Wem, and was on one of my trains once - he was too tall for the carriage and when he stood down on the platform after getting off he was still at my head height.
Shout out to my parents who are the volunteer Transport for Wales Station Adopters for Wrenbury and won the 2019 Cheshire Best Kept Station award for Most Improved Station
My old Network Rail patch on Salop-Crewe. I used to love going to the signal boxes, especially at Prees (the box was right where you were sat on the ground) as it was so peaceful. When you were at Wrenbury, had you walked up the road (over the level xing ) you would have come to the Bhurtpore Inn, an absolute mecca for real ale and beautiful food
The Railwatch logo looked to be similar to those for Neighbourhood Watch, Street Watch, Speed Watch and Dog Watch. These are groups of local volunteers who act as extra eyes for the police to report suspicious activity in their area.
Happy memories of Yorton when off to the Flower Show in Shrewsbury. My late father in law lived in Clive, pretty much where Geoff had his finger on the map! Shame both The Railway Inn and the Post Office are now closed.⁴
I lived in Clive as a kid. The shop was Mr Brown's shop then. School at the top of the hill. Also vague memories of getting off at Yorton. Lovely to see it again.
Love love love this - before moving from Sansaw Heath last year, I think I was Yorton’s must regular user. The station was built at Yorton rather than Merry Lane due to Royalties visits to Sansaw Hall.
Not sure if I'm a fan of the new style "Camera strap in front of the lens" shot 🤔 It *is* very artistic but also a bit in-your-face 😉 Wonderful video as always, Geoff!
The long-closed Hadnall station is now home to the Salopian Brewery. My in-laws live locally and I'm very blessed by my father-in-law getting in a good supply of their pale ale each Christmas when we go and stay.
On the BR ticket machines from the 80s to the 00s (APTIS) you had to type the first four letters of the station name then tap through if the one you needed wasn't first in the list. Great fun watching someone the first time they had to sell a ticket to one of those three letter stations! The machine staring at the member of staff waiting for character four, member of staff staring at the machine wondering what to do. (The trick was to press enter or space).
Prees doesn't just have an inconveniently sited station. Before that, it had a branch canal that was supposed to go to Prees, but was only completed as far a Quina Brook.
Got out at Wrenbury a few years ago to make the walk to the fantastic Bhurtpore Arms, named for the battle of Bharatpore in India. Has lots of Indian themes and artefacts in the interior and is famous for its curries.
Another video with yet more lovely camera shots from Geoff. There's a fancy Dutch Angle shot right after that nifty camera-strap shot. More and more, I become a fan of your videography, Geoff. Thanks for the entertaining and educational presentation.
Have dragged many suitcases and my family up from Wrenbury station up to the canal basin (it’s not too far, there is a shop on the way which is pretty decent and a pub or possibly two). From there you can take a barge to Llangollen in Wales, which I highly recommend (as it crosses the most incredible aqueduct and there are a fair few spectularly long tunnels as well). You can also get to Whitchurch this way, and the canal used to go into Whitchurch too, but now stops some way short (you can have fun trying to trace the ‘alignment’ of the canal into Whitchurch).
When Geoff mentions Wem & all the other 3 letter stations, it suddenly dawned on me, two are near me & are one after the other on the line to Ashford, Ore & Rye.
I enjoyed that adventure! With such passenger figures, it's surprising but good that those stations escaped the sharp axe of Dr Beeching. Here in East/West Sussex, multiple stations/lines with higher and potentially much higher usage were shut down.
At 0:34 it's a former Greater Anglia Class 153 which has been transferred to Transport for Wales and you can even tell since the Ex-Greater Anglia ones ae while and the TFW ones are like a slivery/Grey colour and loving the 'Provincial' on the old poster shame that you missed out on Nantwich, it's is a lovely station to visit, in fact it was the station that I'd visited during the 'All the Stations, have a adventure day' because it was one of those stations that I have never visited. Great video and looking forward to see which request stops shall be next.
