Big Boy Trains - Episode 15, Day 25 - Fenchurch Street to Shenfield
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- Опубликовано: 21 авг 2024
- It's Wed 31st May, and Geoff & Vicki venture into Essex, where they find an old MOD branch line, a special train that runs out to sea… and Geoff has to resist the urge to catch a tube train ...
View the progress map and loads more information about the project on the website at: allthestations....
ROUTE: Fenchurch Street - Grays - Stanford le Hope - Upminster - Shorburyness - Southend Central - Southend Victoria - Wickford - Southminster - Wickford - Shenfield
Ok, so now i get why people get so excited when you travel on their line!
PINKDMG I met Geoff before
Dank Vlogs and more I met him at Acton depot
So there's an unintentional train thing by sheer coincidence about this episode:
The woman you interview at 5:56 is named Cheyenne.
The episode is called "Big Boy trains"
In Cheyenne, Wyoming there are two Union Pacific Big Boy Locomotives, the biggest steam trains in the world. (4004 in a park, and 4014 a restored locomotive)
Shoeburyness is defined by Douglas Adams and John Lloyd in The Meaning of Liff as "The vague uncomfortable feeling you get when sitting on a seat that is still warm from somebody else's bottom"
A fellow liffhunter! Hooray!
This was unbelievably weird seeing you guys walk through all the stations I go through regularly 😂. Grays boy here. I also did my work experience on C2C. Great 2 weeks
Fun fact: c2c was the last National Express rail franchise in the UK, but it was bought by Trenitalia, the regional sector of Italian State Railways in the beginning of 2017.
Simon S. c2c is also the worst in the uk! If you’re from Essex that is
@@rolemodel04 how do you know
They literally said it's always on time
Lubdhak Das I lived in Essex and frequently visiting meaning I have to use c2c. Their trains are cramped, dirty, frequently the toilets are out of action. They cram seats in yet are still not good enough for peak times.
Trentalia (with First Group) have now got another UK operation, Avanti West Coast.
Absolutely brilliant editing yet again. And LOVE the sofa thing!!!! So clever & then the album cover is the topper... Excellent and important history there from Vicki re Empire Windrush! Great great stuff as ever. 👍😃
+Tina Onions YES he's got a knack for interesting & fun things... must have fun parents ;-) :-) ;-)
He was brave for sitting on that sofa. God only knows what was on it. He should burn his pants afterwards.
Tina Onions I suspect that you underestimate yourself, Mum of Geoff... btw he's a terrific guy and they're a lovely couple so job well done!
The Empire Windrush would have "moored" in Tilbury Docks rather than "landed" as Vicki stated. Apologies for being a nautical pedant. Love the series. Completely addicted.
Slight error however. The Windrush docked at The Port of London Terminal , not Tilbury Docks which are a separate entity albeit more or less adjacent. The terminal which still just about exists had its own Railway Station , Tilbury Riverside up to about 1991..that now has gone. A blue plaque commemorating the Windrush had been placed at the terminal.
Aww, I was in Southend that day. I can only have missed seeing you by a few minutes! It's weird seeing you visit all these stations that I know on camera, especially as part of a project as huge as All The Stations!
I know you did this video a few years ago but I am surprised at you both coming from the London area and that it was your first time on the Southend Line out of Fenchurch Street. Good video and great what you both do, exploring the country and visiting all the stations. When I lived in London, at weekends, I would take a train journey from most of the mainline termini out to places like Southend, Norwich, Portsmouth, Southampton, Isle of Wight, Oxford, Brighton and Bristol Temple Meads. So many places for days out to choose from. Your vlogs are brilliant.
"This feels very remote" whopping great car park opposite
I've just found it on Google Maps, and it is very remote (even by my standards as a Norfolkman).
Whopping? nah
Dan; good job in assembling a busy and complex package . Like the history elements and interview with the birthday person... walkabouts help frame the experience. You guys are improving by leaps and bounds. The story you are spinning is without question is captivating. The Happy Couple Adventuring- going to draw in lots of spectators ... :-)
Thank you, much appreciated!
Hollywood Guy -see your talent, Best Wishes in endeavors
Portsmouth harbour is above water it's built on stilts well worth going there it one of my favourite stations
I just wanna say I work for network rail and it’s nice to see my patch get some publicity 😂😂
great video. Missed the Stanford Le Hope to China freight rail route. First direct train from the UK to China which started earlier this year
Chris L bits not direct iirc, the freight has to change trains a few times due to different gauges
3:42 love the 'seriousness' and quick fun fact then looks like Geoff is getting up and leaving :)
Ryde Pier Head? From the Isle of Wight that you certainly didn't do. (I agree with how bumpy the 38 stock is. Good fun though)
This is how we know he didn't do the Isle of Wight - he's oblivious to the existence of Ryde Pier Head!
In all seriousness, the person that said that about the Isle of Wight is never going to live it down.
I'm sure that is why Geoff deliberately didn't mention Ryde Pier Head, just to keep that joke going.
Ah! That's why they didn't go to Portsmouth Harbour Station, which is also over water.
Yeah, Geoff didn't manage to do *All* the Stations...not even so far, when we're 25 days in.
The Southminster branch line survived the various cuts as it used to be where nuclear waste from Bradwell power station was put onto the rail network. On your way into station you can see a crane labelled 56 tonnes designed to lift the flasks off of a lorry and onto a carriage.
Bill Mische it used to pass through my local station of South Woodham Ferrers at 14:40 on Thursdays
Haha - the album cover had me in stitches!
I live on the Crouch Valley Line so I guess our line is pretty remote and not that interesting... however there are a couple of perks about it!
Did you know that there used to be a branch line after South Woodham Ferrers to go on a journey to Maldon West? It was closed altogether at around the 1950s but you can still walk along the disused tracks if you find the right place.
Also if there's been a downpour in terms of the weather, if you ride along the trains between Althorne and North Fambridge, you'd normally see marshes over on one side. After the downpour they'd be flooded right up to the train tracks so it makes for a really wonderful view over the marshes.
Finally on the last Saturday in September there is the Burnham-On-Crouch Carnival coming around so they have an altered train schedule especially for the carnival in order to get people (sometimes might be a bit drunk!) there and back home again! :P
Thanks for doing my line Geoff and Vicki! I've watched your videos for the last few months and they really give a smile on my face :) Really looking forward to more videos! :D
Good job on the editing and production side, these videos are really well produced.
Big up Leigh on sea! My home station!
I was just about to comment "Southend Pier trains are very thirty minutes, don't miss out". Thankfully you found out and got to enjoy the train!
7:44 - I don't know about from the Southend side, but I can definitely say you can see Southend from Whitstable on most days!
I have seen him on his bicycle.
4:52 That's exactly what they're doing in the Netherlands now. Several stations and surrounding railways are being (or already have been) rebuilt and some train services have even been altered, to make sure different lines don't sit in each other's way anymore.
They are even decreasing curve radii around stations to increase speed limits, lowering platform occupancy (trains basically need less time on the platform tracks, leaving more room for other trains to use them).
They might not be very good at providing on-board amenities or high-speed travel, but they do excel at capacity management and high-frequency timetables. :-D
Apparently according to my mum's constant reminiscing way back in the days of steam Southminster had a turning circle and there used to be a request stop at Creeksea (just before Burnham) and you had to tell the driver you wanted to get off there when you got on the train. would, supposedly the reason the line survived the chop was because someone very high up in British Rail used to sail at Burnham. The Southend line might be good now but i remember back in the 90's it was so bad it was forever known as "The Misery Line"
Watching the whole thing in the post-apocalyptic 2020
The sofa in a field instantly made me think of the LoadingReadyRun sketch "The Couch."
I was born and brought up in Southend. We left when I was about 7. I remember the old green and cream pier trains. Not been back since about 1956. Oh! Rossi's ice cream too :-)
Portsmouth Harbour too: back when it had wooden platforms you could look down through the cracks and see waves below you! Thanks for your wonderful series.
Just did my own video about Shenfield. I never knew what a trainspotters paradise it was!
Southminister is one of my favourite villages out in the Dengie Peninsular. I can also remember when Battlesbridge was a "real station"-ie it was a red brick multi-roomed building with faded yellowing certificates awarded for old "best kept station" competitions, and occupied by a resident porter, who glared at us for interrupting his cup of tea to buy tickets for Southminster. Today Battlesbridge is a hamlet which is just really an antiques centre with two great pubs and an amazing cafe on top of the old mill which gives wonderful views over the River Crouch towards the North Sea. The station is just a platform.