Welcome to Cheshire! Seeing that Wrenbury is a request stop made me wonder what's the largest village with a request stop and the smallest village with a regular stop.
I’m off on a canal boat in this part of the world next month and hoping to get to Wrenbury just so I can use their electrically operated swing bridge and the traffic stops with level crossing style lights! Interesting place names around that area - you mentioned Clive; there’s also Trevor - leads me to wonder if there’s places called Malcolm or derek, or dare I say it, Geoff!
We've now got 153s on selected West Highland Line services,Geoff - branded the "Highland Explorer". Not a great start for them in terms of reliability,but have got better,so I hear!
Geoff, come and see Melton Mowbray the most mysterious, weird and exiting station in Leicestershire! operated by cross country sometimes east midlands trains.
Those 2x 153s would have run on this line when they were new as 155s. I think it seems a bit weird sticking your arm out for a train like you would a bus! Didn't realise there were so many request stops on the UK national rail network until a recent TV series. I believe Wrenbury only has a 2 journeys per day (circular route, 1 in each direction) from Nantwich. Caught a bus from Crewe to the Battle of Nantwich re-enactment due to the limited train service.
Also, there's a train in the evening which I believe comes from Swansea via Llandrindod. I don't know if it still runs in this timetable, but it's just an extension of the regular Swansea to Shrewsbury service which calls at all stations to Crewe, including the request stops.
Welcome to my neck of the woods spent many hours at Shrewsbury station. I have never done these request stops on my travels so must visit them some time.
3 года назад
I've traveled past Wem while on my train holiday in the UK in 2019 and on my way from Manchester to Cardiff. That's the only one I can remember for sure.
Fun random factoid months after the video... I remember a good few years ago reading a Railway Magazine article about how to work a theoretical trip to cover all the 3 letter stations in the country in one day. Can't remember if they said it'd be possible
Great video Geoff. I'm not far from Shrewsbury so would have been nice to meet you if I'd known. I've been to Wem a few times before and it's a small place which is alright. Never really explored the other stations you got off before.
It'll be interesting to see how you react to Llanbister Road, as there are only a few houses and lots of Sheep... it's very remote and nowhere near Llanbister!
Yes! My mum lives in Whitchurch. I'm always hoping no one stops at Wrenbury, if I'm delayed to my Crewe connection (nothing against Wrenbury - lovely place etc)
Hey geoff, what an icon of youtube u have become. I have some request stops, they are Great Bentley, Thorpe-le-Soken and Frinton-on-Sea. Hope u go to these places and a variety more
If you go on to Google Street View and look up these stations you will get answers to a number of your questions, such as the 'station cottage' at Wrenbury which was built sometime after 2011! -note the building that was there before it - and all of the signal boxes which were closed in 2011 - apart from Yorton which was moved to the Severn Valley Railway in 1973 and became Arley Signal Box!
If you want to have dry and sunny weather. East Germany would be suitable. If I am not mistaken they even have some request stops somewhere. On a side note: Please send us all your unwanted rain. Thank you.
I agree and think it’s stupid, especially at empty stations like this, but it is in the rules, and Geoff can’t be seen to break them as a public figure
Unless you've already disembarked at IBM, you wont be doing it any time soon (I have maybe a vague memory of you visiting during All the Stations). ScotRail no longer serve it under some temporary authorisation from Transport Scotland. The IBM facility is long gone with their last offices moving down into Greenock and the other occupants moving out. TS decided to abandon IBM as it didn't serve any areas of population and was only accessible via private property. There is a long term plan to regenerate the area, but will it keep the IBM name or become Spango Valley (after the local area)?
and yet where I am here in Western canada we've broken records for all of canada max temp all time at 46.7 in Lytton. Where I am in Kelowna it was only 43 yesterday. I wish we had weather like you have now. I HATE this heat.
I've lived in Shrewsbury for 47 years & been a rail fan for 36. I've never been to any of those 3 stations though! Oh and well done on your pronunciation of Shrewsbury, we all know it's Shrewsbury not Shrewsbury! ✔😁
Hi geroff I live in prees village use the train most week if you need any information of station let me know would be nice to speak you about Prees train station
Don't laugh, here in America the trains go from major city to major city. The days of the slow, local trains are gone, and "milk stops" are a thing of the past.
Nobody gonna notice that on Geoffs map of the line he put Shrewbury instead of Shrewsbury? I was scrolling through the comments looking to see if anyone had seen 😂
This is a blast from the distant past, Geoff. My daughter used to attended the Thomas Adams School in Wem as a boarder. A friend of hers was coming home to Wem on the last train from Crewe when the train broke down near Prees. Passengers were told it would be towed back to Crewe but the only problem was that meant an overnight stay in the waiting room etc. My daughter's friend says he decided to jump-train and walk the country lanes, just as you did. Unfortunately for him, he was attacked by a Badger and got a nasty gash which meant he did indeed have to go to Crewe. To A&E!
that ... might be one the the most random (and best!) anecdotes ever in the comments Mike, thank you!
Fun fact - Greg Davies (Taskmaster etc) used to live in Wem, and was on one of my trains once - he was too tall for the carriage and when he stood down on the platform after getting off he was still at my head height.
this is an excellent random fun fact! 😎
My uncle and aunt live at the old station house at Wrenbury, lovely building. Quaint coming out the wazoo
That camera strap in front of the lens really complimented that shot, I can really see what you were going for
10:05 If I turned up at a station and saw Geoff lying on a bench with cameras pointed at him, I'd have to assume he was updating his OnlyFans...
Shout out to my parents who are the volunteer Transport for Wales Station Adopters for Wrenbury and won the 2019 Cheshire Best Kept Station award for Most Improved Station
My old Network Rail patch on Salop-Crewe. I used to love going to the signal boxes, especially at Prees (the box was right where you were sat on the ground) as it was so peaceful. When you were at Wrenbury, had you walked up the road (over the level xing ) you would have come to the Bhurtpore Inn, an absolute mecca for real ale and beautiful food
The Railwatch logo looked to be similar to those for Neighbourhood Watch, Street Watch, Speed Watch and Dog Watch. These are groups of local volunteers who act as extra eyes for the police to report suspicious activity in their area.
Happy memories of Yorton when off to the Flower Show in Shrewsbury. My late father in law lived in Clive, pretty much where Geoff had his finger on the map! Shame both The Railway Inn and the Post Office are now closed.⁴
I lived in Clive as a kid. The shop was Mr Brown's shop then. School at the top of the hill. Also vague memories of getting off at Yorton. Lovely to see it again.
Love love love this - before moving from Sansaw Heath last year, I think I was Yorton’s must regular user. The station was built at Yorton rather than Merry Lane due to Royalties visits to Sansaw Hall.
Geoff you need to get a theme tune sorted for this request series.
Not sure if I'm a fan of the new style "Camera strap in front of the lens" shot 🤔 It *is* very artistic but also a bit in-your-face 😉
Wonderful video as always, Geoff!
It’ll be all the rage next year, I’m just ahead of my time. trust me 😆
Aussies and Canadians laughing when an Englishman calls something 'Isolated' XD
Indeed
@@bostonrailfan2427 with no one in the USA more than 100 miles from a McDonalds, I'd say they are in the same camp as the British :P
Indeed. When I saw one station getting 12,000 passengers a year I was thinking, hmmm that’s a busy country station here in Australia.
Forget the Outback and the Prairies, explore Mid Devon around South Molton.
@@bostonrailfan2427 Thats nothing compared to us Rural Welsh. We don't like outsiders! Lol.
The long-closed Hadnall station is now home to the Salopian Brewery. My in-laws live locally and I'm very blessed by my father-in-law getting in a good supply of their pale ale each Christmas when we go and stay.