Big up Benfleet! Home station and epic place.
Message from the future. I took the ferry across from Gravesend to Tilbury then came through Dagenham into London as part of a recent trip. At Tilbury Town station there was a guy kicking off with 3 security staff at 9:00am which was strange.
I travel from Shoeburyness and travel to Fenchurch Street every day. Via Grays is the long way round but you worked it out. Double back from Stanford le hope. I live just past Shoebury Geoff and the extra railway you mentioned does run for miles out to a place called Foulness island just at the end of where I live. If you ever want to look at the tracks and trains they have then contact Foulness visitor centre and they can arrange it for you. Great video.
The south end pier railway looked pretty cool! Also Rydenpier head is above water, when you go to the Isle of Wight the pier at Ryde is cool! 🚆
My grandparents met in Southend, and I went there about 5 years ago with them (and before that with my mum). I remember it being cold and rainy when I was forced to walk down the pier. We got the train back. Also my nan reported me lost to security at the theme park because there'd been a miscommunication, so when I got off the ride I was really confused as to why she was crying and hugging me when I walked up to her.
The docks at Tilbury were served by Tilbury Riverside Station, now demolished and replaced by a container depot.
Next to London, Southend on Sea is my favourite place to visit. ☺ However, I will always love Brentwood. ❤
Totally loving that three-wheel food truck in the background at the start!
David (adopted Yeovil Junction)
As well as Ryde Pier Head which you haven't done, Hythe Pierhead station is above water.
Although they don't call there, the South Eastern Javelin trains via Gravesend/ Medway pass right by quite close to the Essex/Greater London Rainham on their way to the Kent Rainham! There's also a tower with "Rainham Steel" written on it at the London Rainham, clearly visible from the trains. Anyone unfamiliar with the areas wishing to travel to Rainham in Kent could be forgiven for thinking they'd arrived early!!
Watching on July 28 - just 25 episodes behind at this stage. Vicki's reaction to all of Geoff's random facts at 4:00 is hilarious.
Parts of Sheffield station are above water too, as the River Sheaf run and Porter Brook under it, Leeds Central station also has the River Aire running under all but 2 of its 17 platforms too.
There is a Victoria Park subway station in Toronto and also an ION LRT station of that name in Kitchener Ontario. That ION station is just steps from the now-disused Charles Street Bus Terminal as well as Kitchener's Victoria Park.
Yay finally two train lines I have been on the C2c line and the Wickford branch to South Minster, my brother used to live in South Woodham Ferrers and we use to travel into London either from Wickford or South Woodham we use to go to Leigh on Sea I have been in the MUSEAM great video really enjoyed it thanks guys 👍
The MOD railway is still active. The line you saw gives access to Pigs Bay, which is used to store out of use trains and cut up some of them. For example there is a whole lot of 1972 Northern Line stock there.
You can definitely see the Kent coast on a clear day. Southend and Whitstable are probably the only 2 parkruns in the country where you can see each course from the other.
Vicki does like the word "quaint" lol....
My brother used to live on the Thames estuary in Kent. When the guns used to go off at Shoeburyness his windows used to rattle because of the bang
Hi Vicki in Nottingham we also have a Victoria Shopping Centre, locally known as the Vicky Centre :)
Also a former Railway Station
Only the majestic tower of Nottingham Victoria remains, as part of the entrance to the shopping centre. Great shame that the Great Central closed.
If your interested there is a project on to recreate the Nottingham Victoria station in 3D. Nottingham Victoria Station 3D on Facebook
@NottsVic3D
Ahhhhh you came to my neck of the woods - Stanford Le Hope.
C2c may be efficient but you can't really get anywhere.
I'm sure you were glad to get back to London lol
Enjoyable video.
Thanks for sharing
There is a reason Fenchurch Street has no Tube station Geoff, it's because there is a 14th Century plague pit beneath the station and to build a Tube station there could potentially release anything inside the plague pit. There may be nothing, but there may be centuries old mutated forms of the deadliest plague in the 1300's.