As an ex Nantwich college student do go there, it's lovely. However great to see some familiar stations ticked off
Yeah, that’s where I live lol, I’m really surprised he has done this route tbh cause not a lot of people use it
On the BR ticket machines from the 80s to the 00s (APTIS) you had to type the first four letters of the station name then tap through if the one you needed wasn't first in the list. Great fun watching someone the first time they had to sell a ticket to one of those three letter stations! The machine staring at the member of staff waiting for character four, member of staff staring at the machine wondering what to do. (The trick was to press enter or space).
Thanks Geoff, I love your videos. A slice of cheerfulness every time. Thank you.
The three lettered stations idea sounds pretty good. Lee is kind of local to me.
Prees doesn't just have an inconveniently sited station. Before that, it had a branch canal that was supposed to go to Prees, but was only completed as far a Quina Brook.
Got out at Wrenbury a few years ago to make the walk to the fantastic Bhurtpore Arms, named for the battle of Bharatpore in India. Has lots of Indian themes and artefacts in the interior and is famous for its curries.
Another video with yet more lovely camera shots from Geoff. There's a fancy Dutch Angle shot right after that nifty camera-strap shot. More and more, I become a fan of your videography, Geoff. Thanks for the entertaining and educational presentation.
very kind. thank you!
Outstanding work Goeff
Have dragged many suitcases and my family up from Wrenbury station up to the canal basin (it’s not too far, there is a shop on the way which is pretty decent and a pub or possibly two). From there you can take a barge to Llangollen in Wales, which I highly recommend (as it crosses the most incredible aqueduct and there are a fair few spectularly long tunnels as well). You can also get to Whitchurch this way, and the canal used to go into Whitchurch too, but now stops some way short (you can have fun trying to trace the ‘alignment’ of the canal into Whitchurch).
After ‘Allotment’, my new favourite word is ‘Angle Wipe’.
I like bottom wipe too.
Personally I like "Cellar door"
When Geoff mentions Wem & all the other 3 letter stations, it suddenly dawned on me, two are near me & are one after the other on the line to Ashford, Ore & Rye.
I thought of those
The "crossing" at Yorton looks like a road-rail access point (or RRAP), which is used to get machinery onto the tracks during engineering works.
Geoff at Prees if it was a Chekhov play: ‘Waiting for David’.
Or Beckett.
@@davidearl4022
Waiting for Black.
I once walked from Wem to Yorton via Clive, lovely village on a sandstone edge with fine views!
I enjoyed that adventure! With such passenger figures, it's surprising but good that those stations escaped the sharp axe of Dr Beeching. Here in East/West Sussex, multiple stations/lines with higher and potentially much higher usage were shut down.
At 0:34 it's a former Greater Anglia Class 153 which has been transferred to Transport for Wales and you can even tell since the Ex-Greater Anglia ones ae while and the TFW ones are like a slivery/Grey colour and loving the 'Provincial' on the old poster shame that you missed out on Nantwich, it's is a lovely station to visit, in fact it was the station that I'd visited during the 'All the Stations, have a adventure day' because it was one of those stations that I have never visited. Great video and looking forward to see which request stops shall be next.
Love em!
Welcome to Cheshire! Seeing that Wrenbury is a request stop made me wonder what's the largest village with a request stop and the smallest village with a regular stop.
I think Conwy is north Wales is the biggest, it’s bizarre that it’s a request stop.
I’m off on a canal boat in this part of the world next month and hoping to get to Wrenbury just so I can use their electrically operated swing bridge and the traffic stops with level crossing style lights!
Interesting place names around that area - you mentioned Clive; there’s also Trevor - leads me to wonder if there’s places called Malcolm or derek, or dare I say it, Geoff!
Nice request stops
I look Forward to Do these this week as I'm in Shropshire too 😂
You won't be able to do all the 3 letter stations that you listed as IBM is closed now.
Another Request stop video. You gotta love em 👌
We've now got 153s on selected West Highland Line services,Geoff - branded the "Highland Explorer". Not a great start for them in terms of reliability,but have got better,so I hear!
Nice sharing. Interesting to watch. Watching from DUBAI
8:36: Prees - a contraction of Ap Rhys (Welsh for "son of Rhys"). Similarly Parry (Ap Harry), Powell (Ap Hwll), Prichard (Ap Richard) etc.
Is there a Pabitch?
Correct. The village name is a corruption of Welsh "Pres", which means (or used to mean) brushwood.
Interesting, didn't know that.👍
British rail always excites me!
Does it supprise you that theres a fire at elephant and castle
@@aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa224 Oh really ? How
@@midnight_styx no idea.
Geoff, come and see Melton Mowbray the most mysterious, weird and exiting station in Leicestershire! operated by cross country sometimes east midlands trains.
And get a famous pie as well
@@robbiemorrison7085 Yep. Got to do the Pork Pie shop!
So, not just entrancing but exiting as well!
Peter Jones, narrator of the original Hitchhikers’ Guide To The Galaxy radio serial, was from Wem.
Those 2x 153s would have run on this line when they were new as 155s. I think it seems a bit weird sticking your arm out for a train like you would a bus! Didn't realise there were so many request stops on the UK national rail network until a recent TV series. I believe Wrenbury only has a 2 journeys per day (circular route, 1 in each direction) from Nantwich. Caught a bus from Crewe to the Battle of Nantwich re-enactment due to the limited train service.
Nice to see the inside of a PRM 153. I really need to do more travelling, when I have more money
Hey Geoff! It's Fabrizio, ex manager in Pret, Brixton!
Also, there's a train in the evening which I believe comes from Swansea via Llandrindod. I don't know if it still runs in this timetable, but it's just an extension of the regular Swansea to Shrewsbury service which calls at all stations to Crewe, including the request stops.
Welcome to my neck of the woods spent many hours at Shrewsbury station. I have never done these request stops on my travels so must visit them some time.
I've traveled past Wem while on my train holiday in the UK in 2019 and on my way from Manchester to Cardiff. That's the only one I can remember for sure.
Thanks for another great upload, Geoff.
Love this series. Cannot wait for Wales 😁
Fantastic video Geoff! I enjoy your request stop videos 😊
Lived in Prees for twenty years. Used the stations regularly.
Hm. There was a David Preese here in South Africa in my final year of primary school as well. He had all the best toys and video games. :-)
I'm hoping to take a train to Wem in September! Looks like a nice place!
Fun random factoid months after the video... I remember a good few years ago reading a Railway Magazine article about how to work a theoretical trip to cover all the 3 letter stations in the country in one day. Can't remember if they said it'd be possible
Knowing you’re love of canals I hope you manage to get to the Shropshire union either at Nantwich or when you were at Whitchurch
Beautiful.
Good to see you’ve been in Shropshire and that you say Shrewsbury correctly 👍.
Always love request stop vedios
I was amused at some of the speech-to-text versions.
Great video Geoff. I'm not far from Shrewsbury so would have been nice to meet you if I'd known. I've been to Wem a few times before and it's a small place which is alright. Never really explored the other stations you got off before.
It'll be interesting to see how you react to Llanbister Road, as there are only a few houses and lots of Sheep... it's very remote and nowhere near Llanbister!
Isn't that usually the case with a " Road">?
@@AaronOfMpls quite possibly... though having been there, at the station, it's one of the most remotest places I've ever been to!
Think Adobe autocorrected when you showed the three station stats as it said Press
I noticed that, too, but you beat me to it!
And on the line map, it says Shrewbury.
Oh hey, this is near me! (I live in Whitchurch and pass those stations when I make my trips to Shrewsbury.)
Rode that line today. Was just a single coach 153 on the service.
Of course, although the line goes into Wales none of these stations are in Wales.
You are awesome, Geoff!
Yes! My mum lives in Whitchurch. I'm always hoping no one stops at Wrenbury, if I'm delayed to my Crewe connection (nothing against Wrenbury - lovely place etc)
I have been on that line heading to Swansea and Llandrindod.