Also a handy trick with C2C:
Many commuters from my town (Hornchurch) or surrounding District Line stations commuting into central London actually go East to Upminster, pick up a faster C2C service and commute directly to Fenchurch Street, where many pick up the District Line again at Tower Hill, and continue, but three trains ahead of where they would've been had they just stayed on the District Line. I also use that trick when commuting to South Quay, where I work at a Kayaking Centre, changing at Limehouse.
I believe also C2C trains used to stop at Hornchurch until the platforms there were abandoned in the early 1960's.
Another strange thing with C2C:
- They are (to my knowledge) the only operator to use Class 357 EMU's, which are essentially just electric 4 car Class 170's.
- They also make use of the bay platform 1a at Upminster.
Makes them unique I guess!
I was going to suggest Portsmouth Harbour as an 'above water' station (my home town), but looks like I've been beaten to it! Loving the videos, keep up the good work!!!
Had to search ages to find this one! Can't believe you were in Shoebury!
Don't expect you'll be returning there any time soon, haha!
Hope you enjoyed Southend.
Loved this vlog - it reminded of me of when I used live in Essex.
Douglas Adams has had a mentioned in comments, but not the fact that Fenchurch is the name of Arthur Dents girlfriend in the last couple of HG2TG books, she was named Fenchurch because she was conceived in the ticket queue at the station!
All the Stations was talked about on the Smooth Radio network this morning.
You'd think that only one operator on one line would be easy but take Greater Anglia for example- Mainline many many delays and there's no other company. C2C are managed by a decent company hence why they're "always" on time
Seeing you come to Southend where I live in great, it’s a lovely place to be, I hope you thoroughly enjoyed it 😁
Hi Geoff & Vicki, I think you forgot Ryde Pierhead and (part of) Portsmouth Harbour stations when you said that Southend Pier and Blackfriars are the only stations over water. There's another pier railway at Hythe, near Southampton but as it's not on your route, I'll let you off that one!
You go on more trains in one day than I ever have in my whole 12 (and 3 quarters) year long life
thanks for the Margate reference that makes up for me being till sick to stalk you when you did Margate 😂
Is your album on iTunes yet?
I enjoyed the video, new pier trains arriving in 2021 and next time you visit there is a pier museum at the shore end of the pier, worth a look.
Will there be a separate series "All the Victoria stations"?
"All the Victoria stations secrets"?
OlofTheOrange They can launch their next project in Northern Ireland, starting from Great Victoria Street Station in Belfast.
In Australia the state of Victoria has Victorian Railways.
Alas no more as such Nottingham Victoria ( ruclips.net/video/D60XNfJPk8M/видео.html) And Sheffield Victoria ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheffield_Victoria_railway_station )
Sheffield Midland station is above water. The River Sheaf flows beneath it.
Don't forget Leeds over the Aire.
The "Dark Arches" alongside the River Aire, in its culvert beneath Leeds City station, was a "no go" area when I was a lad - it was frequented by "ladies of the night". Nowadays it's been gentrified a bit and turned into cafes, shops, car parks etc, and the canal-side walk is routed through the arches on its way to the station and the city centre.
Or not so beneath it occasionally ;)
c2c don't merge with any other operator unless the service is diverted into Liverpool Street where c2c have to merge with TFL Rail and sometimes Greater Anglia
4:03 Lol the way Victoria tried to ignore that fact cracks me up
No wonder why they split up...
thank you for these videos. especially during the COVID sadness
Watching from Canada....just brought up Google Map to see where you are. Great stuff
I've been following every single all the stations videos and there are fantastic, keep up the good work.
Hi Geoff and Vicki, I hope you also enjoyed Rainham (Kent) and took note of the network southeast Plaque. It's my local station! Good luck with the rest of your travels!
We have two Addingtons and two Mossleys in the NW and as you pointed out once two Chorleys
google maps shows quite a network of track beyond the end of line at shoeburyness. I bet there was a lot of activity during the war
This show is great
Hah, Southminster is one of the few stations I visited in my week-long vacation! It is useful to get to the Othona Community Bradwell-on-Sea, where I attended a singing retreat.
You wouldn't have to go into London at all to get from Rainham to Rainham!
Gravesend still operates a ferry service to Tilbury. You could ferry it over, the terminus on each side of the river is close to a mainline station. I think it'd make a very interesting video, the Tilbury ferry.
For those military railway fans, here's a link to MoD Shoeburyness, the terminus of those hidden MoD tracks. Given its location on the Thames River mouth, the area was a strategic artillery location from the Crimean War onward, and absolutely in both World Wars with rail-mounted howitzers.
Parts of the base are still actively in use by the British Army. It's a well-sited area to send out dangerous ordnance and such over the North Sea. Lots of links to more history on the Wiki page:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MoD_Shoeburyness
Robert Baylor or this for more up to date stuff shoeburyness.qinetiq.com/about/index.aspx
@@richardtalbot8769 We deliver hire vehicles to Qinetiq on occasion, I always ask if I can walk the lines and immediately get shot down (not literally, obviously!). I've suggested they have an open day as I'm sure someone like Hastings Diesels would jump on the chance to run on those old lines for the day!
Rainham, Greater London with a station called Rainham (Essex)
I’m sure a few years back it was changed to London officially (station name) but confused to many people from London who think they live in Essex 🤣
I hope you really enjoyed your ride on c2c, I take them from either Grays or Purfleet and I can say that they run pretty much on time through those stations. And also, there is a lot of fantastic scenery on the network.
Vicki went to OLD LEIGH and my dad lives on the main high street of Leigh on sea.
Vicki next time you are in Laindon give me a shout, I will show you the sights.
So close to the Cliff Lift in Southend!
Geoff, another station in the U.K. Which is above water is Ryde pier head, but you won't know because you DEFINITELY didn't the Isle of White!
Hi Geoff,if I were you I'd check your bottom for bed bugs as they love hiding in old sofas on a brighter note when are you doing all the Irish stations? You will love it over here
At least you did all the Stations in Southend when you did the Pier Railway :-)
My local lines!
Mine too
Same
Same
C2c
Hey, finally on my home turf. Good luck in Norfolk XD
im live in Grays in Essex all my life and used to use the train nearly every week when i went to college to Southend Central (2006-2010) and at Stanford Le Hope there always a little joke calling it Stanford No Hope and i still don't know why. lol
I've walked down them steps in Southend to the amusement park as a child quite a couple times, it just feels weird I he has walked down the same stairs I have walked down, even though loads of people have walked down them. Also, I've been down Southend Pier on the train. The ice-cream on the pier tastes off, don't have it.
You have been on my local rail line. c2c is my local operator
Portsmouth Harbour is a station over water.
Dare i say that Ryde pier head is also above water.😊
When they finish its resignalling and upgrading, Thameslink will be a nightmare to operate because of all the flat junctions. It's crying out for flyovers to enable grade separation.
Looking at an OS map of the Shoeburyness area it would appear that the MOD railway is quite substantial - maybe 8 miles of track.
9:46 - Smethwick Galton Bridge Is above water but not entirely
DierMullacGamer Been there, the LL platforms arent but the HL platforms are. Bristol Temple Meads is also built on a river.
Great video again Geoff & Vicki - looking forward to you covering the Midlands & Wales! No tea was consumed during this video LOL?
Geoff should be the head of All of British Railways. Give him 5 years to fix it. I'm sure he could
I like going to southend central and Victoria
4:56 - When junctions are removed to increase operational robustness, as with the removal of the Spa Road Junction as part of the Thameslink Programme, there was uproar that all services from New Cross, St Johns, Deptford, Greenwich, Maze Hill and Westcombe Park could no longer go to Charing Cross and had to go to Cannon Street.
The Southern and SouthEastern network patterns are historically very complex, with lots of junctions and a plethora of services. Removing some of the complexity might make sense from an operational robustness perspective, but there will always be people who are incensed that certain journeys are no longer possible direct. The loss of Spa Road Junction means that, at most, you have to change from a Cannon Street to a Charing Cross train at London Bridge (possible again now that London Bridge is fully open, albeit with the Thameslink timetable yet to change to take full advantage), or you have to use different onward journey arrangements - but it was still hard on those users whose journeys became more complex and took longer.
Two extra Grays facts: part of Who Framed Roger Rabbit was filmed in the old State cinema and birthplace of Russell Brand. It's the (and my childhood) home of facts that will never be featured in a pub quiz.
also: I'm almost (mostly) sure the District Line once ran seasonal trains to Southend. I assume along LTS rail rather than some long-lost railway of its own.
Went to the same primary school as he did. Really is a small world