Hey geoff, what an icon of youtube u have become. I have some request stops, they are Great Bentley, Thorpe-le-Soken and Frinton-on-Sea. Hope u go to these places and a variety more
If you want to do a series of 'stations with Harrington Humps on platforms with no step-free access', Reddish North is another one!
If you go on to Google Street View and look up these stations you will get answers to a number of your questions, such as the 'station cottage' at Wrenbury which was built sometime after 2011! -note the building that was there before it - and all of the signal boxes which were closed in 2011 - apart from Yorton which was moved to the Severn Valley Railway in 1973 and became Arley Signal Box!
If you want to have dry and sunny weather. East Germany would be suitable. If I am not mistaken they even have some request stops somewhere. On a side note: Please send us all your unwanted rain. Thank you.
In danger of getting Covid on an empty platform from the post, or the tree? I noticed it was windy; maybe the breeze. 🤣🤣🙄
I agree and think it’s stupid, especially at empty stations like this, but it is in the rules, and Geoff can’t be seen to break them as a public figure
Another excellent video - Has anyone got a list of the request stops, from the map, that have been visited already ??
Come to Pudsey & do a video on the Pudsey Loop. The public footpaths that now make up some of the now defunct line have a few Geocaches on them
I Grew up in that area. my school bus would go through Clive and Yorton
Ayy, my line. Very nice video Geoff! :)
Bin bag blowing in the Prees
Unless you've already disembarked at IBM, you wont be doing it any time soon (I have maybe a vague memory of you visiting during All the Stations). ScotRail no longer serve it under some temporary authorisation from Transport Scotland. The IBM facility is long gone with their last offices moving down into Greenock and the other occupants moving out. TS decided to abandon IBM as it didn't serve any areas of population and was only accessible via private property. There is a long term plan to regenerate the area, but will it keep the IBM name or become Spango Valley (after the local area)?
Rail watch sticker is for the rail cam RUclips and Facebook live streaming so train spotters can see the trains come and go.
thanks Sarah! did not know this!!
@@geofftech2 I only know because of my dad who works on the railway.
Nice video and taking time to add captions makes it better!
British rail is always so fun!
Awesome video
Beautiful stations
Good to see the ex-Greater Anglia 153's operating in pairs..
Not gone through all the comments so apologies if mentioned but "Shrewbury" on the graphics... Shrewsbury!
Can you do Conwy and Deganwy? They're both request stops in the north of Wales.
All I know about Wem is that that's where Greg Davies grew up
and yet where I am here in Western canada we've broken records for all of canada max temp all time at 46.7 in Lytton. Where I am in Kelowna it was only 43 yesterday. I wish we had weather like you have now. I HATE this heat.
I've lived in Shrewsbury for 47 years & been a rail fan for 36. I've never been to any of those 3 stations though! Oh and well done on your pronunciation of Shrewsbury, we all know it's Shrewsbury not Shrewsbury! ✔😁
Oh is it Shrewsbury? I thought it was Shrewsbury. 😆
@@geofftech2 pity it's not Shrewsbury on your rail line map !
You went to Ely when you did
all the stations in 2017
Deffinatly another challenge coming of going to all the stations with 3 letters in the name that will be good.
The Shropshire Way, over fields from Clive to Wem is a far nicer walk than the road.
Hi geroff I live in prees village use the train most week if you need any information of station let me know would be nice to speak you about Prees train station
If you ever come to Rye, let me know, I work on the taxi rank outside of the station.
Don't laugh, here in America the trains go from major city to major city. The days of the slow, local trains are gone, and "milk stops" are a thing of the past.
Bonkers how all the stations you went to today on Transport for Wales were all in England
Nobody gonna notice that on Geoffs map of the line he put Shrewbury instead of Shrewsbury? I was scrolling through the comments looking to see if anyone had seen 😂
Love the class 153s
Captain Black! Mysteron Agent!